How does this differ from standard polymorphic associations?

While it uses polymorphism under the hood, delegated_type provides high-level helpers, automatic scopes, and a shared interface that makes the delegated models feel like subclasses.

Does this replace authorization gems like Pundit?

No, this skill focuses on data modeling and domain logic. You should still use gems like Pundit or CanCanCan to handle the actual permission logic based on these roles.

What version of Rails does this skill require?

This skill requires Rails 6.1 or later, as it relies on the delegated_type feature introduced in that version.

Can a user have multiple roles with this implementation?

Yes, the provided pattern uses a has_many relationship for roles, allowing a single User to hold multiple distinct role records simultaneously.

Rails Delegated Roles

Name: Rails Delegated Roles
Author: scottmatthewman

byscottmatthewman

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Database Management

Implements clean role delegation in Ruby on Rails applications using the delegated_type pattern to separate role-specific logic and data.

The Rails Delegated Roles skill provides a structured implementation pattern for managing complex user roles without bloating the main User model. By utilizing the Rails delegated_type feature, it enables developers to store role-specific data, associations, and validations in separate tables while maintaining a unified interface. This approach is ideal for applications where different roles—such as Students, Tutors, or Administrators—require distinct business logic and data structures, ensuring database integrity and code maintainability through clean polymorphism and specialized models.

Key Features

01Implements delegated_type for clean polymorphic role associations

02Provides database migration templates with unique role constraints

03Auto-generates predicate methods and accessor helpers for easy role checking

04Reduces conditional logic and Fat Model anti-patterns in User records

05Separates role-specific validations and associations into distinct models

060 GitHub stars

Use Cases

01Refactoring large User models with many optional associations and guarded validations

02Implementing auditable role assignments with specific metadata for each role type

03Building multi-tenant applications where users have distinct functional profiles

What are Skills?·How to Install

Install with 🐟 Skill.Fish

npx skillfish add scottmatthewman/skills rails-delegated-roles

For use in Claude.ai and ChatGPT

Download Skill