/prisma-orm-setup

PostgreSQL Setup

Configure Prisma ORM 7 with PostgreSQL. For an existing Prisma 6 app, keep its configuration and use the Prisma 6 docs; the configuration and adapter examples below are for 7.

Prerequisites

• PostgreSQL database (local or cloud)
• Connection string

1. Schema Configuration

In prisma/schema.prisma:

datasource db {
  provider = "postgresql"
}

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

2. Config Configuration

In prisma.config.ts:

import 'dotenv/config'
import { defineConfig, env } from 'prisma/config'

export default defineConfig({
  schema: 'prisma/schema.prisma',
  datasource: {
    url: env('DATABASE_URL'),
  },
})

3. Environment Variable

In .env:

DATABASE_URL="postgresql://user:password@localhost:5432/mydb?schema=public"

Connection String Format

postgresql://USER:PASSWORD@HOST:PORT/DATABASE?schema=SCHEMA

• USER: Database user
• PASSWORD: Password (URL encoded if special chars)
• HOST: Hostname (localhost, IP, or domain)
• PORT: Port (default 5432)
• DATABASE: Database name
• SCHEMA: Schema name (default public)

Driver Adapter

Use a driver adapter for the standard SQL workflow.

1. Install adapter and driver:

   npm install @prisma/adapter-pg@7 pg

2. Instantiate Prisma Client with the adapter:

   import 'dotenv/config'
   import { PrismaClient } from '../generated/client'
   import { PrismaPg } from '@prisma/adapter-pg'
   
   const adapter = new PrismaPg({ connectionString: process.env.DATABASE_URL })
   const prisma = new PrismaClient({ adapter })

Common Issues

"Can't reach database server"

• Check host and port
• Check firewall settings
• Ensure database is running

"Authentication failed"

• Check user/password
• Special characters in password must be URL-encoded

"Schema does not exist"

• Ensure ?schema=public (or your schema) is in the URL

References

• Prisma 7 PostgreSQL documentation