diff --git a/tests/unit_tests/commands/importers/v1/examples_test.py b/tests/unit_tests/commands/importers/v1/examples_test.py
index 1ad6176dc1c..be1134a7ad8 100644
--- a/tests/unit_tests/commands/importers/v1/examples_test.py
+++ b/tests/unit_tests/commands/importers/v1/examples_test.py
@@ -14,11 +14,12 @@
 # KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
 # specific language governing permissions and limitations
 # under the License.
-"""Tests for the examples importer, specifically SQL transpilation."""
+"""Tests for the examples importer: orchestration, transpilation, normalization."""
 
 from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
 
 from superset.commands.importers.v1.examples import transpile_virtual_dataset_sql
+from superset.examples.utils import _normalize_dataset_schema
 
 
 def test_transpile_virtual_dataset_sql_no_sql():
@@ -242,3 +243,133 @@ def test_transpile_virtual_dataset_sql_postgres_to_sqlite(mock_transpile, mock_d
 
     assert config["sql"] == transpiled_sql
     mock_transpile.assert_called_once_with(original_sql, "sqlite", "postgresql")
+
+
+@patch(
+    "superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.safe_insert_dashboard_chart_relationships"
+)
+@patch("superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.import_dashboard")
+@patch("superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.import_chart")
+@patch("superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.import_dataset")
+@patch("superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.import_database")
+def test_import_passes_ignore_permissions_to_all_importers(
+    mock_import_db,
+    mock_import_dataset,
+    mock_import_chart,
+    mock_import_dashboard,
+    mock_safe_insert,
+):
+    """_import() must pass ignore_permissions=True to all importers.
+
+    This is the key wiring test: the security bypass for system imports
+    only works if _import() passes ignore_permissions=True to each
+    sub-importer. Without this, SQLite example databases are blocked
+    by PREVENT_UNSAFE_DB_CONNECTIONS.
+    """
+    from superset.commands.importers.v1.examples import ImportExamplesCommand
+
+    db_uuid = "a2dc77af-e654-49bb-b321-40f6b559a1ee"
+    dataset_uuid = "14f48794-ebfa-4f60-a26a-582c49132f1b"
+    chart_uuid = "cccccccc-cccc-cccc-cccc-cccccccccccc"
+    dashboard_uuid = "dddddddd-dddd-dddd-dddd-dddddddddddd"
+
+    # Mock database import
+    mock_db_obj = MagicMock()
+    mock_db_obj.uuid = db_uuid
+    mock_db_obj.id = 1
+    mock_import_db.return_value = mock_db_obj
+
+    # Mock dataset import
+    mock_dataset_obj = MagicMock()
+    mock_dataset_obj.uuid = dataset_uuid
+    mock_dataset_obj.id = 10
+    mock_dataset_obj.table_name = "test_table"
+    mock_import_dataset.return_value = mock_dataset_obj
+
+    # Mock chart import
+    mock_chart_obj = MagicMock()
+    mock_chart_obj.uuid = chart_uuid
+    mock_chart_obj.id = 100
+    mock_import_chart.return_value = mock_chart_obj
+
+    # Mock dashboard import
+    mock_dashboard_obj = MagicMock()
+    mock_dashboard_obj.id = 1000
+    mock_import_dashboard.return_value = mock_dashboard_obj
+
+    configs = {
+        "databases/examples.yaml": {
+            "uuid": db_uuid,
+            "database_name": "examples",
+            "sqlalchemy_uri": "sqlite:///test.db",
+        },
+        "datasets/examples/test.yaml": {
+            "uuid": dataset_uuid,
+            "table_name": "test_table",
+            "database_uuid": db_uuid,
+            "schema": None,
+            "sql": None,
+        },
+        "charts/test/chart.yaml": {
+            "uuid": chart_uuid,
+            "dataset_uuid": dataset_uuid,
+        },
+        "dashboards/test.yaml": {
+            "uuid": dashboard_uuid,
+            "position": {},
+        },
+    }
+
+    with patch(
+        "superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.get_example_default_schema",
+        return_value=None,
+    ):
+        with patch(
+            "superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.find_chart_uuids",
+            return_value=[],
+        ):
+            with patch(
+                "superset.commands.importers.v1.examples.update_id_refs",
+                return_value=configs["dashboards/test.yaml"],
+            ):
+                ImportExamplesCommand._import(configs)
+
+    # Verify ALL importers received ignore_permissions=True
+    mock_import_db.assert_called_once()
+    assert mock_import_db.call_args[1].get("ignore_permissions") is True
+
+    mock_import_dataset.assert_called_once()
+    assert mock_import_dataset.call_args[1].get("ignore_permissions") is True
+
+    mock_import_chart.assert_called_once()
+    assert mock_import_chart.call_args[1].get("ignore_permissions") is True
+
+    mock_import_dashboard.assert_called_once()
+    assert mock_import_dashboard.call_args[1].get("ignore_permissions") is True
+
+
+def test_normalize_dataset_schema_converts_main_to_null():
+    """SQLite 'main' schema must be normalized to null in YAML content.
+
+    This normalization happens in the YAML import path (utils.py), which is
+    separate from the data_loading.py normalization. Both paths must handle
+    SQLite's default 'main' schema correctly.
+    """
+    content = "table_name: test\nschema: main\nuuid: abc-123"
+    result = _normalize_dataset_schema(content)
+    assert "schema: null" in result
+    assert "schema: main" not in result
+
+
+def test_normalize_dataset_schema_preserves_other_schemas():
+    """Non-'main' schemas should be left unchanged."""
+    content = "table_name: test\nschema: public\nuuid: abc-123"
+    result = _normalize_dataset_schema(content)
+    assert "schema: public" in result
+
+
+def test_normalize_dataset_schema_preserves_null_schema():
+    """Already-null schemas should remain null."""
+    content = "table_name: test\nschema: null\nuuid: abc-123"
+    result = _normalize_dataset_schema(content)
+    assert "schema: null" in result
diff --git a/tests/unit_tests/databases/commands/importers/v1/import_test.py b/tests/unit_tests/databases/commands/importers/v1/import_test.py
index 6e771d47128..7d58da170a9 100644
--- a/tests/unit_tests/databases/commands/importers/v1/import_test.py
+++ b/tests/unit_tests/databases/commands/importers/v1/import_test.py
@@ -120,6 +120,39 @@ def test_import_database_sqlite_invalid(
     current_app.config["PREVENT_UNSAFE_DB_CONNECTIONS"] = True
 
 
+def test_import_database_sqlite_allowed_with_ignore_permissions(
+    mocker: MockerFixture, session: Session
+) -> None:
+    """
+    Test that SQLite imports succeed when ignore_permissions=True.
+
+    System imports (like examples) use URIs from server config, not user input,
+    so they should bypass the PREVENT_UNSAFE_DB_CONNECTIONS check. This is the
+    key fix from PR #37577 that allows example loading to work in CI/showtime
+    environments where PREVENT_UNSAFE_DB_CONNECTIONS is enabled.
+    """
+    from superset.commands.database.importers.v1.utils import import_database
+    from superset.models.core import Database
+    from tests.integration_tests.fixtures.importexport import database_config_sqlite
+
+    mocker.patch.dict(current_app.config, {"PREVENT_UNSAFE_DB_CONNECTIONS": True})
+    mocker.patch("superset.commands.database.importers.v1.utils.add_permissions")
+
+    engine = db.session.get_bind()
+    Database.metadata.create_all(engine)  # pylint: disable=no-member
+
+    config = copy.deepcopy(database_config_sqlite)
+    # With ignore_permissions=True, the security check should be skipped
+    database = import_database(config, ignore_permissions=True)
+
+    assert database.database_name == "imported_database"
+    assert "sqlite" in database.sqlalchemy_uri
+
+    # Cleanup
+    db.session.delete(database)
+    db.session.flush()
+
+
 def test_import_database_managed_externally(
     mocker: MockerFixture,
     session: Session,
diff --git a/tests/unit_tests/examples/__init__.py b/tests/unit_tests/examples/__init__.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..13a83393a91
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit_tests/examples/__init__.py
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+# Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+# or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+# distributed with this work for additional information
+# regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+# to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+# "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+# with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+# software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+# "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+# KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+# specific language governing permissions and limitations
+# under the License.
diff --git a/tests/unit_tests/examples/data_loading_test.py b/tests/unit_tests/examples/data_loading_test.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..8dde09cf533
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit_tests/examples/data_loading_test.py
@@ -0,0 +1,204 @@
+# Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+# or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+# distributed with this work for additional information
+# regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+# to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+# "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+# with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+# software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+# "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+# KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+# specific language governing permissions and limitations
+# under the License.
+"""Tests for data_loading.py UUID extraction functionality."""
+
+from pathlib import Path
+from tempfile import TemporaryDirectory
+from unittest.mock import patch
+
+import yaml
+
+
+def test_get_dataset_config_from_yaml_extracts_uuid():
+    """Test that UUID is extracted from dataset.yaml."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import get_dataset_config_from_yaml
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        example_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+        dataset_yaml = example_dir / "dataset.yaml"
+        dataset_yaml.write_text(
+            yaml.dump(
+                {
+                    "table_name": "test_table",
+                    "uuid": "12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012",
+                    "schema": "public",
+                }
+            )
+        )
+
+        config = get_dataset_config_from_yaml(example_dir)
+
+        assert config["uuid"] == "12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012"
+        assert config["table_name"] == "test_table"
+        assert config["schema"] == "public"
+
+
+def test_get_dataset_config_from_yaml_without_uuid():
+    """Test that missing UUID returns None."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import get_dataset_config_from_yaml
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        example_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+        dataset_yaml = example_dir / "dataset.yaml"
+        dataset_yaml.write_text(
+            yaml.dump(
+                {
+                    "table_name": "test_table",
+                    "schema": "public",
+                }
+            )
+        )
+
+        config = get_dataset_config_from_yaml(example_dir)
+
+        assert config["uuid"] is None
+        assert config["table_name"] == "test_table"
+
+
+def test_get_dataset_config_from_yaml_no_file():
+    """Test behavior when dataset.yaml doesn't exist."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import get_dataset_config_from_yaml
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        example_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+
+        config = get_dataset_config_from_yaml(example_dir)
+
+        assert config["uuid"] is None
+        assert config["table_name"] is None
+        assert config["schema"] is None
+
+
+def test_get_dataset_config_from_yaml_treats_main_schema_as_none():
+    """Test that SQLite's 'main' schema is treated as None."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import get_dataset_config_from_yaml
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        example_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+        dataset_yaml = example_dir / "dataset.yaml"
+        dataset_yaml.write_text(
+            yaml.dump(
+                {
+                    "table_name": "test_table",
+                    "schema": "main",  # SQLite default schema
+                }
+            )
+        )
+
+        config = get_dataset_config_from_yaml(example_dir)
+
+        assert config["schema"] is None
+
+
+def test_get_multi_dataset_config_extracts_uuid():
+    """Test that UUID is extracted from datasets/{name}.yaml."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import _get_multi_dataset_config
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        example_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+        datasets_dir = example_dir / "datasets"
+        datasets_dir.mkdir()
+        dataset_yaml = datasets_dir / "test_dataset.yaml"
+        dataset_yaml.write_text(
+            yaml.dump(
+                {
+                    "table_name": "custom_table_name",
+                    "uuid": "aaaaaaaa-bbbb-cccc-dddd-eeeeeeeeeeee",
+                    "schema": "public",
+                }
+            )
+        )
+
+        data_file = example_dir / "data" / "test_dataset.parquet"
+        config = _get_multi_dataset_config(example_dir, "test_dataset", data_file)
+
+        assert config["uuid"] == "aaaaaaaa-bbbb-cccc-dddd-eeeeeeeeeeee"
+        assert config["table_name"] == "custom_table_name"
+
+
+def test_get_multi_dataset_config_without_yaml():
+    """Test behavior when datasets/{name}.yaml doesn't exist."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import _get_multi_dataset_config
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        example_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+        data_file = example_dir / "data" / "test_dataset.parquet"
+
+        config = _get_multi_dataset_config(example_dir, "test_dataset", data_file)
+
+        assert config.get("uuid") is None
+        assert config["table_name"] == "test_dataset"
+
+
+def test_get_multi_dataset_config_treats_main_schema_as_none():
+    """Test that SQLite's 'main' schema is treated as None in multi-dataset config."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import _get_multi_dataset_config
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        example_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+        datasets_dir = example_dir / "datasets"
+        datasets_dir.mkdir()
+        dataset_yaml = datasets_dir / "test_dataset.yaml"
+        dataset_yaml.write_text(
+            yaml.dump(
+                {
+                    "table_name": "test_table",
+                    "schema": "main",
+                }
+            )
+        )
+
+        data_file = example_dir / "data" / "test_dataset.parquet"
+        config = _get_multi_dataset_config(example_dir, "test_dataset", data_file)
+
+        assert config["schema"] is None
+
+
+def test_discover_datasets_passes_uuid_to_loader():
+    """Test that discover_datasets passes UUID from YAML to create_generic_loader."""
+    from superset.examples.data_loading import discover_datasets
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        examples_dir = Path(tmpdir)
+
+        # Create a simple example with data.parquet and dataset.yaml
+        example_dir = examples_dir / "test_example"
+        example_dir.mkdir()
+        (example_dir / "data.parquet").touch()
+        (example_dir / "dataset.yaml").write_text(
+            yaml.dump(
+                {
+                    "table_name": "test_table",
+                    "uuid": "12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012",
+                }
+            )
+        )
+
+        with patch(
+            "superset.examples.data_loading.get_examples_directory",
+            return_value=examples_dir,
+        ):
+            with patch(
+                "superset.examples.data_loading.create_generic_loader"
+            ) as mock_create:
+                mock_create.return_value = lambda: None
+
+                discover_datasets()
+
+                mock_create.assert_called_once()
+                call_kwargs = mock_create.call_args[1]
+                assert call_kwargs["uuid"] == "12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012"
diff --git a/tests/unit_tests/examples/generic_loader_test.py b/tests/unit_tests/examples/generic_loader_test.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..e921d748f3d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit_tests/examples/generic_loader_test.py
@@ -0,0 +1,233 @@
+# Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+# or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+# distributed with this work for additional information
+# regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+# to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+# "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+# with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+# software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+# "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+# KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+# specific language governing permissions and limitations
+# under the License.
+"""Tests for generic_loader.py UUID threading functionality."""
+
+from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
+
+
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.get_example_database")
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.db")
+def test_load_parquet_table_sets_uuid_on_new_table(mock_db, mock_get_db):
+    """Test that load_parquet_table sets UUID on newly created SqlaTable."""
+    from superset.examples.generic_loader import load_parquet_table
+
+    mock_database = MagicMock()
+    mock_database.id = 1
+    mock_database.has_table.return_value = True
+    mock_get_db.return_value = mock_database
+
+    mock_engine = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector.default_schema_name = "public"
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__enter__ = MagicMock(
+        return_value=mock_engine
+    )
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__exit__ = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+
+    # Simulate table not found in metadata
+    mock_db.session.query.return_value.filter_by.return_value.first.return_value = None
+
+    test_uuid = "12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012"
+
+    with patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.inspect") as mock_inspect:
+        mock_inspect.return_value = mock_inspector
+
+        tbl = load_parquet_table(
+            parquet_file="test_data",
+            table_name="test_table",
+            database=mock_database,
+            only_metadata=True,
+            uuid=test_uuid,
+        )
+
+    assert tbl.uuid == test_uuid
+
+
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.get_example_database")
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.db")
+def test_load_parquet_table_early_return_does_not_modify_existing_uuid(
+    mock_db, mock_get_db
+):
+    """Test early return path when table exists - UUID is not modified.
+
+    When the physical table exists and force=False, the function returns early
+    without going through the full load path. The existing table's UUID is
+    preserved as-is (not modified even if different from the provided uuid).
+    """
+    from superset.examples.generic_loader import load_parquet_table
+
+    mock_database = MagicMock()
+    mock_database.id = 1
+    mock_database.has_table.return_value = True  # Triggers early return
+    mock_get_db.return_value = mock_database
+
+    mock_engine = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector.default_schema_name = "public"
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__enter__ = MagicMock(
+        return_value=mock_engine
+    )
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__exit__ = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+
+    # Simulate existing table without UUID
+    existing_table = MagicMock()
+    existing_table.uuid = None
+    mock_db.session.query.return_value.filter_by.return_value.first.return_value = (
+        existing_table
+    )
+
+    test_uuid = "12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012"
+
+    with patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.inspect") as mock_inspect:
+        mock_inspect.return_value = mock_inspector
+
+        tbl = load_parquet_table(
+            parquet_file="test_data",
+            table_name="test_table",
+            database=mock_database,
+            only_metadata=True,
+            uuid=test_uuid,
+        )
+
+    # Early return path returns existing table as-is
+    assert tbl is existing_table
+    # UUID was not modified (still None)
+    assert tbl.uuid is None
+
+
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.get_example_database")
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.db")
+def test_load_parquet_table_preserves_existing_uuid(mock_db, mock_get_db):
+    """Test that load_parquet_table does not overwrite existing UUID."""
+    from superset.examples.generic_loader import load_parquet_table
+
+    mock_database = MagicMock()
+    mock_database.id = 1
+    mock_database.has_table.return_value = True
+    mock_get_db.return_value = mock_database
+
+    mock_engine = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector.default_schema_name = "public"
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__enter__ = MagicMock(
+        return_value=mock_engine
+    )
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__exit__ = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+
+    # Simulate existing table with different UUID
+    existing_uuid = "aaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa"
+    existing_table = MagicMock()
+    existing_table.uuid = existing_uuid
+    mock_db.session.query.return_value.filter_by.return_value.first.return_value = (
+        existing_table
+    )
+
+    new_uuid = "bbbbbbbb-bbbb-bbbb-bbbb-bbbbbbbbbbbb"
+
+    with patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.inspect") as mock_inspect:
+        mock_inspect.return_value = mock_inspector
+
+        tbl = load_parquet_table(
+            parquet_file="test_data",
+            table_name="test_table",
+            database=mock_database,
+            only_metadata=True,
+            uuid=new_uuid,
+        )
+
+    # Should preserve original UUID
+    assert tbl.uuid == existing_uuid
+
+
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.get_example_database")
+@patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.db")
+def test_load_parquet_table_works_without_uuid(mock_db, mock_get_db):
+    """Test that load_parquet_table works correctly when no UUID is provided."""
+    from superset.examples.generic_loader import load_parquet_table
+
+    mock_database = MagicMock()
+    mock_database.id = 1
+    mock_database.has_table.return_value = True
+    mock_get_db.return_value = mock_database
+
+    mock_engine = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector = MagicMock()
+    mock_inspector.default_schema_name = "public"
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__enter__ = MagicMock(
+        return_value=mock_engine
+    )
+    mock_database.get_sqla_engine.return_value.__exit__ = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+
+    # Simulate table not found
+    mock_db.session.query.return_value.filter_by.return_value.first.return_value = None
+
+    with patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.inspect") as mock_inspect:
+        mock_inspect.return_value = mock_inspector
+
+        tbl = load_parquet_table(
+            parquet_file="test_data",
+            table_name="test_table",
+            database=mock_database,
+            only_metadata=True,
+            # No uuid parameter
+        )
+
+    # UUID should remain None
+    assert tbl.uuid is None
+
+
+def test_create_generic_loader_passes_uuid():
+    """Test that create_generic_loader passes UUID to load_parquet_table."""
+    from superset.examples.generic_loader import create_generic_loader
+
+    test_uuid = "12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012"
+    loader = create_generic_loader(
+        parquet_file="test_data",
+        table_name="test_table",
+        uuid=test_uuid,
+    )
+
+    # Verify loader was created with UUID in closure
+    with patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.load_parquet_table") as mock_load:
+        mock_load.return_value = MagicMock()
+
+        loader(only_metadata=True)
+
+        # Verify UUID was passed through
+        mock_load.assert_called_once()
+        call_kwargs = mock_load.call_args[1]
+        assert call_kwargs["uuid"] == test_uuid
+
+
+def test_create_generic_loader_without_uuid():
+    """Test that create_generic_loader works without UUID (backward compat)."""
+    from superset.examples.generic_loader import create_generic_loader
+
+    loader = create_generic_loader(
+        parquet_file="test_data",
+        table_name="test_table",
+        # No uuid
+    )
+
+    with patch("superset.examples.generic_loader.load_parquet_table") as mock_load:
+        mock_load.return_value = MagicMock()
+
+        loader(only_metadata=True)
+
+        mock_load.assert_called_once()
+        call_kwargs = mock_load.call_args[1]
+        assert call_kwargs["uuid"] is None
diff --git a/tests/unit_tests/examples/utils_test.py b/tests/unit_tests/examples/utils_test.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..0d71dadd3c4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit_tests/examples/utils_test.py
@@ -0,0 +1,206 @@
+# Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+# or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+# distributed with this work for additional information
+# regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+# to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+# "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+# with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+# software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+# "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+# KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+# specific language governing permissions and limitations
+# under the License.
+"""Tests for examples/utils.py - YAML config loading and content assembly."""
+
+from pathlib import Path
+from tempfile import TemporaryDirectory
+from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
+
+import yaml
+
+
+def _create_example_tree(base_dir: Path) -> Path:
+    """Create a minimal example directory tree under base_dir/superset/examples/.
+
+    Returns the 'superset' directory (what files("superset") would return).
+    """
+    superset_dir = base_dir / "superset"
+    examples_dir = superset_dir / "examples"
+
+    # _shared configs
+    shared_dir = examples_dir / "_shared"
+    shared_dir.mkdir(parents=True)
+    (shared_dir / "database.yaml").write_text(
+        "database_name: examples\n"
+        "sqlalchemy_uri: __SQLALCHEMY_EXAMPLES_URI__\n"
+        "uuid: a2dc77af-e654-49bb-b321-40f6b559a1ee\n"
+        "version: '1.0.0'\n"
+    )
+    (shared_dir / "metadata.yaml").write_text(
+        "version: '1.0.0'\ntimestamp: '2020-12-11T22:52:56.534241+00:00'\n"
+    )
+
+    # An example with dataset, dashboard, and chart
+    example_dir = examples_dir / "test_example"
+    example_dir.mkdir()
+    (example_dir / "dataset.yaml").write_text(
+        yaml.dump(
+            {
+                "table_name": "test_table",
+                "schema": "main",
+                "uuid": "14f48794-ebfa-4f60-a26a-582c49132f1b",
+                "database_uuid": "a2dc77af-e654-49bb-b321-40f6b559a1ee",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+            }
+        )
+    )
+    (example_dir / "dashboard.yaml").write_text(
+        yaml.dump(
+            {
+                "dashboard_title": "Test Dashboard",
+                "uuid": "dddddddd-dddd-dddd-dddd-dddddddddddd",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+            }
+        )
+    )
+    charts_dir = example_dir / "charts"
+    charts_dir.mkdir()
+    (charts_dir / "test_chart.yaml").write_text(
+        yaml.dump(
+            {
+                "slice_name": "Test Chart",
+                "uuid": "cccccccc-cccc-cccc-cccc-cccccccccccc",
+                "dataset_uuid": "14f48794-ebfa-4f60-a26a-582c49132f1b",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+            }
+        )
+    )
+
+    return superset_dir
+
+
+def test_load_contents_builds_correct_import_structure():
+    """load_contents() must produce the key structure ImportExamplesCommand expects.
+
+    This tests the orchestration entry point: YAML files are discovered from
+    the examples directory, the shared database config has its URI placeholder
+    replaced, and the result has the correct key prefixes (databases/, datasets/,
+    metadata.yaml).
+    """
+    from superset.examples.utils import load_contents
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        superset_dir = _create_example_tree(Path(tmpdir))
+
+        test_examples_uri = "sqlite:///path/to/examples.db"
+        mock_app = MagicMock()
+        mock_app.config = {"SQLALCHEMY_EXAMPLES_URI": test_examples_uri}
+
+        with patch("superset.examples.utils.files", return_value=superset_dir):
+            with patch("flask.current_app", mock_app):
+                contents = load_contents()
+
+        # Verify database config is present with placeholder replaced
+        assert "databases/examples.yaml" in contents
+        db_content = contents["databases/examples.yaml"]
+        assert "__SQLALCHEMY_EXAMPLES_URI__" not in db_content
+        assert test_examples_uri in db_content
+
+        # Verify metadata is present
+        assert "metadata.yaml" in contents
+
+        # Verify dataset is discovered with correct key prefix
+        assert "datasets/examples/test_example.yaml" in contents
+
+        # Verify dashboard is discovered with correct key prefix
+        assert "dashboards/test_example.yaml" in contents
+
+        # Verify chart is discovered with correct key prefix
+        assert "charts/test_example/test_chart.yaml" in contents
+
+        # Verify schema normalization happened (main -> null)
+        dataset_content = contents["datasets/examples/test_example.yaml"]
+        assert "schema: main" not in dataset_content
+        assert "schema: null" in dataset_content
+
+
+def test_load_contents_replaces_sqlalchemy_examples_uri_placeholder():
+    """The __SQLALCHEMY_EXAMPLES_URI__ placeholder must be replaced with the real URI.
+
+    If this placeholder is not replaced, the database import will fail with an
+    invalid connection string, preventing all examples from loading.
+    """
+    from superset.examples.utils import _load_shared_configs
+
+    with TemporaryDirectory() as tmpdir:
+        superset_dir = _create_example_tree(Path(tmpdir))
+        examples_root = Path("examples")
+
+        test_uri = "postgresql://user:pass@host/db"
+        mock_app = MagicMock()
+        mock_app.config = {"SQLALCHEMY_EXAMPLES_URI": test_uri}
+
+        with patch("superset.examples.utils.files", return_value=superset_dir):
+            with patch("flask.current_app", mock_app):
+                contents = _load_shared_configs(examples_root)
+
+        assert "databases/examples.yaml" in contents
+        assert test_uri in contents["databases/examples.yaml"]
+        assert "__SQLALCHEMY_EXAMPLES_URI__" not in contents["databases/examples.yaml"]
+
+
+@patch("superset.examples.utils.ImportExamplesCommand")
+@patch("superset.examples.utils.load_contents")
+def test_load_examples_from_configs_wires_command_correctly(
+    mock_load_contents,
+    mock_command_cls,
+):
+    """load_examples_from_configs() must construct ImportExamplesCommand
+    with overwrite=True and thread force_data through.
+
+    A wiring regression here would silently skip overwriting existing
+    examples or ignore the force_data flag.
+    """
+    from superset.examples.utils import load_examples_from_configs
+
+    mock_load_contents.return_value = {"databases/examples.yaml": "content"}
+    mock_command = MagicMock()
+    mock_command_cls.return_value = mock_command
+
+    load_examples_from_configs(force_data=True)
+
+    mock_load_contents.assert_called_once_with(False)
+    mock_command_cls.assert_called_once_with(
+        {"databases/examples.yaml": "content"},
+        overwrite=True,
+        force_data=True,
+    )
+    mock_command.run.assert_called_once()
+
+
+@patch("superset.examples.utils.ImportExamplesCommand")
+@patch("superset.examples.utils.load_contents")
+def test_load_examples_from_configs_defaults(
+    mock_load_contents,
+    mock_command_cls,
+):
+    """Default call should pass force_data=False and load_test_data=False."""
+    from superset.examples.utils import load_examples_from_configs
+
+    mock_load_contents.return_value = {}
+    mock_command = MagicMock()
+    mock_command_cls.return_value = mock_command
+
+    load_examples_from_configs()
+
+    mock_load_contents.assert_called_once_with(False)
+    mock_command_cls.assert_called_once_with(
+        {},
+        overwrite=True,
+        force_data=False,
+    )
+    mock_command.run.assert_called_once()