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Rephrase the two criteria for resolving ref calls with the --defer flag #6660

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merged 7 commits into from
Dec 13, 2024
Merged

Rephrase the two criteria for resolving ref calls with the --defer flag #6660

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f2048c7
Rephrase the two criteria for resolving `ref` calls with the `--defer…
dbeatty10 Dec 13, 2024
7b79464
Simply the explanation for `--favor-state`
dbeatty10 Dec 13, 2024
3524748
Merge branch 'current' into dbeatty10-patch-1
mirnawong1 Dec 13, 2024
71ab4c5
Update website/docs/reference/node-selection/defer.md
mirnawong1 Dec 13, 2024
badbdeb
Update website/docs/reference/node-selection/defer.md
mirnawong1 Dec 13, 2024
852f8f1
Update website/docs/reference/node-selection/defer.md
mirnawong1 Dec 13, 2024
88113b2
Merge branch 'current' into dbeatty10-patch-1
mirnawong1 Dec 13, 2024
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11 changes: 6 additions & 5 deletions website/docs/reference/node-selection/defer.md
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Expand Up @@ -29,11 +29,12 @@ dbt test --models [...] --defer --state path/to/artifacts

</VersionBlock>

When the `--defer` flag is provided, dbt will resolve `ref` calls differently depending on two criteria:
1. Is the referenced node included in the model selection criteria of the current run?
2. Does the referenced node exist as a database object in the current environment?
By default, dbt uses the [`target`](/reference/dbt-jinja-functions/target) namespace to resolve `ref` calls.

If the answer to both is **no**—a node is not included _and_ it does not exist as a database object in the current environment—references to it will use the other namespace instead, provided by the state manifest.
When `--defer` is enabled, dbt resolves ref calls using the state manifest instead, but only if:

1. The node isn’t among the selected nodes, _and_
2. It doesn’t exist in the database (or `--favor-state` is used).

Ephemeral models are never deferred, since they serve as "passthroughs" for other `ref` calls.

Expand All @@ -46,7 +47,7 @@ Deferral requires both `--defer` and `--state` to be set, either by passing flag

#### Favor state

You can optionally skip the second criterion by passing the `--favor-state` flag. If passed, dbt will favor using the node defined in your `--state` namespace, even if the node exists in the current target.
When `--favor-state` is passed, dbt prioritizes node definitions from the `--state directory`. However, this doesn’t apply if the node is also part of the selected nodes.

### Example

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