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selection_filter_on

When you pass a selector (--select, --exclude, --selector) to dbt check or dbt build, dbt uses it to scope which project resources each check evaluates. selection_filter_on tells dbt which column in the check's output contains the resource IDs to match against the selection.

Values​

  • Default (not set): If the query returns unique_id, dbt keeps only rows whose unique_id is in the selection. If the query does not return unique_id, the check runs against the whole project. Useful for aggregate checks like "the project has at least one model".
  • none: The check always runs against the whole project, ignoring any selector. Use this to make whole-project behavior explicit.
  • A column name or list of column names: dbt keeps a row if the ID in any of the named columns is in the selection. Each named column must exist in the result, or the check raises an error. Use this for checks that return relationships between resources (edges).

When to set this config​

If your check returns a unique_id column, you don't need to set this config.

Use selection_filter_on when your check returns rows with ID columns other than unique_id. Set it to the columns that contain resource IDs so selectors can scope rows by those columns.

The following check queries the edges table and returns child_unique_id instead of unique_id, so you must set selection_filter_on:

checks/multiple_sources_joined.sql
select child_unique_id, count(*) as source_parents
from {{ info_schema('edges') }}
where parent_unique_id like 'source.%'
group by child_unique_id
having count(*) > 1

Configure selection_filter_on for this check using one of the following methods:

checks/_checks.yml
version: 2
checks:
  - name: multiple_sources_joined
    description: "Fails if any model reads directly from more than one source."
    config:
      selection_filter_on: child_unique_id

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