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managing-astro-deployments skill

/skills/managing-astro-deployments

This skill helps you manage production Astronomer deployments by authenticating, switching workspaces, and deploying code with the Astro CLI.

npx playbooks add skill astronomer/agents --skill managing-astro-deployments

Review the files below or copy the command above to add this skill to your agents.

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---
name: managing-astro-deployments
description: Manage Astronomer production deployments with Astro CLI. Use when the user wants to authenticate, switch workspaces, create/update/delete deployments, or deploy code to production.
---

# Astro Deployment Management

This skill helps you manage production Astronomer deployments using the Astro CLI.

> **For local development**, see the **managing-astro-local-env** skill.
> **For production troubleshooting**, see the **troubleshooting-astro-deployments** skill.

---

## Authentication

All deployment operations require authentication:

```bash
# Login to Astronomer (opens browser for OAuth)
astro login
```

Authentication tokens are stored locally for subsequent commands. Run this before any deployment operations.

---

## Workspace Management

Deployments are organized into workspaces:

```bash
# List all accessible workspaces
astro workspace list

# Switch to a specific workspace
astro workspace switch <WORKSPACE_ID>
```

Workspace context is maintained between sessions. Most deployment commands operate within the current workspace context.

---

## List and Inspect Deployments

```bash
# List deployments in current workspace
astro deployment list

# List deployments across all workspaces
astro deployment list --all

# Inspect specific deployment (detailed info)
astro deployment inspect <DEPLOYMENT_ID>

# Inspect by name (alternative to ID)
astro deployment inspect --deployment-name data-service-stg
```

### What `inspect` Shows

- Deployment status (HEALTHY, UNHEALTHY)
- Runtime version and Airflow version
- Executor type (CELERY, KUBERNETES, LOCAL)
- Scheduler configuration (size, count)
- Worker queue settings (min/max workers, concurrency, worker type)
- Resource quotas (CPU, memory)
- Environment variables
- Last deployment timestamp and current tag
- Webserver and API URLs
- High availability status

---

## Create Deployments

```bash
# Create with default settings
astro deployment create

# Create with specific executor
astro deployment create --label production --executor celery
astro deployment create --label staging --executor kubernetes

# Executor options:
#   - celery: Best for most production workloads
#   - kubernetes: Best for dynamic scaling, isolated tasks
#   - local: Best for development only
```

---

## Update Deployments

```bash
# Enable DAG-only deploys (faster iteration)
astro deployment update <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --dag-deploy-enabled

# Update other settings (use --help for full options)
astro deployment update <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --help
```

---

## Delete Deployments

```bash
# Delete a deployment (requires confirmation)
astro deployment delete <DEPLOYMENT_ID>
```

**Destructive**: This cannot be undone. All DAGs, task history, and metadata will be lost.

---

## Deploy Code to Production

### Full Deploy

Deploy both DAGs and Docker image (required when dependencies change):

```bash
astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID>
```

Use when:
- Dependencies changed (`requirements.txt`, `packages.txt`, `Dockerfile`)
- First deployment of new project
- Significant infrastructure changes

### DAG-Only Deploy (Recommended for Iteration)

Deploy only DAG files, skip Docker image rebuild:

```bash
astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --dags
```

Use when:
- Only DAG files changed (Python files in `dags/` directory)
- Quick iteration during development
- Much faster than full deploy (seconds vs minutes)

**Requires**: `--dag-deploy-enabled` flag set on deployment (see Update Deployments)

### Image-Only Deploy

Deploy only Docker image, skip DAG sync:

```bash
astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --image-only
```

Use when:
- Only dependencies changed
- Dockerfile or requirements updated
- No DAG changes

### Force Deploy

Bypass safety checks and deploy:

```bash
astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --force
```

**Caution**: Skips validation that could prevent broken deployments.

---

## Deployment API Tokens

Manage API tokens for programmatic access to deployments:

```bash
# List tokens for a deployment
astro deployment token list --deployment-id <DEPLOYMENT_ID>

# Create a new token
astro deployment token create \
  --deployment-id <DEPLOYMENT_ID> \
  --name "CI/CD Pipeline" \
  --role DEPLOYMENT_ADMIN

# Create token with expiration
astro deployment token create \
  --deployment-id <DEPLOYMENT_ID> \
  --name "Temporary Access" \
  --role DEPLOYMENT_ADMIN \
  --expiry 30  # Days until expiration (0 = never expires)
```

**Roles**:
- `DEPLOYMENT_ADMIN`: Full access to deployment

**Note**: Token value is only shown at creation time. Store it securely.

---

## Common Workflows

### First-Time Production Deployment

```bash
# 1. Login
astro login

# 2. Switch to production workspace
astro workspace list
astro workspace switch <PROD_WORKSPACE_ID>

# 3. Create deployment
astro deployment create --label production --executor celery

# 4. Note the deployment ID, then deploy
astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID>
```

### Iterative DAG Development

```bash
# 1. Enable fast deploys (one-time setup)
astro deployment update <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --dag-deploy-enabled

# 2. Make DAG changes locally

# 3. Deploy quickly
astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --dags
```

### Promoting Code from Staging to Production

```bash
# 1. Deploy to staging first
astro workspace switch <STAGING_WORKSPACE_ID>
astro deploy <STAGING_DEPLOYMENT_ID>

# 2. Test in staging

# 3. Deploy same code to production
astro workspace switch <PROD_WORKSPACE_ID>
astro deploy <PROD_DEPLOYMENT_ID>
```

---

## Configuration Management

```bash
# View CLI configuration
astro config get

# Set configuration value
astro config set <KEY> <VALUE>

# Check CLI version
astro version

# Upgrade CLI to latest version
astro upgrade
```

---

## Tips

- Use `--dags` flag for fast iteration (seconds vs minutes)
- Always test in staging workspace before production
- Use `deployment inspect` to verify deployment health before deploying
- Deployment IDs are permanent, names can change
- Most commands work with deployment ID; `inspect` also accepts `--deployment-name`
- Set `--dag-deploy-enabled` once per deployment for fast deploys
- Keep workspace context visible with `astro workspace list` (shows asterisk for current)

---

## Related Skills

- **troubleshooting-astro-deployments**: Investigate deployment issues, view logs, manage environment variables
- **managing-astro-local-env**: Manage local Airflow development environment
- **setting-up-astro-project**: Initialize and configure Astro projects

Overview

This skill manages Astronomer production deployments using the Astro CLI. It guides authentication, workspace context, creating/updating/deleting deployments, and deploying code to production. It focuses on concrete commands and workflows to move DAGs and images safely between staging and production.

How this skill works

The skill instructs on using the Astro CLI to authenticate, list and switch workspaces, inspect deployments, and manage lifecycle operations (create, update, delete). It explains deployment types (full, DAG-only, image-only, force) and how to enable fast DAG-only deploys. It also covers API token management and CLI configuration commands.

When to use it

  • When you need to authenticate and establish Astronomer CLI context
  • When creating or modifying production deployments (executor, HA, resources)
  • When deploying code or images to staging or production
  • When enabling fast DAG-only iteration for development
  • When rotating or creating deployment API tokens for CI/CD

Best practices

  • Always run astro login before performing deployment operations
  • Switch to the appropriate workspace with astro workspace switch before acting
  • Inspect deployment health (astro deployment inspect) before any production deploy
  • Use DAG-only deploys for quick iteration after enabling --dag-deploy-enabled
  • Test changes in a staging workspace before promoting to production
  • Store deployment API tokens securely; token values are shown only at creation

Example use cases

  • First-time production rollout: login, switch to prod workspace, create deployment, then astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID>
  • Iterative DAG development: enable --dag-deploy-enabled once, then use astro deploy <ID> --dags for fast deploys
  • Dependency or image changes: run astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID> for a full image build or --image-only when only dependencies changed
  • Automated CI/CD: create a deployment token and use it from pipelines to push images or trigger deploys
  • Staging-to-production promotion: deploy to staging, validate, switch workspace, deploy same tag to production

FAQ

What is the difference between a full deploy and a DAG-only deploy?

A full deploy builds and pushes the Docker image and syncs DAGs (use when dependencies or Dockerfile change). A DAG-only deploy only syncs Python DAG files and is much faster but requires --dag-deploy-enabled on the deployment.

How do I enable fast DAG-only deploys?

Run astro deployment update <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --dag-deploy-enabled once per deployment. After that, use astro deploy <DEPLOYMENT_ID> --dags for quick iterations.