# Phase 1: Data Foundation - Context
**Gathered:** 2026-02-24
**Status:** Ready for planning
## Phase Boundary
Create database schema (tables, indexes, migrations) and model layer for the monitoring system. Requirements: INFR-01 (tables with indexes), INFR-04 (use existing Supabase connection). No services, no API routes, no frontend work.
## Implementation Decisions
### Migration approach
- Use the existing `DatabaseMigrator` class in `backend/src/models/migrate.ts`
- New `.sql` files go in `src/models/migrations/`, run with `npm run db:migrate`
- The migrator tracks applied migrations in a `migrations` table — handles idempotency
- Forward-only migrations (no rollback/down scripts). If something needs fixing, write a new migration.
- Migrations execute via `supabase.rpc('exec_sql', { sql })` — works with cloud Supabase from any environment including Firebase
### Schema details
- Status fields use TEXT with CHECK constraints (e.g., `CHECK (status IN ('healthy','degraded','down'))`) — easy to extend, no enum type management
- Table names are descriptive, matching existing style: `service_health_checks`, `alert_events` (like `processing_jobs`, `document_chunks`)
- Include JSONB `probe_details` / `details` columns for flexible metadata per service (response codes, error specifics) without future schema changes
- All tables get indexes on `created_at` (required for 30-day retention queries and dashboard time-range filters)
- Enable Row Level Security on new tables — admin-only access, matching existing security patterns
### Model layer pattern
- One model file per table: `HealthCheckModel.ts`, `AlertEventModel.ts`
- Static methods on model classes (e.g., `AlertEventModel.create()`, `AlertEventModel.findActive()`) — matches `DocumentModel.ts` pattern
- Use `getSupabaseServiceClient()` (PostgREST) for all monitoring reads/writes — monitoring is not on the critical processing path, so no need for direct PostgreSQL pool
- Input validation in the model layer before writing (defense in depth alongside DB CHECK constraints)
### Claude's Discretion
- Exact column types for non-status fields (INTEGER vs BIGINT for latency_ms, etc.)
- Whether to create a shared base model or keep models independent
- Index strategy beyond created_at (e.g., composite indexes on service_name + created_at)
- Winston logging patterns within model methods
## Specific Ideas
- The existing `performance_metrics` table already exists but nothing writes to it — verify its schema before building on it
- Research found that `uploadMonitoringService.ts` stores data in-memory only — the new persistent tables replace this pattern
- The `ProcessingJobModel.ts` uses direct PostgreSQL for critical writes as a pattern reference, but monitoring tables don't need this
## Deferred Ideas
None — discussion stayed within phase scope
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*Phase: 01-data-foundation*
*Context gathered: 2026-02-24*