DLT SQL Indexer

Full IDE support for Databricks Delta Live Tables (DLT) SQL projects — navigate, refactor, and validate your pipeline models without leaving VS Code.

Built for large DLT codebases where models are spread across hundreds of SQL files and dependencies are defined via LIVE.model_name and {{ ref('model') }} references.

Features

Go to Definition

Click any LIVE.model_name or {{ ref('model') }} reference and jump straight to the CREATE statement in the source file. Works across the entire workspace.

Hover Info

Hover over any model reference to see its resolved column list, data types, layer, model kind, dependencies, and which other models use it — all without leaving the current file.

![Hover showing column list, layer, and dependencies]

Column & Model Autocomplete

Get intelligent completions as you type:

• LIVE. triggers a list of all indexed models
• Column names are suggested based on what the upstream model actually exposes

Find All References

Shift+F12 on any model name shows every file and line that references it — across the full workspace.

F2 Rename / Refactor

Rename a model or a column and have every occurrence updated automatically:

• Model rename — updates the CREATE statement, all LIVE.xxx references, all {{ ref('xxx') }} calls, and renames the .sql file
• Column rename — traces the column to its origin model and renames it across the full dependency chain (staging → intermediate → marts)

Diagnostics (Warning Squiggles)

Real-time validation as you type:

• Unknown LIVE.model references — model doesn't exist in the index
• Unknown column names — column not found in the upstream model's resolved schema
• Duplicate model names — two files defining the same model name

Dependency Explorer

DLT: Show Model Dependencies command shows what a model depends on and which models depend on it, with one-click navigation.

Model Tree View

Sidebar panel listing all indexed models organized by layer (staging → intermediate → marts) and country.

Status Bar

Shows the total number of indexed models. Click to rebuild the index.

Context

DLT SQL projects use a medallion architecture where:

• Staging models read from external sources (e.g. production.schema.table)
• Intermediate models join and transform staging data using CTEs
• Marts models expose the final business-facing datasets

Navigating these dependencies manually — especially with hundreds of models — is painful. This extension indexes the full graph and makes the codebase feel like a typed language.

Supported Syntax

All DLT CREATE statement variants:

CREATE LIVE TABLE model_name AS (...)
CREATE OR REFRESH LIVE TABLE model_name AS (...)
CREATE TEMPORARY LIVE VIEW model_name AS (...)
CREATE STREAMING TABLE model_name AS (...)
CREATE OR REPLACE MATERIALIZED VIEW model_name (...) AS (...)

References:

FROM LIVE.model_name
FROM LIVE.model_name AS alias
FROM {{ ref('model_name') }}

Settings

Commands

Requirements

• VS Code 1.85+
• A workspace containing DLT SQL model files (.sql)

Compatible with dbt, SQLFluff, and other SQL extensions — picks up their language IDs automatically.

License

MIT