hasura/graphql-engine · error

error applying metadata %w

Error message

error applying metadata 
%w

What it means

This is a formatting helper (errorApplyingMetadata) that wraps any failure encountered during `hasura metadata apply` with the message 'error applying metadata'. It carries no failure cause of its own — the meaningful diagnostic is always the wrapped error underneath, typically a server-side metadata validation or API error.

Source

Thrown at cli/commands/metadata_apply.go:129

	DisallowInconsistencies bool
}

func (o *MetadataApplyOptions) Run() error {
	var op errors.Op = "commands.MetadataApplyOptions.Run"

	err := getMetadataModeHandler(o.EC.MetadataMode).Apply(o)
	if err != nil {
		return errors.E(op, err)
	}

	return nil
}

func errorApplyingMetadata(err error) error {
	var op errors.Op = "commands.errorApplyingMetadata"
	// a helper function to have consistent error messages for errors
	// when applying metadata
	return errors.E(op, fmt.Errorf("error applying metadata \n%w", err))
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 724551b9ae)

Solutions

1. Read the wrapped error below the 'error applying metadata' message — the actual cause (server response, validation detail) is there
2. Validate metadata against the server first with `hasura metadata diff` or the /v1/metadata export+apply dry run to spot inconsistencies
3. Ensure the metadata directory layout matches what `hasura metadata export` produces
4. Confirm server compatibility: matching Hasura CLI and server versions, correct --endpoint and --admin-secret

// Go: surface the wrapped cause
if err := metadataApplyHandler.Apply(opts); err != nil {
  return fmt.Errorf("metadata apply failed: %w", errors.Unwrap(err))
}

When it happens

Trigger: Running `hasura metadata apply` where any step fails: the server rejects the metadata (invalid metadata, inconsistent objects), the apply handler cannot read the metadata directory/files, or a dependent step (e.g. applying data sources) returns an error that gets funneled through this wrapper.

Common situations: Metadata files hand-edited and now invalid, applying metadata to a server running an incompatible Hasura version, metadata referencing tables/relationships that don't exist in the database, or wrong admin secret causing auth failures deeper in the chain.

Related errors

• ndc validation error: {0}
• error while parsing the endpoint :%w
• failed to get version from server: %w
• cannot read config from file/env: %w
• unable to parse server endpoint: %w

AI-assisted analysis of hasura/graphql-engine@724551b9ae (2026-08-28). Data as JSON: /api/errors/89d38417854d9b49. Report an issue: GitHub.