What causes DbtRuntimeError (clone)?

The target database or warehouse does not support zero-copy cloning (only Snowflake and BigQuery support native clone). The dbt runner role lacks CREATE TABLE or CLONE privileges on the target schema. The source relation being cloned does not exist in the specified state schema. A --state flag was used but the manifest.json in the state directory does not match the current project. The clone target schema already contains a relation with the same name and the operation is not idempotent

How do I fix DbtRuntimeError (clone)?

Verify the target warehouse supports native clone: Snowflake (CREATE TABLE ... CLONE) and BigQuery (CREATE TABLE ... COPY) are supported; Databricks and Redshift are not.. Grant CREATE TABLE and appropriate clone privileges to the dbt runner on the target schema.. Ensure the --state directory contains a valid manifest.json that corresponds to the current project version.. Use --full-refresh to overwrite existing relations in the target schema if they conflict with clone targets.. Run dbt ls --select before cloning to verify that the source relations exist in the state manifest.

Medium severityexecution

Power BI Refresh Error:
DbtRuntimeError (clone)

What does this error mean?

The dbt clone command, which creates zero-copy clones of production models in a target schema, failed to execute. Clone failures are typically caused by insufficient permissions, unsupported warehouse features, or missing source relations.

Common causes

1The target database or warehouse does not support zero-copy cloning (only Snowflake and BigQuery support native clone)
2The dbt runner role lacks CREATE TABLE or CLONE privileges on the target schema
3The source relation being cloned does not exist in the specified state schema
4A --state flag was used but the manifest.json in the state directory does not match the current project
5The clone target schema already contains a relation with the same name and the operation is not idempotent

How to fix it

1Verify the target warehouse supports native clone: Snowflake (CREATE TABLE ... CLONE) and BigQuery (CREATE TABLE ... COPY) are supported; Databricks and Redshift are not.
2Grant CREATE TABLE and appropriate clone privileges to the dbt runner on the target schema.
3Ensure the --state directory contains a valid manifest.json that corresponds to the current project version.
4Use --full-refresh to overwrite existing relations in the target schema if they conflict with clone targets.
5Run dbt ls --select <models> before cloning to verify that the source relations exist in the state manifest.

Frequently asked questions

Which warehouses support dbt clone natively?

Snowflake and BigQuery support zero-copy or low-cost cloning that dbt clone leverages. For Databricks, Redshift, and Postgres, dbt clone falls back to CREATE TABLE AS SELECT, which copies data and is not zero-copy.

Does dbt clone affect production data?

No. dbt clone creates independent copies (or references, in the case of zero-copy clone) in the target schema. The source production tables are not modified.