What are Rails migrations and how do I use them?

What are Rails migrations and how do I use them?

Rails migrations are a way to modify your database schema over time in a consistent and easy manner. You can create, modify, and delete tables and columns using migration files.

How do I create a new migration?

You can create a new migration by running the command rails generate migration MigrationName in your terminal. Replace MigrationName with a descriptive name for your migration.

Can you give me an example of a migration file?

Sure! A simple migration file to create a 'users' table might look like this:

class CreateUsers < ActiveRecord::Migration[6.0]
  def change
    create_table :users do |t|
      t.string :name
      t.string :email
      t.timestamps
    end
  end
end

How do I run the migration after creating it?

You can run the migration by executing rails db:migrate in your terminal. This will apply all pending migrations to your database.