diff --git a/doc/development/migration_style_guide.md b/doc/development/migration_style_guide.md index a211effdfa7..6f31e5b82e5 100644 --- a/doc/development/migration_style_guide.md +++ b/doc/development/migration_style_guide.md @@ -182,6 +182,34 @@ class MyMigration < ActiveRecord::Migration end ``` +## Adding foreign-key constraints + +When adding a foreign-key constraint to either an existing or new +column remember to also add a index on the column. + +This is _required_ if the foreign-key constraint specifies +`ON DELETE CASCADE` or `ON DELETE SET NULL` behavior. On a cascading +delete, the [corresponding record needs to be retrieved using an +index](https://www.cybertec-postgresql.com/en/postgresql-indexes-and-foreign-keys/) +(otherwise, we'd need to scan the whole table) for subsequent update or +deletion. + +Here's an example where we add a new column with a foreign key +constraint. Note it includes `index: true` to create an index for it. + +```ruby +class Migration < ActiveRecord::Migration + + def change + add_reference :model, :other_model, index: true, foreign_key: { on_delete: :cascade } + end +end +``` + +When adding a foreign-key constraint to an existing column, we +have to employ `add_concurrent_foreign_key` and `add_concurrent_index` +instead of `add_reference`. + ## Adding Columns With Default Values When adding columns with default values you must use the method