SKILL.md

Prisma CLI Reference

Name: prisma-cli
Author: prisma

Complete reference for all Prisma CLI commands. This skill provides guidance on command usage, options, and best practices for current Prisma releases.

When to Apply

Reference this skill when:

Setting up a new Prisma project (prisma init)

Generating Prisma Client (prisma generate)

Running database migrations (prisma migrate)

Managing database state (prisma db push/pull)

Using local development database (prisma dev)

Debugging Prisma issues (prisma debug)

Rule Categories by Priority

Priority

Command Categories

Quick Reference

Project Setup

# Initialize new project (creates prisma/ folder and prisma.config.ts)

prisma init

# Initialize with specific database

prisma init --datasource-provider postgresql

prisma init --datasource-provider mysql

prisma init --datasource-provider sqlite

# Initialize with Prisma Postgres (cloud)

prisma init --db

# Initialize with an example model

prisma init --with-model

Client Generation

# Generate Prisma Client

prisma generate

# Watch mode for development

prisma generate --watch

# Generate specific generator only

prisma generate --generator client

Bun Runtime

When using Bun, always add the --bun flag so Prisma runs with the Bun runtime (otherwise it falls back to Node.js because of the CLI shebang):

bunx --bun prisma init

bunx --bun prisma generate

Local Development Database

# Start local Prisma Postgres

prisma dev

# Start with specific name

prisma dev --name myproject

# Start in background (detached)

prisma dev --detach

# List all local instances

prisma dev ls

# Stop instance

prisma dev stop myproject

# Remove instance data

prisma dev rm myproject

Database Operations

# Pull schema from existing database

prisma db pull

# Push schema to database (no migrations)

prisma db push

# Seed database

prisma db seed

# Execute raw SQL

prisma db execute --file ./script.sql

Migrations (Development)

# Create and apply migration

prisma migrate dev

# Create migration with name

prisma migrate dev --name add_users_table

# Create migration without applying

prisma migrate dev --create-only

# Reset database and apply all migrations

prisma migrate reset

Migrations (Production)

# Apply pending migrations (CI/CD)

prisma migrate deploy

# Check migration status

prisma migrate status

# Compare schemas and generate diff

prisma migrate diff --from-config-datasource --to-schema schema.prisma --script

Utility Commands

# Open Prisma Studio (database GUI)

prisma studio

# Start Prisma's MCP server for AI tools

prisma mcp

# Show version info

prisma version

prisma -v

# Debug information

prisma debug

# Validate schema

prisma validate

# Format schema

prisma format

Current Prisma CLI Setup

New Configuration File

Use prisma.config.ts for CLI configuration:

import 'dotenv/config'

import { defineConfig, env } from 'prisma/config'

export default defineConfig({

  schema: 'prisma/schema.prisma',

  migrations: {

    path: 'prisma/migrations',

    seed: 'tsx prisma/seed.ts',

  },

  datasource: {

    url: env('DATABASE_URL'),

  },

})

Current Command Behavior

Run prisma generate explicitly after migrate dev, db push, or other schema syncs when you need fresh client output

Run prisma db seed explicitly after migrate dev or migrate reset when you need seed data

Use prisma db execute --file ... for raw SQL scripts

Environment Variables

Load environment variables explicitly in prisma.config.ts, commonly with dotenv:

// prisma.config.ts

import 'dotenv/config'

Rule Files

See individual rule files for detailed command documentation:

references/init.md           - Project initialization

references/generate.md       - Client generation

references/dev.md            - Local development database

references/db-pull.md        - Database introspection

references/db-push.md        - Schema push

references/db-seed.md        - Database seeding

references/db-execute.md     - Raw SQL execution

references/migrate-dev.md    - Development migrations

references/migrate-deploy.md - Production migrations

references/migrate-reset.md  - Database reset

references/migrate-status.md - Migration status

references/migrate-resolve.md - Migration resolution

references/migrate-diff.md   - Schema diffing

references/studio.md         - Database GUI

references/mcp.md            - Prisma MCP server

references/validate.md       - Schema validation

references/format.md         - Schema formatting

references/debug.md          - Debug info

How to Use

Use the command categories above for navigation, then open the specific command reference file you need.

prisma-cli