Prisma - Trigger.dev

The prismaExtension supports multiple Prisma versions and deployment strategies through three distinct modes that handle the evolving Prisma ecosystem, from legacy setups to Prisma 7.

The prismaExtension requires an explicit mode parameter. All configurations must specify a mode.

Migration from previous versions

Before (pre 4.1.1)

import { prismaExtension } from "@trigger.dev/build/extensions/prisma";

extensions: [
  prismaExtension({
    schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
    migrate: true,
    typedSql: true,
    directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED",
  }),
];

After (4.1.1+)

import { prismaExtension } from "@trigger.dev/build/extensions/prisma";

extensions: [
  prismaExtension({
    mode: "legacy", // MODE IS REQUIRED
    schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
    migrate: true,
    typedSql: true,
    directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED",
  }),
];

Choosing the right mode

Use this decision tree to determine which mode is right for your project:

Extension modes

Legacy mode

Use when: You’re using Prisma 6.x or earlier with the prisma-client-js provider. Features:

Automatic prisma generate during deployment
Supports single-file schemas (prisma/schema.prisma)
Supports multi-file schemas (Prisma 6.7+, directory-based schemas)
Supports Prisma config files (prisma.config.ts) via @prisma/config package
Migration support with migrate: true
TypedSQL support with typedSql: true
Custom generator selection
Handles Prisma client versioning automatically (with filesystem fallback detection)
Automatic extraction of schema and migrations paths from config files

Schema configuration:

generator client {
  provider        = "prisma-client-js"
  previewFeatures = ["typedSql"]
}

datasource db {
  provider  = "postgresql"
  url       = env("DATABASE_URL")
  directUrl = env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED")
}

Extension configuration:

// Single-file schema
prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrate: true,
  typedSql: true,
  directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED",
});

// Multi-file schema (Prisma 6.7+)
prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "./prisma", // Point to directory
  migrate: true,
  typedSql: true,
  directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED",
});

Tested versions:

Prisma 6.14.0
Prisma 6.7.0+ (multi-file schema support)
Prisma 5.x

Engine-only mode

Use when: You have a custom Prisma client output path and want to manage prisma generate yourself. Features:

Only installs Prisma engine binaries (no client generation)
Automatic version detection from @prisma/client
Manual override of version and binary target
Minimal overhead - just ensures engines are available
You control when and how prisma generate runs

Schema configuration:

generator client {
  provider      = "prisma-client-js"
  output        = "../src/generated/prisma"
  // Ensure the "debian-openssl-3.0.x" binary target is included for deployment to the trigger.dev cloud
  binaryTargets = ["native", "debian-openssl-3.0.x"]
}

datasource db {
  provider  = "postgresql"
  url       = env("DATABASE_URL")
  directUrl = env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED")
}

Extension configuration:

// Auto-detect version
prismaExtension({
  mode: "engine-only",
});

// Explicit version (recommended for reproducible builds)
prismaExtension({
  mode: "engine-only",
  version: "6.19.0",
});

Important notes:

You must run prisma generate yourself (typically in a prebuild script)
Your schema must include the correct binaryTargets for deployment to the trigger.dev cloud. The binary target is debian-openssl-3.0.x.
The extension sets PRISMA_QUERY_ENGINE_LIBRARY and PRISMA_QUERY_ENGINE_SCHEMA_ENGINE environment variables to the correct paths for the binary targets.

package.json example:

{
  "scripts": {
    "prebuild": "prisma generate",
    "dev": "trigger dev",
    "deploy": "trigger deploy"
  }
}

Tested versions:

Prisma 6.19.0
Prisma 6.16.0+

Modern mode

Use when: You’re using Prisma 6.16+ with the new prisma-client provider (with engineType = "client") or preparing for Prisma 7. Features:

Designed for the new Prisma architecture
Zero configuration required
Automatically marks @prisma/client as external
Works with Prisma 7 beta releases & Prisma 7 when released
You manage client generation (like engine-only mode)

Schema configuration (Prisma 6.16+ with engineType):

generator client {
  provider        = "prisma-client"
  output          = "../src/generated/prisma"
  engineType      = "client"
  previewFeatures = ["views"]
}

datasource db {
  provider  = "postgresql"
  url       = env("DATABASE_URL")
  directUrl = env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED")
}

Schema configuration (Prisma 7):

generator client {
  provider = "prisma-client"
  output   = "../src/generated/prisma"
}

datasource db {
  provider = "postgresql"
}

Extension configuration:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "modern",
});

Prisma config (Prisma 7):

// prisma.config.ts
import { defineConfig, env } from "prisma/config";
import "dotenv/config";

export default defineConfig({
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrations: {
    path: "prisma/migrations",
  },
  datasource: {
    url: env("DATABASE_URL"),
  },
});

Important notes:

You must run prisma generate yourself.
Requires Prisma 6.16.0+ or Prisma 7 beta
The new prisma-client provider generates plain TypeScript (no Rust binaries)
Requires database adapters (e.g., @prisma/adapter-pg for PostgreSQL)

Tested versions:

Prisma 6.16.0 with engineType = "client"
Prisma 6.20.0-integration-next.8 (Prisma 7 beta)

Migration guide

From old prismaExtension to legacy mode

If you were using the previous prismaExtension, migrate to legacy mode:

// Old
prismaExtension({
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrate: true,
});

// New - add mode
prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrate: true,
});

Preparing for Prisma 7

If you want to adopt the new Prisma architecture, use modern mode:

Update your schema to use prisma-client provider
Add database adapters to your dependencies
Configure the extension:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "modern",
});

Manage your own prisma generate step

When using modern and engine-only modes, you’ll need to ensure that you run prisma generate yourself before deploying your project.

Github Actions

If you are deploying your project using GitHub Actions, you can add a step to your workflow to run prisma generate before deploying your project, for example:

steps:
  - name: Generate Prisma client
    run: npx [email protected] generate
  - name: Deploy Trigger.dev
    run: npx [email protected] deploy
    env:
      TRIGGER_ACCESS_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.TRIGGER_ACCESS_TOKEN }}

Trigger.dev Github integration

If you are using the Trigger.dev Github integration, you can configure a pre-build command to run prisma generate before deploying your project. Navigate to your project’s settings page and configure the pre-build command to run prisma generate, for example:

Version compatibility matrix

Prisma version	Recommended mode	Notes
< 5.0	Legacy	Older Prisma versions
5.0 - 6.15	Legacy	Standard Prisma setup
6.7+	Legacy	Multi-file schema support
6.16+	Engine-only or Modern	Modern mode requires `engineType = "client"`
6.20+ (7.0 beta)	Modern	Prisma 7 with new architecture

Prisma config file support

Legacy mode supports loading configuration from a prisma.config.ts file using the official @prisma/config package. Use when: You want to use Prisma’s new config file format (Prisma 6+) to centralize your Prisma configuration. Benefits:

Single source of truth for Prisma configuration
Automatic extraction of schema location and migrations path
Type-safe configuration with TypeScript
Works seamlessly with Prisma 7’s config-first approach

prisma.config.ts:

import { defineConfig, env } from "prisma/config";
import "dotenv/config";

export default defineConfig({
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrations: {
    path: "prisma/migrations",
  },
  datasource: {
    url: env("DATABASE_URL"),
    directUrl: env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED"),
  },
});

trigger.config.ts:

import { prismaExtension } from "@trigger.dev/build/extensions/prisma";

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  configFile: "./prisma.config.ts", // Use config file instead of schema
  migrate: true,
  directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED", // For migrations
});

What gets extracted:

schema - The schema file or directory path
migrations.path - The migrations directory path (if specified)

Note: Either schema or configFile must be specified, but not both. When to use which:

Use `schema` option	Use `configFile` option
Standard Prisma setup	Using Prisma 6+ with config files
Single or multi-file schemas	Preparing for Prisma 7
No `prisma.config.ts` file	Centralized configuration needed
Simple setup	Want migrations path in config

Multi-file schema support

Prisma 6.7 introduced support for splitting your schema across multiple files in a directory structure. Example structure:

prisma/
├── schema.prisma (main file with generator/datasource)
├── models/
│   ├── users.prisma
│   └── posts.prisma
└── sql/
    └── getUserByEmail.sql

Configuration:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "./prisma", // Point to directory instead of file
  migrate: true,
  typedSql: true,
});

package.json:

{
  "prisma": {
    "schema": "./prisma"
  }
}

TypedSQL support

TypedSQL is available in legacy mode for Prisma 5.19.0+ with the typedSql preview feature. Schema configuration:

generator client {
  provider        = "prisma-client-js"
  previewFeatures = ["typedSql"]
}

Extension configuration:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  typedSql: true, // Enable TypedSQL
});

Usage in tasks:

import { db, sql } from "./db";

const users = await db.$queryRawTyped(sql.getUserByEmail("[email protected]"));

Database migration support

Migrations are supported in legacy mode only. Extension configuration:

// Using schema option
prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrate: true, // Run migrations on deployment
  directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED", // For connection pooling
});

// Using configFile option
prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  configFile: "./prisma.config.ts", // Migrations path extracted from config
  migrate: true,
});

What this does:

Copies prisma/migrations/ to the build output
Runs prisma migrate deploy before generating the client
Uses the directUrlEnvVarName for unpooled connections (required for migrations)

When using configFile, the migrations path is automatically extracted from your prisma.config.ts:

// prisma.config.ts
export default defineConfig({
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrations: {
    path: "prisma/migrations", // Automatically used by the extension
  },
});

Binary targets and deployment

Trigger.dev Cloud

The default binary target is debian-openssl-3.0.x for Trigger.dev Cloud deployments. Legacy mode: Handled automatically Engine-only mode: Specify in schema like so:

generator client {
  provider      = "prisma-client-js"
  binaryTargets = ["native", "debian-openssl-3.0.x"]
}

Modern mode: Handled by database adapters

Self-hosted / local deployment

For local deployments (e.g., Docker on macOS), you may need a different binary target like so:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "engine-only",
  version: "6.19.0",
  binaryTarget: "linux-arm64-openssl-3.0.x", // For macOS ARM64
});

Environment variables

Required variables

All modes:

DATABASE_URL: Your database connection string

Legacy mode with migrations:

DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED (or your custom directUrlEnvVarName): Direct database connection for migrations

Auto-set variables

Engine-only mode sets:

PRISMA_QUERY_ENGINE_LIBRARY: Path to the query engine
PRISMA_QUERY_ENGINE_SCHEMA_ENGINE: Path to the schema engine

Troubleshooting

”Could not find Prisma schema”

Legacy mode: Ensure the schema path is correct relative to your working directory.

// If your project structure is:
// project/
//   trigger.config.ts
//   prisma/
//     schema.prisma

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "./prisma/schema.prisma", // Correct
  // schema: "prisma/schema.prisma", // Also works
});

”Could not determine @prisma/client version”

The extension includes improved version detection that tries multiple strategies:

Check if @prisma/client is imported in your code (externals)
Use the version option if specified
Detect from filesystem by looking for @prisma/client or prisma in node_modules

Legacy mode: The extension will automatically detect the version from your installed packages. If it still fails, specify the version explicitly:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  version: "6.19.0", // Add explicit version
});

Engine-only mode: Specify the version explicitly:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "engine-only",
  version: "6.19.0", // Add explicit version
});

“Binary target not found”

Engine-only mode: Make sure your schema includes the deployment binary target:

generator client {
  provider      = "prisma-client-js"
  binaryTargets = ["native", "linux-arm64-openssl-3.0.x"]
}

“Module not found: @prisma/client/sql”

Legacy mode: Make sure typedSql: true is set and you have Prisma 5.19.0+:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  typedSql: true, // Required for TypedSQL
});

“Config file not found” or config loading errors

Legacy mode with configFile: Ensure the config file path is correct:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  configFile: "./prisma.config.ts", // Path relative to project root
  migrate: true,
});

Requirements:

The config file must exist at the specified path
Your project must have the prisma package installed (Prisma 6+)
The config file must have a default export
The config must specify a schema path

Debugging: Use --log-level debug in your trigger deploy command to see detailed logs:

npx trigger.dev@latest deploy --log-level debug

Then grep for [PrismaExtension] in your build logs to see detailed information about config loading, schema resolution, and migrations setup.

Complete examples

Example 1: Standard Prisma 6 setup (legacy mode)

prisma/schema.prisma:

generator client {
  provider        = "prisma-client-js"
  previewFeatures = ["typedSql"]
}

datasource db {
  provider  = "postgresql"
  url       = env("DATABASE_URL")
  directUrl = env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED")
}

trigger.config.ts:

import { defineConfig } from "@trigger.dev/sdk";
import { prismaExtension } from "@trigger.dev/build/extensions/prisma";

export default defineConfig({
  project: process.env.TRIGGER_PROJECT_REF!,
  build: {
    extensions: [
      prismaExtension({
        mode: "legacy",
        schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
        migrate: true,
        typedSql: true,
        directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED",
      }),
    ],
  },
});

Example 2: Multi-file schema (legacy mode)

prisma/schema.prisma:

generator client {
  provider        = "prisma-client-js"
  previewFeatures = ["typedSql"]
}

datasource db {
  provider  = "postgresql"
  url       = env("DATABASE_URL")
  directUrl = env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED")
}

prisma/models/users.prisma:

model User {
  id        String  @id @default(cuid())
  email     String  @unique
  name      String?
  posts     Post[]
}

prisma/models/posts.prisma:

model Post {
  id        String   @id @default(cuid())
  title     String
  content   String
  authorId  String
  author    User     @relation(fields: [authorId], references: [id])
}

package.json:

{
  "prisma": {
    "schema": "./prisma"
  }
}

trigger.config.ts:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "legacy",
  schema: "./prisma", // Directory, not file
  migrate: true,
  typedSql: true,
  directUrlEnvVarName: "DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED",
});

Example 3: Using Prisma config file (legacy mode)

Use a prisma.config.ts file to centralize your Prisma configuration. prisma.config.ts:

import { defineConfig, env } from "prisma/config";
import "dotenv/config";

export default defineConfig({
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrations: {
    path: "prisma/migrations",
  },
  datasource: {
    url: env("DATABASE_URL"),
    directUrl: env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED"),
  },
});

prisma/schema.prisma:

generator client {
  provider        = "prisma-client-js"
  previewFeatures = ["typedSql"]
}

datasource db {
  provider  = "postgresql"
  url       = env("DATABASE_URL")
  directUrl = env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED")
}

model User {
  id        String  @id @default(cuid())
  email     String  @unique
  name      String?
}

trigger.config.ts:

import { defineConfig } from "@trigger.dev/sdk";
import { prismaExtension } from "@trigger.dev/build/extensions/prisma";

export default defineConfig({
  project: process.env.TRIGGER_PROJECT_REF!,
  build: {
    extensions: [
      prismaExtension({
        mode: "legacy",
        configFile: "./prisma.config.ts", // Load from config file
        migrate: true,
        typedSql: true,
        // schema and migrations path are extracted from prisma.config.ts
      }),
    ],
  },
});

src/db.ts:

import { PrismaClient } from "@prisma/client";
export * as sql from "@prisma/client/sql";

export const db = new PrismaClient({
  datasources: {
    db: {
      url: process.env.DATABASE_URL,
    },
  },
});

Example 4: Custom output path (engine-only mode)

prisma/schema.prisma:

generator client {
  provider      = "prisma-client-js"
  output        = "../src/generated/prisma"
  binaryTargets = ["native", "linux-arm64-openssl-3.0.x"]
}

datasource db {
  provider  = "postgresql"
  url       = env("DATABASE_URL")
  directUrl = env("DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED")
}

package.json:

{
  "scripts": {
    "generate": "prisma generate",
    "dev": "pnpm generate && trigger dev",
    "deploy": "trigger deploy"
  }
}

trigger.config.ts:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "engine-only",
  version: "6.19.0",
  binaryTarget: "linux-arm64-openssl-3.0.x",
});

src/db.ts:

import { PrismaClient } from "./generated/prisma/client.js";

export const db = new PrismaClient({
  datasources: {
    db: {
      url: process.env.DATABASE_URL,
    },
  },
});

Example 5: Prisma 7 beta (modern mode)

prisma/schema.prisma:

generator client {
  provider = "prisma-client"
  output   = "../src/generated/prisma"
}

datasource db {
  provider = "postgresql"
}

prisma.config.ts:

import { defineConfig, env } from "prisma/config";
import "dotenv/config";

export default defineConfig({
  schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
  migrations: {
    path: "prisma/migrations",
  },
  datasource: {
    url: env("DATABASE_URL"),
  },
});

package.json:

{
  "dependencies": {
    "@prisma/client": "6.20.0-integration-next.8",
    "@prisma/adapter-pg": "6.20.0-integration-next.8"
  },
  "scripts": {
    "generate": "prisma generate",
    "dev": "pnpm generate && trigger dev",
    "deploy": "trigger deploy"
  }
}

trigger.config.ts:

prismaExtension({
  mode: "modern",
});

src/db.ts:

import { PrismaClient } from "./generated/prisma/client.js";
import { PrismaPg } from "@prisma/adapter-pg";

const adapter = new PrismaPg({
  connectionString: process.env.DATABASE_URL!,
});

export const db = new PrismaClient({ adapter });

Getting started

Fundamentals

Writing tasks

Configuration

Development

Deployment

Realtime

CLI

MCP Server

Using the Dashboard

Troubleshooting

Self-hosting

Open source

Help

​Migration from previous versions

​Before (pre 4.1.1)

​After (4.1.1+)

​Choosing the right mode

​Extension modes

​Legacy mode

​Engine-only mode

​Modern mode

​Migration guide

​From old prismaExtension to legacy mode

​Preparing for Prisma 7

​Manage your own prisma generate step

​Github Actions

​Trigger.dev Github integration

​Version compatibility matrix

​Prisma config file support

​Multi-file schema support

​TypedSQL support

​Database migration support

​Binary targets and deployment

​Trigger.dev Cloud

​Self-hosted / local deployment

​Environment variables

​Required variables

​Auto-set variables

​Troubleshooting

​”Could not find Prisma schema”

​”Could not determine @prisma/client version”

​“Binary target not found”

​“Module not found: @prisma/client/sql”

​“Config file not found” or config loading errors

​Complete examples

​Example 1: Standard Prisma 6 setup (legacy mode)

​Example 2: Multi-file schema (legacy mode)

​Example 3: Using Prisma config file (legacy mode)

​Example 4: Custom output path (engine-only mode)

​Example 5: Prisma 7 beta (modern mode)

​Resources

Migration from previous versions

Before (pre 4.1.1)

After (4.1.1+)

Choosing the right mode

Extension modes

Legacy mode

Engine-only mode

Modern mode

Migration guide

From old prismaExtension to legacy mode

Preparing for Prisma 7

Manage your own prisma generate step

Github Actions

Trigger.dev Github integration

Version compatibility matrix

Prisma config file support

Multi-file schema support

TypedSQL support

Database migration support

Binary targets and deployment

Trigger.dev Cloud

Self-hosted / local deployment

Environment variables

Required variables

Auto-set variables

Troubleshooting

”Could not find Prisma schema”

”Could not determine @prisma/client version”

“Binary target not found”

“Module not found: @prisma/client/sql”

“Config file not found” or config loading errors

Complete examples

Example 1: Standard Prisma 6 setup (legacy mode)

Example 2: Multi-file schema (legacy mode)

Example 3: Using Prisma config file (legacy mode)

Example 4: Custom output path (engine-only mode)

Example 5: Prisma 7 beta (modern mode)

Resources