The error

Runtime Error: Could not find profile named 'default'

when running

dbt run-operation elementary.generate_elementary_cli_profile

in a dbt Cloud or OSS setup typically means that dbt is looking for a profile named

default

in your

profiles.yml

, but it cannot find it. Why does this happen? - dbt uses the

profiles.yml

file to find connection details. By default, it looks for a profile matching your project name, or one explicitly specified via the

--profile

flag. - If you haven't set up a

default

profile in your

profiles.yml

, or if your

profiles.yml

is missing or in the wrong location, you'll get this error. How to resolve: 1. Check your

profiles.yml

location: - By default, dbt looks for

profiles.yml

in

~/.dbt/

(your home directory). If it's elsewhere, use the

--profiles-dir

flag to specify the directory (not the file itself) [see example](https://slack.com/archives/C02CTC89LAX/p1678710882384149). 2. Ensure the correct profile exists: - Your

profiles.yml

should contain a profile matching the name dbt expects (often your dbt project name, or

default

if that's what is referenced). - For Elementary, you will eventually need a profile named

elementary

as well, but to run the

generate_elementary_cli_profile

macro, dbt first needs to connect using your existing project profile. Example structure:

yaml    my_project_name:      outputs:        dev:          type: snowflake          ...      target: dev

3. If using dbt Cloud: - dbt Cloud does not use a local

profiles.yml

by default. When running locally, ensure your

profiles.yml

is set up as above. - When running the macro in dbt Cloud, make sure your environment is configured with the correct connection and target. 4. If you want to specify a different profile: - Use the

--profile

flag to specify the profile name if it's not

default

or your project name. Summary: You need to have a valid

profiles.yml

with a profile named

default

(or your project name), and it must be in the correct location or referenced with

--profiles-dir

. Once dbt can find and use this profile, the

elementary.generate_elementary_cli_profile

macro will work and output the configuration you need for Elementary. For more details and troubleshooting, see the official documentation and Slack threads: - [Elementary CLI Quickstart](https://docs.elementary-data.com/oss/quickstart/quickstart-cli) - [Slack thread on profiles-dir usage](https://slack.com/archives/C02CTC89LAX/p1678710882384149) - [Slack thread on profile not found errors](https://slack.com/archives/C02CTC89LAX/p1686013979045139)