Database Migration
A controlled change to a database schema data or storage platform.
Plain English
A planned update to how stored data is structured or moved.
In context
Database migrations require compatibility sequencing validation recovery planning and attention to long-running or irreversible operations.
Example
“Deploy the nullable column before the code that starts writing to it.”
When you'll hear this
- schema changes
- system upgrades
- data platform moves
Common misunderstanding
A database migration is not automatically safe because the migration command completed successfully.
Also known as
schema migrationdata migration
Commonly used by
Related terms
Updated: 2026-08-26
