Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit login

Modern schema migration tools?

Please list those widely used modern schema migration tools as they occur in other popular languages like PHP, Python, Perl, and so on.

In rails, users don't futz with migration version numbers. Those are handled automatically by the system. The user simply specifies a migration, e.g. "I want to add this column to this table." The migration is then automatically run when doing the next deployment. That doesn't work in 90% of the cases - it works in 100% of the cases.

Woe be unto the developer whose deployment process only works 90% of the time.




Please list

I already did in another comment but I'll repeat: django south, hibernate schemaupgrade, datamapper automigrate, postfacto (standalone python/postgres), sqlalchemy-migrate

e.g. "I want to add this column to this table."

The difference is that in Rails the user has to update the model and create a matching migration. In most other frameworks the second part is strictly optional and by default implicit.

Woe be unto the developer whose deployment process only works 90% of the time.

That's not what happens. In practice there's always a review step.

However, I've already been accused of strawmanning, so rather than taking this further offtopic let me just point you to http://south.aeracode.org/docs/tutorial/part1.html


At least several, maybe all, of those were directly inspired by rails migrations. Whether something automatic, but imperfect (renames, anyone?) is actually better than something explicit but easy enough seems a matter of taste.


At least several, maybe all, of those were directly inspired by rails migrations.

Actually most of them (except datamapper and postfacto) have existed before rails was created.

And I'll argue strongly against "matter of taste" when it comes to error-prone routine procedures.




Consider applying for YC's Spring batch! Applications are open till Feb 11.

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: