Managing Census

Manage and monitor Census reverse ETL — syncs, destinations, models, and sync run health.

Discovery Phase

#!/bin/bash

CENSUS_API="https://app.getcensus.com/api/v1"
AUTH="Authorization: Bearer $CENSUS_API_TOKEN"

echo "=== Sources ==="
curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/sources" \
  | jq -r '.data[] | [.id, .name, .type, .connection_details.host // "cloud"] | @tsv' | column -t | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Destinations ==="
curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/destinations" \
  | jq -r '.data[] | [.id, .name, .type, .connection_details.instance_url // ""] | @tsv' | column -t | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Models ==="
curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/models" \
  | jq -r '.data[] | [.id, .name, .source_id, .query[:50]] | @tsv' | column -t | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Syncs ==="
curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/syncs" \
  | jq -r '.data[] | [.id, .label, .destination_object, .schedule_frequency, .paused] | @tsv' | column -t | head -15

Analysis Phase

#!/bin/bash

CENSUS_API="https://app.getcensus.com/api/v1"
AUTH="Authorization: Bearer $CENSUS_API_TOKEN"

echo "=== Recent Sync Runs ==="
curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/sync_runs?limit=15&order=desc" \
  | jq -r '.data[] | [.id, .sync_id, .status, .records_processed, .records_failed, .created_at] | @tsv' | column -t

echo ""
echo "=== Failed Sync Runs ==="
curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/sync_runs?status=failed&limit=10" \
  | jq -r '.data[] | [.id, .sync_id, .created_at, .error_message[:60]] | @tsv' | column -t

echo ""
echo "=== Sync Health Summary ==="
for SYNC_ID in $(curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/syncs" | jq -r '.data[:5][].id'); do
  SYNC_NAME=$(curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/syncs/$SYNC_ID" | jq -r '.data.label')
  LAST_RUN=$(curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/syncs/$SYNC_ID/sync_runs?limit=1" \
    | jq '{status: .data[0].status, records_processed: .data[0].records_processed, records_failed: .data[0].records_failed}')
  echo "$SYNC_NAME: $LAST_RUN"
done

echo ""
echo "=== Sync Field Mappings ==="
curl -s -H "$AUTH" "$CENSUS_API/syncs/$CENSUS_SYNC_ID" \
  | jq -r '.data.mappings[] | [.from.data, .to, .operation] | @tsv' | column -t | head -10

Output Format

SOURCES
ID       Name             Type         Host
<id>     <source-name>    <type>       <host>

DESTINATIONS
ID       Name             Type         Instance
<id>     <dest-name>      <type>       <url>

SYNCS
ID       Label            Object          Frequency   Paused
<id>     <sync-label>     <dest-object>   <freq>      false

SYNC RUNS
ID       Sync ID  Status      Processed  Failed   Created
<id>     <sid>    completed   <n>        <n>      <timestamp>

FAILED RUNS
ID       Sync ID  Created         Error
<id>     <sid>    <timestamp>     <message>

Anti-Hallucination Rules

1. NEVER assume resource names — always discover via CLI/API in Phase 1 before referencing in Phase 2.
2. NEVER fabricate metric names or dimensions — verify against the service documentation or --help output.
3. NEVER mix CLI commands between service versions — confirm which version/API you are targeting.
4. ALWAYS use the discovery → verify → analyze chain — every resource referenced must have been discovered first.
5. ALWAYS handle empty results gracefully — an empty response is valid data, not an error to retry.

Counter-Rationalizations

Shortcut	Counter	Why
"I'll skip discovery and check known resources"	Always run Phase 1 discovery first	Resource names change, new resources appear — assumed names cause errors
"The user only asked for a quick check"	Follow the full discovery → analysis flow	Quick checks miss critical issues; structured analysis catches silent failures
"Default configuration is probably fine"	Audit configuration explicitly	Defaults often leave logging, security, and optimization features disabled
"Metrics aren't needed for this"	Always check relevant metrics when available	API/CLI responses show current state; metrics reveal trends and intermittent issues
"I don't have access to that"	Try the command and report the actual error	Assumed permission failures prevent useful investigation; actual errors are informative