Query Databases from Your IDE

Overview

Goal - Browse and query all your databases directly from VS Code or Cursor using the Bruin extension's built-in database viewer.

Audience - Data analysts and engineers who want to explore data without switching between multiple tools like BigQuery UI, DataGrip, or DBeaver.

Prerequisites

• Bruin CLI installed
• The Bruin VS Code or Cursor extension installed
• A Bruin project with database connections configured in .bruin.yml

Steps

1) Open the database viewer

Look for the database icon in the VS Code sidebar. Under Databases, you'll see all the connections defined in your .bruin.yml file - DuckDB, BigQuery, Redshift, Postgres, or any other configured connection.

2) Browse your tables

Expand a connection to see its datasets and tables. You can also view the schema (columns and types) for each table.

3) Query a table

Click on any table to open a temporary file with a pre-filled SELECT query. Run it to see the results directly in your editor.

You can modify the query, add filters, joins, or aggregations - and run it again.

4) Switch between databases

If you have multiple database connections (e.g., DuckDB for local development and BigQuery for production), you can quickly switch between them without reconfiguring credentials or opening different tools. Everything uses the connections already defined in your .bruin.yml.

Why this is useful

• No need to switch between VS Code, BigQuery UI, DataGrip, DBeaver, or other query tools
• All your credentials are already in .bruin.yml - no extra configuration
• Quick navigation between multiple databases in one interface
• Speeds up development by keeping everything in one place

Helpful links

• Bruin CLI installation
• Video walkthrough