gastownhall/beads · error

workspace already initialized as database %q, but --database

Error message

workspace already initialized as database %q, but --database %q was requested.
Remove --database (or pass a matching value) to reuse the existing workspace

What it means

The workspace (.beads) is already initialized against a recorded Dolt database, and bd init was invoked with an explicit --database flag naming a different database. Since --database is the authoritative selector, bd refuses to silently re-point the workspace and asks you to drop or match the flag.

Source

Thrown at cmd/bd/init.go:783

		// engdocs/adr/0002-init-safety-invariants.md).
		if !reinitLocal {
			if err := checkExistingBeadsData(prefix); err != nil {
				// --init-if-missing makes init idempotent, but ONLY for the
				// benign "workspace already initialized" case. An operational
				// error from the check (e.g. an unreadable .beads/embeddeddolt
				// directory) must still abort rather than be masked as a
				// successful skip.
				if initIfMissing && errors.Is(err, errWorkspaceAlreadyInitialized) {
					// Guard against masking a genuine mismatch: an explicit
					// --prefix or --database that does not match the existing
					// workspace must abort, since silently skipping would ignore
					// the request and reuse a different database. --database is
					// the authoritative selector, so it is checked even when
					// --prefix is also set.
					existing := existingWorkspaceDBName()
					if cmd.Flags().Changed("database") {
						if initIfMissingDatabaseMismatch(existing, database) {
							return fmt.Errorf("workspace already initialized as database %q, but --database %q was requested.\nRemove --database (or pass a matching value) to reuse the existing workspace", existing, database)
						}
					} else if cmd.Flags().Changed("prefix") {
						if initIfMissingPrefixMismatch(existing, prefix) {
							return fmt.Errorf("workspace already initialized as database %q, but --prefix %q was requested.\nRemove --prefix (or pass a matching value) to reuse the existing workspace", existing, prefix)
						}
					}
					if !quiet {
						fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, "Skipping init: workspace already initialized.")
					}
					return nil
				}
				return fmt.Errorf("%v", err)
			}
		}

		// Check BEADS_DB environment variable if --db flag not set
		// (PersistentPreRun doesn't run for init command)
		if dbPath == "" {

View on GitHub (pinned to 71377f2769)

Solutions

1. Remove the --database flag so the existing workspace is reused
2. Or pass the same value already recorded: bd init --database <existing-name>
3. Delete/reinitialize the workspace intentionally if you truly want a fresh database

Example fix

// before
bd init --database proj_v2   # workspace is proj_v1
// after
bd init                      # reuse existing, or:
bd init --database proj_v1

existing=$(cat .beads/database.name 2>/dev/null); [ -n "$existing" ] && [ "$existing" != "$DB" ] && echo "Refusing: workspace is $existing" && unset DB

When it happens

Trigger: `bd init --database new_name` in a directory where .beads already exists and existingWorkspaceDBName() returns a different name, and initIfMissingDatabaseMismatch flags the mismatch.

Common situations: Re-running init in a cloned repo with a leftover config but a different database name; renaming the project and wanting a new database name without wiping; scripted init with a templated name that drifted.

Related errors

• workspace already initialized as database %q, but --prefix %
• %s
• %s
• %w. Hint: run 'bd init' to create a database in the current
• backend %q cannot be created by bd init; it can only open an

AI-assisted analysis of gastownhall/beads@71377f2769 (2026-08-30). Data as JSON: /api/errors/f85a1e7b91058294. Report an issue: GitHub.