Databricks Asset Bundle (DABs) Writer

Overview

Create DABs for multi-environment deployment (dev/staging/prod).

Reference Files

• SDP_guidance.md - Spark Declarative Pipeline configurations
• alerts_guidance.md - SQL Alert schemas (critical - API differs)

Bundle Structure

project/
├── databricks.yml           # Main config + targets
├── resources/*.yml          # Resource definitions
└── src/                     # Code/dashboard files

Main Configuration (databricks.yml)

bundle:
  name: project-name

include:
  - resources/*.yml

variables:
  catalog:
    default: "default_catalog"
  schema:
    default: "default_schema"
  warehouse_id:
    lookup:
      warehouse: "Shared SQL Warehouse"

targets:
  dev:
    default: true
    mode: development
    workspace:
      profile: dev-profile
    variables:
      catalog: "dev_catalog"
      schema: "dev_schema"

  prod:
    mode: production
    workspace:
      profile: prod-profile
    variables:
      catalog: "prod_catalog"
      schema: "prod_schema"

Dashboard Resources

resources:
  dashboards:
    dashboard_name:
      display_name: "[${bundle.target}] Dashboard Title"
      file_path: ../src/dashboards/dashboard.lvdash.json  # Relative to resources/
      warehouse_id: ${var.warehouse_id}
      permissions:
        - level: CAN_RUN
          group_name: "users"

Permission levels: CAN_READ, CAN_RUN, CAN_EDIT, CAN_MANAGE

Pipelines

See SDP_guidance.md for pipeline configuration

SQL Alerts

See alerts_guidance.md - Alert schema differs significantly from other resources

Jobs Resources

resources:
  jobs:
    job_name:
      name: "[${bundle.target}] Job Name"
      tasks:
        - task_key: "main_task"
          notebook_task:
            notebook_path: ../src/notebooks/main.py  # Relative to resources/
          new_cluster:
            spark_version: "13.3.x-scala2.12"
            node_type_id: "i3.xlarge"
            num_workers: 2
      schedule:
        quartz_cron_expression: "0 0 9 * * ?"
        timezone_id: "America/Los_Angeles"
      permissions:
        - level: CAN_VIEW
          group_name: "users"

Permission levels: CAN_VIEW, CAN_MANAGE_RUN, CAN_MANAGE

⚠️ Cannot modify "admins" group permissions on jobs - verify custom groups exist before use

Path Resolution

⚠️ Critical: Paths depend on file location:

Why: resources/ files are one level deep, so use ../ to reach bundle root. databricks.yml is at root, so use ./

Volume Resources

resources:
  volumes:
    my_volume:
      catalog_name: ${var.catalog}
      schema_name: ${var.schema}
      name: "volume_name"
      volume_type: "MANAGED"

⚠️ Volumes use grants not permissions - different format from other resources

Other Resources

DABs supports schemas, models, experiments, clusters, warehouses, apps, etc. Use databricks bundle schema to inspect schemas.

Reference: DABs Resource Types

Common Commands

Validation

databricks bundle validate                    # Validate default target
databricks bundle validate -t prod           # Validate specific target

Deployment

databricks bundle deploy                      # Deploy to default target
databricks bundle deploy -t prod             # Deploy to specific target
databricks bundle deploy --auto-approve      # Skip confirmation prompts
databricks bundle deploy --force             # Force overwrite remote changes

Running Resources

databricks bundle run resource_name          # Run a pipeline or job
databricks bundle run pipeline_name -t prod  # Run in specific environment

Cleanup

databricks bundle destroy -t dev
databricks bundle destroy -t prod --auto-approve

Common Issues

Key Principles

1. Path resolution: ../src/ in resources/*.yml, ./src/ in databricks.yml
2. Variables: Parameterize catalog, schema, warehouse
3. Mode: development for dev/staging, production for prod
4. Groups: Use "users" for all workspace users
5. Job permissions: Verify custom groups exist; can't modify "admins"

Resources

• Databricks Asset Bundles Documentation
• Bundle Resources Reference
• Bundle Configuration Reference
• Supported Resource Types
• Examples Repository 1
• Example Repository 2