apache/superset · error · ImportFailedError

Dataset {config['table_name']!r} cannot be imported because

Error message

Dataset {config['table_name']!r} cannot be imported because a soft-deleted dataset (uuid {soft_twin.uuid}) already references the same physical table; restore that dataset instead of importing a duplicate

What it means

When creating a brand-new dataset from an import, the code queries DatasetDAO.find_soft_deleted_logical_duplicate for the config's physical identity. Because import_from_dict's visibility filter hides soft-deleted rows, without this guard the import would create an active twin of a hidden (trashed) dataset; the guard mirrors the REST create path's validate_uniqueness and refuses with a message pointing at the soft-deleted twin's UUID.

Source

Thrown at superset/commands/dataset/importers/v1/utils.py:401

        # Creating a brand-new dataset (no UUID match). A soft-deleted dataset
        # may still claim this physical table; ``import_from_dict`` cannot see it
        # (the visibility filter hides soft-deleted rows), so without this guard
        # the import would create an active twin of a hidden dataset. The REST
        # create path blocks the same collision via ``validate_uniqueness`` —
        # mirror it here and direct the user to restore the existing dataset
        # instead of leaving two rows for one physical table.
        database = (
            db.session.query(Database).filter_by(id=config["database_id"]).first()
        )
        if database is not None and (
            soft_twin := DatasetDAO.find_soft_deleted_logical_duplicate(
                database,
                Table(
                    config["table_name"], config.get("schema"), config.get("catalog")
                ),
            )
        ):
            raise ImportFailedError(
                f"Dataset {config['table_name']!r} cannot be imported because "
                f"a soft-deleted dataset (uuid {soft_twin.uuid}) already "
                "references the same physical table; restore that dataset "
                "instead of importing a duplicate"
            )

    # Trusted imports (e.g. example loading) carry curated configs; only
    # untrusted user imports validate the catalog, like the access checks below.
    if not ignore_permissions:
        validate_catalog(config)

    # TODO (betodealmeida): move this logic to import_from_dict
    config = config.copy()
    for key in JSON_KEYS:
        if config.get(key) is not None:
            try:
                config[key] = json.dumps(config[key])
            except TypeError:

View on GitHub (pinned to f4587218dd)

Solutions

1. Restore the soft-deleted dataset (its uuid is named in the error) via the restore endpoint or an import carrying that UUID, instead of creating a duplicate
2. Purge the soft-deleted row permanently, then retry the import
3. Rename the uploaded table_name/schema so it no longer collides

from superset.daos.dataset import DatasetDAO

database = session.query(Database).filter_by(id=config['database_id']).first()
soft_twin = DatasetDAO.find_soft_deleted_logical_duplicate(
    database, Table(config['table_name'], config.get('schema'), config.get('catalog'))
)
if soft_twin is not None:
    # restore the twin instead of importing a duplicate
    ...

from superset.commands.exceptions import ImportFailedError
try:
    import_dataset(config)
except ImportFailedError as ex:
    if 'soft-deleted dataset' in str(ex) and 'restore that dataset' in str(ex):
        # restore the named uuid via the restore endpoint instead of re-importing
        ...

When it happens

Trigger: Importing a dataset whose database+schema+table (and catalog) match a dataset currently in the soft-delete trash — e.g. re-importing an export after the dataset was soft-deleted under a different UUID, or after deletion removed the UUID linkage.

Common situations: Delete-then-reimport workflows where the trash still holds the row; exports regenerated without the original UUID so the UUID-match restore path never triggers.

Related errors

• Dataset {existing.table_name!r} (uuid {config['uuid']}) cann
• Dataset {existing.table_name!r} (uuid {config['uuid']}) cann
• Dataset {existing.table_name!r} (uuid {config['uuid']}) was
• Dataset {existing.table_name!r} (uuid {config['uuid']}) alre
• Dashboard cannot be restored because its slug is now used by

AI-assisted analysis of apache/superset@f4587218dd (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c619aca846d95a7e. Report an issue: GitHub.