From 548eb70d55f146ebc34d99086d7f4da1d5f49625 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Mikhail Chusavitin <mchusavitin@mchusmbp.local>
Date: Sat, 7 Mar 2026 21:39:37 +0300
Subject: [PATCH] Add mandatory DB backup rule

---
 rules/patterns/go-database/contract.md | 20 +++++++++++++++++++-
 1 file changed, 19 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/rules/patterns/go-database/contract.md b/rules/patterns/go-database/contract.md
index b822ad6..2de34b3 100644
--- a/rules/patterns/go-database/contract.md
+++ b/rules/patterns/go-database/contract.md
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # Contract: Database Patterns (Go / MySQL / MariaDB)
 
-Version: 1.0
+Version: 1.1
 
 ## MySQL Transaction Cursor Safety (CRITICAL)
 
@@ -104,9 +104,27 @@ items, _ := repo.GetItemsByPricelistIDs(ids) // 1 query with WHERE id IN (...)
 // then group in Go
 ```
 
+## Backup Before Any DB Change
+
+Any operation that changes persisted database state must have a fresh backup taken immediately before execution.
+
+This applies to:
+- Go migrations
+- Manual SQL runbooks
+- Data backfills and repair scripts
+- Imports, bulk updates, and bulk deletes
+- Admin tools or one-off operator commands
+
+Rules:
+- No schema change or data mutation is allowed on a non-ephemeral database without a current backup.
+- "Small" or "safe" changes are not exceptions.
+- The operator must know how to restore from that backup before applying the change.
+- If a migration or script is intended for production/staging, the rollout instructions must state the backup step explicitly.
+
 ## Migration Policy
 
 - Migrations are numbered sequentially and never modified after merge.
+- Take and verify a fresh backup before applying migrations to any non-ephemeral database.
 - Each migration must be reversible where possible (document rollback in a comment).
 - Never rename a column in one migration step — add new, backfill, drop old across separate deploys.
 - Auto-apply migrations on startup is acceptable for internal tools; document if used.