Warning

📦 Public Archive - November 2025

This project is being archived as a complete reference implementation of a local-first application for visualizing and exploring dbt semantic layers. It demonstrates best practices for MCP integration, dbt semantic bridging, and extending data pipeline infrastructure.

Semantic Tracer

A local-first application for visualizing and exploring dbt semantic layers.
Features • Getting Started • Usage • Tech Stack • Project Structure • Contributing • License • Contact

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Overview

Semantic Tracer is a local-first application for visualizing and exploring dbt semantic layers. It connects directly to your dbt project and Snowflake account to provide a real-time, interactive lineage graph of your metrics, dimensions, and entities.

The primary goal of this project is to provide a reference implementation for local-first semantic layer visualization and lineage tracing. It demonstrates best practices for MCP integration, bridging with dbt semantics, and extending data pipeline infrastructure.

Features

• Local-First: Your data and semantic models never leave your machine, ensuring security and privacy.
• dbt Semantic Layer Integration: Connects seamlessly to your existing semantic_models.yml file.
• Snowflake Integration: Queries Snowflake for metadata and lineage information to build a comprehensive view.
• Interactive Lineage Graph: Utilizes React Flow to create a dynamic and explorable graph of your semantic layer.
• Tauri Backend: A lightweight Rust backend provides high performance and a secure application shell.
• Enhanced Data Exploration: Provides tools to better understand and explore your semantic layer.

Getting Started

Follow these steps to get Semantic Tracer up and running on your local machine.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

• Node.js (v18 or later)
• Rust
• pnpm

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/sbdk-dev/semantic-tracer.git
   cd semantic-tracer
   

2. Install dependencies:

   pnpm install
   

Configuration

To connect Semantic Tracer to your dbt project and Snowflake account, you'll need to configure the following:

1. dbt Project: Ensure your dbt project is properly configured with a semantic_models.yml file.
2. Snowflake: Set up the necessary environment variables for Snowflake authentication.

Usage

Once the application is running, you can:

• Explore the graph: Navigate the interactive lineage graph to understand relationships between metrics, dimensions, and entities.
• Inspect nodes: Click on nodes to view detailed information and metadata.
• Search: Use the search functionality to find specific elements within your semantic layer.

Tech Stack

Category	Technology	Purpose
Frontend	React 18 + TypeScript	UI framework for building the interface
Build	Vite 5	Fast development server and bundler
Canvas	React Flow 11	Library for rendering interactive diagrams
Backend	Tauri (Rust)	Framework for building local-first applications
State	Zustand 4	State management for React
Styling	Tailwind CSS 3	Utility-first CSS framework
Testing	Vitest + Playwright	Unit and end-to-end testing

Project Structure

.
├── src/
│   ├── components/
│   │   ├── Audit/
│   │   ├── Catalog/
│   │   ├── Lineage/
│   │   ├── Search/
│   │   └── Setup/
│   ├── services/
│   └── types/
├── src-tauri/
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── lineage/
│   │   └── parsers/
│   └── ...
└── ...

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! If you have any ideas, suggestions, or bug reports, please open an issue or submit a pull request.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for more details.

Contact

For any questions or inquiries, please reach out to the project maintainers.