FluentMigratorDatabase Schema Management

What is FluentMigrator? ​

FluentMigrator is a migration framework for .NET that allows you to manage database schema changes in a structured, version-controlled way. Instead of manually running SQL scripts, you write migrations as C# classes that can be executed automatically.

The Problem ​

Traditional database development often involves:

• Manual SQL scripts that need to be run by each developer
• No clear versioning of database changes
• Risk of inconsistencies between development, testing, and production environments
• Difficulty tracking what changes have been applied
• Database-specific SQL that doesn't work across different providers

The Solution ​

FluentMigrator solves these problems by:

• Code-based migrations: Database changes are written in C# using a fluent API
• Version control: Migrations are part of your codebase and can be checked into source control
• Automatic tracking: FluentMigrator keeps track of which migrations have been applied
• Database agnostic: Write once, run on multiple database providers
• Rollback support: Define both Up and Down methods for reversible migrations

[Migration(20240101000000)]
public class CreateUsersTable : Migration
{
    public override void Up()
    {
        Create.Table("Users")
            .WithColumn("Id").AsInt32().NotNullable().PrimaryKey().Identity()
            .WithColumn("Username").AsString(50).NotNullable().Unique()
            .WithColumn("Email").AsString(255).NotNullable()
            .WithColumn("CreatedAt").AsDateTime().NotNullable().WithDefault(SystemMethods.CurrentDateTime);
    }

    public override void Down()
    {
        Delete.Table("Users");
    }
}

Benefits ​

Clear syntax ​

• FluentMigrator uses a fluent API that reads like natural language:

Version Control Integration ​

• Migrations are C# code files that integrate naturally with version control
• Easy to see what changed and when
• Collaborative development without merge conflicts
• Branching and merging of schema changes

Database Provider Independence ​

• SQL Server
• PostgreSQL
• MySQL / MariaDB
• SQLite
• Oracle
• Firebird
• And more...

Write your migrations once and run them on any supported database.

Team Development ​

• All team members can apply the same schema changes
• New developers can get up to date with a single command
• No more "Did you remember to run this script?" conversations

CI/CD Integration ​

• Migrations can be automatically applied as part of deployment
• Consistent schema updates across all environments
• Reduced deployment errors

Get Started ​

Ready to start using FluentMigrator? Check out our Quick Start Guide to create your first migration in just a few minutes.

Community & Support ​

• GitHub: fluentmigrator/fluentmigrator
• Stack Overflow: Use the fluent-migrator tag
• Discussions: GitHub Discussions
• Issues: Bug Reports & Feature Requests