From e71cefd04ff3ced9da8fd91a581426566a2682ec Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: "mintlify[bot]" <109931778+mintlify[bot]@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Tue, 26 May 2026 10:13:59 +0000 Subject: [PATCH 1/2] docs: add lightdash deploy vs refresh comparison --- references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx | 16 ++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 16 insertions(+) diff --git a/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx b/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx index cbedc673..9ed7fead 100644 --- a/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx +++ b/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx @@ -14,6 +14,22 @@ There are five ways to sync changes from dbt into Lightdash. They differ in **wh For ready-to-use workflow templates, see the [`lightdash/cli-actions`](https://github.com/lightdash/cli-actions) repo. +### `lightdash deploy` vs `lightdash refresh` + +The two CLI commands are often confused. Here's the quick difference: + +| | `lightdash deploy` | `lightdash refresh` | +| --- | --- | --- | +| **What it does** | Pushes your local dbt project to a Lightdash project. Runs `dbt compile` (or `dbt list`) locally to produce a fresh `manifest.json`, then sends the compiled models/explores to the Lightdash server. | Tells the Lightdash server to re-pull from the connected git remote and recompile, server-side. No local dbt run, no local files involved — it's the API-driven equivalent of clicking **Refresh dbt** in the UI. | +| **Where compilation happens** | Locally (laptop or CI runner) | Lightdash servers | +| **Requires a remote git connection?** | No | Yes | +| **Flags** | Many (`--project`, `--select`, `--full-refresh`, `--create`, `--use-batched-deploy`, etc.) | Essentially none (just `--verbose`) | +| **Use when** | You've changed dbt models or Lightdash YAML metadata locally and want those changes to land in a Lightdash project. | Lightdash already points at a git repo and you just want it to pull the latest. | + +**Rule of thumb:** +- Local dbt code you want to push → `deploy` +- Lightdash already points at a git repo and you just want it to pull the latest → `refresh` + ### Sync mechanisms From baaf87c6ded369638985c566cdeaf147ef09ca73 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: "mintlify[bot]" <109931778+mintlify[bot]@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Tue, 26 May 2026 11:45:54 +0000 Subject: [PATCH 2/2] docs: move deploy vs refresh comparison below sync mechanisms --- references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx | 32 ++++++++++++------------ 1 file changed, 16 insertions(+), 16 deletions(-) diff --git a/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx b/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx index 9ed7fead..5f10f985 100644 --- a/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx +++ b/references/integrations/dbt-projects.mdx @@ -14,22 +14,6 @@ There are five ways to sync changes from dbt into Lightdash. They differ in **wh For ready-to-use workflow templates, see the [`lightdash/cli-actions`](https://github.com/lightdash/cli-actions) repo. -### `lightdash deploy` vs `lightdash refresh` - -The two CLI commands are often confused. Here's the quick difference: - -| | `lightdash deploy` | `lightdash refresh` | -| --- | --- | --- | -| **What it does** | Pushes your local dbt project to a Lightdash project. Runs `dbt compile` (or `dbt list`) locally to produce a fresh `manifest.json`, then sends the compiled models/explores to the Lightdash server. | Tells the Lightdash server to re-pull from the connected git remote and recompile, server-side. No local dbt run, no local files involved — it's the API-driven equivalent of clicking **Refresh dbt** in the UI. | -| **Where compilation happens** | Locally (laptop or CI runner) | Lightdash servers | -| **Requires a remote git connection?** | No | Yes | -| **Flags** | Many (`--project`, `--select`, `--full-refresh`, `--create`, `--use-batched-deploy`, etc.) | Essentially none (just `--verbose`) | -| **Use when** | You've changed dbt models or Lightdash YAML metadata locally and want those changes to land in a Lightdash project. | Lightdash already points at a git repo and you just want it to pull the latest. | - -**Rule of thumb:** -- Local dbt code you want to push → `deploy` -- Lightdash already points at a git repo and you just want it to pull the latest → `refresh` - ### Sync mechanisms @@ -137,6 +121,22 @@ The two CLI commands are often confused. Here's the quick difference: +### `lightdash deploy` vs `lightdash refresh` + +The two CLI commands above (`lightdash deploy` and `lightdash refresh`) are often confused. Here's the quick difference: + +| | `lightdash deploy` | `lightdash refresh` | +| --- | --- | --- | +| **What it does** | Pushes your local dbt project to a Lightdash project. Runs `dbt compile` (or `dbt list`) locally to produce a fresh `manifest.json`, then sends the compiled models/explores to the Lightdash server. | Tells the Lightdash server to re-pull from the connected git remote and recompile, server-side. No local dbt run, no local files involved — it's the API-driven equivalent of clicking **Refresh dbt** in the UI. | +| **Where compilation happens** | Locally (laptop or CI runner) | Lightdash servers | +| **Requires a remote git connection?** | No | Yes | +| **Flags** | Many (`--project`, `--select`, `--full-refresh`, `--create`, `--use-batched-deploy`, etc.) | Essentially none (just `--verbose`) | +| **Use when** | You've changed dbt models or Lightdash YAML metadata locally and want those changes to land in a Lightdash project. | Lightdash already points at a git repo and you just want it to pull the latest. | + +**Rule of thumb:** +- Local dbt code you want to push → `deploy` +- Lightdash already points at a git repo and you just want it to pull the latest → `refresh` + ### Decision matrix | | #1 `lightdash deploy` — local CLI | #2 `lightdash deploy` — CI | #3 "Refresh dbt" — UI button | #4 `lightdash refresh` — CI | #5 `POST /refresh` API — CI |