electric-sql/electric-orm

This skill builds on electric-shapes and electric-schema-shapes. Read those first.

Electric — ORM Integration

Setup

Drizzle ORM

import { drizzle } from 'drizzle-orm/node-postgres'
import { sql } from 'drizzle-orm'
import { todos } from './schema'

const db = drizzle(pool)

// Write with txid for Electric reconciliation
async function createTodo(text: string, userId: string) {
  return await db.transaction(async (tx) => {
    const [row] = await tx
      .insert(todos)
      .values({
        id: crypto.randomUUID(),
        text,
        userId,
      })
      .returning()

    const [{ txid }] = await tx.execute<{ txid: string }>(
      sql`SELECT pg_current_xact_id()::xid::text AS txid`
    )

    return { id: row.id, txid: parseInt(txid) }
  })
}

Prisma

import { PrismaClient } from '@prisma/client'

const prisma = new PrismaClient()

async function createTodo(text: string, userId: string) {
  return await prisma.$transaction(async (tx) => {
    const todo = await tx.todo.create({
      data: { id: crypto.randomUUID(), text, userId },
    })

    const [{ txid }] = await tx.$queryRaw<[{ txid: string }]>`
      SELECT pg_current_xact_id()::xid::text AS txid
    `

    return { id: todo.id, txid: parseInt(txid) }
  })
}

Core Patterns

Drizzle migration with REPLICA IDENTITY

// In migration file
import { sql } from 'drizzle-orm'

export async function up(db) {
  await db.execute(sql`
    CREATE TABLE todos (
      id UUID PRIMARY KEY DEFAULT gen_random_uuid(),
      text TEXT NOT NULL,
      completed BOOLEAN DEFAULT false
    )
  `)
  await db.execute(sql`ALTER TABLE todos REPLICA IDENTITY FULL`)
}

Prisma migration with REPLICA IDENTITY

-- prisma/migrations/001_init/migration.sql
CREATE TABLE "todos" (
  "id" UUID PRIMARY KEY DEFAULT gen_random_uuid(),
  "text" TEXT NOT NULL,
  "completed" BOOLEAN DEFAULT false
);

ALTER TABLE "todos" REPLICA IDENTITY FULL;

Collection onInsert with ORM

import { createCollection } from '@tanstack/react-db'
import { electricCollectionOptions } from '@tanstack/electric-db-collection'

export const todoCollection = createCollection(
  electricCollectionOptions({
    id: 'todos',
    schema: todoSchema,
    getKey: (row) => row.id,
    shapeOptions: { url: '/api/todos' },
    onInsert: async ({ transaction }) => {
      const newTodo = transaction.mutations[0].modified
      const { txid } = await createTodo(newTodo.text, newTodo.userId)
      return { txid }
    },
  })
)

Common Mistakes

HIGH Not returning txid from ORM write operations

Wrong:

// Drizzle — no txid returned
const [todo] = await db.insert(todos).values({ text: 'New' }).returning()
return { id: todo.id }

Correct:

// Drizzle — txid in same transaction
const result = await db.transaction(async (tx) => {
  const [row] = await tx.insert(todos).values({ text: 'New' }).returning()
  const [{ txid }] = await tx.execute<{ txid: string }>(
    sql`SELECT pg_current_xact_id()::xid::text AS txid`
  )
  return { id: row.id, txid: parseInt(txid) }
})

ORMs do not return pg_current_xact_id() by default. Add a raw SQL query for txid within the same transaction. Without it, optimistic state may drop before the synced version arrives, causing UI flicker.

Source: AGENTS.md:116-119

MEDIUM Running migrations that drop replica identity

Wrong:

// ORM migration recreates table without REPLICA IDENTITY
await db.execute(sql`DROP TABLE todos`)
await db.execute(sql`CREATE TABLE todos (...)`)
// Missing: ALTER TABLE todos REPLICA IDENTITY FULL

Correct:

await db.execute(sql`DROP TABLE todos`)
await db.execute(sql`CREATE TABLE todos (...)`)
await db.execute(sql`ALTER TABLE todos REPLICA IDENTITY FULL`)

Some migration tools reset table properties. Always ensure REPLICA IDENTITY FULL is set after table recreation. Without it, Electric cannot stream updates and deletes correctly.

Source: website/docs/guides/troubleshooting.md:373

See also: electric-new-feature/SKILL.md — Full write-path journey including txid handshake. See also: electric-schema-shapes/SKILL.md — Schema design affects both shapes and ORM queries.

Version

Targets @electric-sql/client v1.5.10.