Use when a user wants to upgrade, update, or migrate a dbt-core project to the latest version — e.g. "upgrade my dbt project," "migrate this off dbt-core 1.5," "get this project running on the latest dbt," "bump the dbt-core version." Upgrades a dbt-core v1 project (on 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, or 1.7) all the way to 1.12, applying the required breaking, behavior, and deprecated changes from a data-driven issue corpus. Inputs — starting_version (the project's current dbt-core minor, one of 1.3/1.4/1.5/1.6/1.7) and adapter_type (snowflake/redshift/bigquery/databricks/spark); both are normally supplied by the caller (e.g. the dbt VS Code extension), with fallbacks described in the skill.

Creates unit test YAML definitions that mock upstream model inputs and validate expected outputs. Use when adding unit tests for a dbt model or practicing test-driven development (TDD) in dbt.

Writes and executes SQL queries against the data warehouse using dbt's Semantic Layer or ad-hoc SQL to answer business questions. Use when a user asks about analytics, metrics, KPIs, or data (e.g., "What were total sales last quarter?", "Show me top customers by revenue"). NOT for validating, testing, or building dbt models during development.

Use when creating or modifying dbt Semantic Layer components — semantic models, metrics, dimensions, entities, measures, or time spines. Covers MetricFlow configuration, metric types (simple, derived, cumulative, ratio, conversion), and validation for both latest and legacy YAML specs.

Generates MCP server configuration JSON, resolves authentication setup, and validates server connectivity for dbt. Use when setting up, configuring, or troubleshooting the dbt MCP server for AI tools like Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, or VS Code.

Retrieves and searches dbt documentation pages in LLM-friendly markdown format. Use when fetching dbt documentation, looking up dbt features, or answering questions about dbt Cloud, dbt Core, or the dbt Semantic Layer.

Audits dbt documentation coverage and drafts missing model/column descriptions in the project's own house style, one folder at a time, for human review. Use when documenting undocumented models, backfilling missing YAML descriptions, auditing doc coverage, or keeping schema YAML in sync with model SQL — especially on multi-contributor projects where new models routinely land undocumented.

Formats and executes dbt CLI commands, selects the correct dbt executable, and structures command parameters. Use when running models, tests, builds, compiles, or show queries via dbt CLI. Use when unsure which dbt executable to use or how to format command parameters.

Diagnoses dbt Cloud/platform job failures by analyzing run logs, querying the Admin API, reviewing git history, and investigating data issues. Use when a dbt Cloud/platform job fails and you need to diagnose the root cause, especially when error messages are unclear or when intermittent failures occur. Do not use for local dbt development errors.

Builds and modifies dbt models, writes SQL transformations using ref() and source(), creates tests, and validates results with dbt show. Use when doing any dbt work - building or modifying models, debugging errors, exploring unfamiliar data sources, writing tests, or evaluating impact of changes.

Use when a user is enabling, configuring, optimizing, or debugging dbt State (the server-backed reuse mechanism that clones or skips nodes instead of rebuilding them). Use when they conflate dbt State with the `state:modified` selector or `--state` deferral. Use when asked about models rebuilding unexpectedly, views with `select *` rebuilding, volatile SQL (`current_timestamp()`, `random()`) rebuilding or not, cross-developer cloning, lag_tolerance.

Use when changing a dbt model in a way that could break its consumers — renaming, removing, or retyping a column, or changing a model that downstream models, exposures, dashboards, or BI tools depend on — to judge whether the change is breaking and who it affects. Also use when versioning a model (model versions, latest_version, latest_version_pointer, deprecation_date, migration windows), enforcing contracts, setting access or groups, or doing multi-project dbt Mesh work (cross-project refs via dependencies.yml, disambiguating similarly-named models, splitting a monolith). Covers single- and multi-project, and planning or advising as well as implementing.

Creates tests for Hilla use cases on both sides of the browser boundary: Vitest + React Testing Library tests for the React/TypeScript view (with the generated endpoint clients mocked) and Spring Boot integration tests for the @BrowserCallable service behind it. Use when the user asks to "test a Hilla view", "write Hilla tests", "test a React view for Vaadin", "test a @BrowserCallable service", "write Vitest tests for a Hilla app", or mentions Hilla testing, React Testing Library for Vaadin, endpoint mocking, or testing TSX views.

Implements use cases by creating Hilla views — React/TypeScript views with file-based routing calling @BrowserCallable Java services — and jOOQ queries for the data access layer. Use when the user asks to "implement with Hilla", "create a Hilla view", "build a React view for Vaadin", "create a @BrowserCallable endpoint", or mentions Hilla, client-side Vaadin views, file-based routing, TSX views, or React + jOOQ.

Implements use cases by creating Vaadin Flow views, forms, and grids — server-side Java UI — and jOOQ queries for the data access layer. Use when the user asks to "implement a use case", "build the UI", "create a Vaadin view", "write the data access layer", or mentions Vaadin Flow, server-side Java views, jOOQ queries, Java web app, or database-backed UI. For Hilla (React/TypeScript) views use the implement-hilla skill instead.

Creates Karibu server-side unit tests for Vaadin views covering navigation, component interactions, form validation, grid operations, and notifications. Use when the user asks to "write Karibu tests", "unit test a Vaadin view", "test the UI server-side", "create view tests", or mentions Karibu testing, Vaadin unit tests, or server-side UI testing.

Creates Playwright browser-based tests for Vaadin views using the Drama Finder library for type-safe element wrappers with accessibility-first APIs. Covers two test types: integration tests for a single use case (UC-*) and end-to-end journey tests for a test case (TC-*) spanning multiple use cases. Use when the user asks to "write Playwright tests", "create e2e tests", "write integration tests", "test in the browser", "write IT tests", "automate a test case", "test a user journey", or mentions end-to-end testing, browser tests, UI integration tests, Playwright for Vaadin, or Drama Finder. Also trigger when the user references a use case (UC-*) or a test case (TC-*) and asks for Playwright or E2E tests.

Creates Spring Boot tests for REST controllers and Spring Data JPA repositories. Defaults to MockMvcTester and RestTestClient + Testcontainers for new projects (asking the user to confirm on the very first backend test), but detects and follows whichever convention a project already uses — including legacy MockMvc or RestAssured + Testcontainers — rather than migrating it. Use when the user asks to "write backend tests", "test the REST API", "test the controller", "write a Spring Boot test", "test the JPA repository", or mentions MockMvc, MockMvcTester, RestAssured, RestTestClient, Testcontainers, @SpringBootTest, or server-side Java testing for this stack.

Creates Vitest component tests for Angular views using Angular's own testing idioms — TestBed, ComponentFixture, and HttpTestingController — not React Testing Library patterns. Use when the user asks to "write frontend tests", "test the Angular component", "write a Vitest test", "unit test an Angular page", or mentions TestBed, HttpTestingController, or component testing for this stack.