The above problem is not the least bit harrowing using Dolt. Share your production database with your laptop. Clone a copy of the production database and debug outside of production. Run pull to get the latest production data. Need to add an index as a fix or even change a problematic value? Make the change on your laptop, get it reviewed in a PR, and merge it up into production. No downtime. No risk of connecting to a production system and making writes.