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Database Changes Tracking

Learn how to track database metadata changes over time as your applications evolve. Autonify maintains a complete history of schema modifications, allowing you to monitor additions, modifications, and deletions across your data sources.

VIDEO TUTORIAL⏱️ 2 min

📹 Tracking Database Changes Over Time

Discover how to monitor metadata changes, view scan history, and track schema evolution in your databases.

Understanding Change Tracking​

Autonify automatically tracks database schema changes by comparing each scan with the previous one:

  • Automatic Detection: Every scan compares against the last successful scan
  • Complete History: All changes are preserved for audit and analysis
  • Schema Evolution: Track how your database structure evolves over time
  • Zero Data Access: Only metadata is tracked, never actual data content

Scan History Overview​

Viewing Scan History​

Navigate to your data source and access the scan history:

  1. Open your data source from the team dashboard
  2. View the scan history table showing all previous scans
  3. Each scan displays status, duration, and trigger information

Scan History Table

Scan Status Types​

  • Completed: Scan finished successfully with or without changes
  • Duplicate: No changes detected since the last scan
  • In Progress: Currently scanning
  • Failed: Scan encountered errors
  • Queued: Waiting to start
  • Cancelled: Scan was cancelled

Managing Duplicate Scans​

Duplicate scans indicate no schema changes were detected:

  • Hidden by default to reduce clutter
  • Toggle between "Show duplicates" and "Hide duplicates"
  • Useful for confirming schema stability
  • Indicates your database structure is unchanged

Show Duplicates Toggle

Viewing Changes​

Accessing Change Details​

To view what changed in a scan:

  1. Click View Details on any completed scan in the scan history
  2. This opens the scan overview page showing:
    • Scan status, timestamp, and duration
    • Scan type (Full or as specified)
    • Triggered by (System or user)
    • Database and table counts
  3. Click the Changes button to view all modifications
  4. The changes page displays modifications hierarchically by database and schema

Change Categories​

Autonify tracks three types of changes:

Added Elements​

  • New tables created
  • New columns added to existing tables
  • New constraints or indexes
  • New schemas or databases

Modified Elements​

  • Column data type changes
  • Nullability modifications
  • Default value updates
  • Constraint definition changes

Removed Elements​

  • Deleted tables
  • Removed columns
  • Dropped constraints or indexes
  • Removed schemas

Change Categories View

Change Details Interface​

Breaking Changes Alert​

When breaking changes are detected:

  • Alert appears at the top of the changes view
  • Shows count of breaking changes by impact level (high, medium, low)
  • Expandable list of specific breaking changes
  • Click on a breaking change to navigate directly to it

Hierarchical Tree View​

The changes are displayed in an expandable tree structure:

  1. Database Level: Top-level organisation
  2. Schema Level: Groups changes by schema
  3. Table Level: Shows table-specific changes
  4. Column Level: Individual column modifications

Exploring Changes​

Navigate through detected changes:

  • Click expand arrows to drill down into specific changes
  • Select any element to view detailed change information
  • Review exact specifications of what was added, modified, or removed
  • See complete metadata for new elements

Filtering and Navigation​

Tools to navigate and filter changes:

Search Bar​

  • Search for specific schemas, tables, or columns by name
  • Filters results in real-time as you type

Filter Dropdown​

Access via the Filter button to toggle:

  • Added: Show/hide newly added elements
  • Modified: Show/hide modified elements
  • Removed: Show/hide removed elements
  • Breaking Changes Only: Show only breaking changes

View Controls​

  • Expand: Expand all nodes in the tree
  • Collapse: Collapse all nodes in the tree

Hierarchical Change View

Change Details Panel​

When selecting a specific change:

  • Element Type: Table, column, constraint, etc.
  • Change Type: Added, modified, or removed
  • Specifications: Complete metadata details
  • Timestamps: When the change was detected

Large Change Sets​

For scans with many changes:

  • Maximum of 1,000 changes displayed at once
  • Warning message appears for larger change sets
  • Use filters to find specific items
  • Search to locate particular tables or columns

Understanding Scan Results​

First Scan​

The initial scan establishes your baseline:

  • All discovered elements marked as "Added"
  • Creates the foundation for future comparisons
  • Captures complete schema structure

Subsequent Scans​

Each following scan:

  • Compares against the previous successful scan
  • Reports only actual changes
  • Maintains change history for tracking

No Changes Detected​

When a scan finds no differences:

  • Displays "No Changes Detected" message
  • Explains that database schema remains unchanged
  • Still provides "View Changes Details" button for review

Change Metrics​

Each scan summary shows:

  • Total elements added
  • Total elements modified
  • Total elements removed
  • Overall change count

Change Metrics Summary

Practical Use Cases​

Development Tracking​

  • Monitor schema changes during development
  • Verify deployments completed successfully
  • Track feature implementation progress

Change Auditing​

  • Maintain compliance with change records
  • Document when modifications occurred
  • Identify who triggered each scan

Impact Analysis​

  • Understand schema evolution patterns
  • Identify frequently changing areas
  • Plan maintenance windows

Troubleshooting​

  • Detect unexpected schema changes
  • Verify migration success
  • Identify missing or incorrect changes

Scan Scheduling​

While scans can be triggered manually:

  • Manual Scans: On-demand via "Start New Scan"
  • Scheduled Scans: Automated regular scanning
  • Post-Deployment: After database migrations

Best Practices​

Regular Scanning​

  • Scan after each deployment
  • Schedule regular scans for production
  • More frequent scans during active development

Change Review​

  • Review changes after deployments
  • Investigate unexpected modifications
  • Document significant changes

Duplicate Management​

  • Keep duplicates hidden for cleaner view
  • Show when verifying stability
  • Use to confirm no unintended changes

Interpreting Results​

No Changes (Duplicate)​

  • Schema is stable and unchanged
  • Good sign for production systems
  • Expected between deployments

Many Changes​

  • Active development or migration
  • Review carefully for accuracy
  • Verify all changes are intentional

Unexpected Changes​

  • Investigate immediately
  • May indicate unauthorised modifications
  • Check with development team

Next Steps​

After understanding change tracking:

  1. Configure scan schedules
  2. Review data catalog
  3. Set up data quality monitoring
  4. View data volume trends