feat(sync): add --select flag to sync specific schemas/tables without deleting the rest

[ClaireGz]

Problem

There is no way to refresh a single table or schema with nao sync without affecting everything else:

• If you only put one table/schema in the include config, nao sync deletes all other previously-synced tables — the post-sync cleanup (cleanup_stale_paths) removes any schema/table directory that wasn't part of the current run.
• So the only safe option is to sync everything, which can be slow on large warehouses.

Closes #923

Solution

Add a --select / -s flag to nao sync that restricts the sync to a selection of schemas/tables and skips stale-path cleanup, so nothing outside the selection is removed.

# Sync a single table
nao sync --select analytics.orders

# Sync a whole schema
nao sync --select analytics

# Multiple selections + glob patterns
nao sync -s analytics.orders -s staging.dim_*

# Combine with a specific connection
nao sync -p databases:my-warehouse -s analytics.orders

Behaviour:

• A pattern with no dot (analytics) selects every table in that schema (analytics.*).
• A pattern with a dot (analytics.orders) selects a specific table; glob wildcards are supported (staging.dim_*).
• Selection is applied on top of the existing include/exclude config — it narrows further, never widens.
• When --select is passed, cleanup_stale_paths is skipped, preserving previously-synced tables/schemas outside the selection.
• Tables and Snowflake semantic views both respect the selection.

Implementation

• cli/nao_core/commands/sync/__init__.py — new --select/-s parameter, passed through to the provider.
• cli/.../providers/databases/provider.py — _matches_selection() helper; sync_database() filters tables/semantic views by the selection; provider skips cleanup and prints a Select: … (stale cleanup skipped) note when active.
• cli/.../providers/base.py, notion, repositories — accept the select kwarg for a consistent interface (only databases honors it).

Tests

• TestMatchesSelection — schema-only, schema.table, and glob pattern matching.
• TestSelectSkipsCleanup — cleanup runs without --select, is skipped with it, and select is threaded into sync_database.

make lint passes; the sync test suite is green (218 passed; the integration/ dir is excluded due to a local unixodbc/pyodbc issue unrelated to this change).

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

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Note

Low Risk
Scoped CLI and database sync filtering with explicit cleanup skip; other providers unchanged in parent pre_sync database cleanup still runs.

Overview
Adds nao sync -s / --select so you can refresh only chosen database schemas or tables (e.g. analytics, analytics.orders, staging.dim_*) without a full warehouse sync.

Selection is narrowed on top of existing include/exclude config via _matches_selection (schema-only patterns map to schema.*; globs use fnmatch). The databases provider applies it to tables and Snowflake semantic views. When --select is active, cleanup_stale_paths is skipped so previously synced objects outside the selection stay on disk; the CLI prints a note that stale cleanup was skipped.

The select argument is threaded through the SyncProvider.sync interface (repos/Notion accept it but ignore it). Unit tests cover pattern matching and cleanup-on vs cleanup-off behavior.

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[cubic-dev-ai]

2 issues found across 6 files

<sub>Reply with feedback, questions, or to request a fix.

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[socallmebertille]

Tiny changes can be made and it will look awesome

[socallmebertille]

LGTM 👍