/migrate

What

Guided EF Core migration workflow that takes you from model change to applied migration safely. It reviews what changed in your entity model, creates a properly named migration, reviews the generated SQL for data loss and locking risks, and applies it with a documented rollback path.

This command enforces the "one logical change per migration" principle and prevents the most common migration mistakes: blind application, data loss, and un-rollbackable batched changes.

When

• After modifying entity classes, DbContext configuration, or relationships
• User says: "add migration", "update database", "create migration"
• After adding a new entity or table
• After renaming, removing, or changing column types
• After modifying indexes or constraints
• When the user needs to generate SQL scripts for DBA review

How

Step 1: Assess Current State

dotnet ef migrations list --project <InfraProject> --startup-project <ApiProject>

Check for:

• Pending migrations not yet applied to the development database
• Model changes that have not been captured in a migration yet

Step 2: Review Model Changes

Use MCP tools to understand what changed:

find_symbol(name: entity or DbSet name) -- locate the changed entity
get_type_hierarchy(typeName: entity) -- check inheritance changes
find_references(symbolName: changed property) -- assess downstream impact

Confirm the change is a single logical unit. If not, guide the user to split into multiple migrations.

Step 3: Generate Migration

Create with a descriptive name that explains the change, not the entity:

dotnet ef migrations add <DescriptiveName> --project <InfraProject> --startup-project <ApiProject>

Naming convention: Add|Remove|Rename|Modify + WhatChanged

• AddOrderShippingAddress
• RenameCustomerEmailToContactEmail
• AddIndexOnOrderCreatedAt
• RemoveDeprecatedProductSku

Step 4: Review Generated SQL

dotnet ef migrations script --idempotent --project <InfraProject> --startup-project <ApiProject>

Flag and report:

• DROP COLUMN / DROP TABLE -- Confirm data loss is intentional
• ALTER COLUMN type changes -- Check for precision loss or truncation
• Large table ALTER -- Warn about potential lock duration
• Missing DEFAULT -- New non-nullable columns need defaults for existing rows

If data transformation is needed, guide the user through a multi-step migration (add nullable column, copy data, set non-nullable, drop old column).

Step 5: Apply Migration

dotnet ef database update --project <InfraProject> --startup-project <ApiProject>

Step 6: Verify

dotnet build
dotnet test

Document the rollback command for this migration:

dotnet ef database update <PreviousMigrationName> --project <InfraProject> --startup-project <ApiProject>

Invokes

Type	Name	Purpose
Skill	migration-workflow	Safe migration patterns and rollback strategy
Skill	ef-core	Entity configuration and query patterns
Agent	ef-core-specialist	Database design and migration expertise

MCP Tools Used

• find_symbol -- Locate entity types, DbContext, and configurations
• get_type_hierarchy -- Understand entity inheritance for TPH/TPT/TPC
• find_references -- Assess impact of schema changes on queries
• get_diagnostics -- Catch EF Core warnings after migration generation

Example

User: /migrate

Claude: Checking migration state...
  Last applied: 20250710_AddOrderTable
  Model changes detected: new ShippingAddress property on Order entity.

  Creating migration: AddOrderShippingAddress
  Reviewing generated SQL...

  SQL Review:
  - ALTER TABLE "Orders" ADD "ShippingStreet" text NULL
  - ALTER TABLE "Orders" ADD "ShippingCity" text NULL
  - ALTER TABLE "Orders" ADD "ShippingZip" text NULL
  No data loss. No locking risk. Safe to apply.

  Applying migration... Done.
  Build: green. Tests: 34/34 passed.

  Rollback command (if needed):
  dotnet ef database update AddOrderTable --project src/Infrastructure --startup-project src/Api

Related

• /build-fix -- Fix build errors that may arise after migration changes