hasura/graphql-engine · error

failed to drop inconsistent metadata: %w

Error message

failed to drop inconsistent metadata: %w

What it means

The `metadata inconsistency drop` command runs a fix-up routine (opts.run()) that removes inconsistent objects from the server's metadata, with a spinner around it. This error means that drop operation itself failed — the underlying server call to remove inconsistent metadata entries errored or the pre-check it performs failed.

Source

Thrown at cli/commands/metadata_inconsistency_drop.go:33

	}
	metadataInconsistencyDropCmd := &cobra.Command{
		Use:   "drop",
		Short: "Drop inconsistent objects from the Hasura Metadata",
		Long: `At times, when developing, the Hasura Metadata can become inconsistent. This command can be used to drop inconsistent objects from the Hasura Metadata and bring your project's Metadata back to a consistent state.
		
Further reading:
- https://hasura.io/docs/latest/migrations-metadata-seeds/resetting-migrations-metadata/
`,
		SilenceUsage: true,
		RunE: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
			op := genOpName(cmd, "RunE")

			opts.EC.Spin("Dropping inconsistent metadata...")
			err := opts.run()
			opts.EC.Spinner.Stop()

			if err != nil {
				return errors.E(op, fmt.Errorf("failed to drop inconsistent metadata: %w", err))
			}

			opts.EC.Logger.Info("all inconsistent objects removed from metadata")

			return nil
		},
	}

	return metadataInconsistencyDropCmd
}

type metadataInconsistencyDropOptions struct {
	EC *cli.ExecutionContext
}

func (o *metadataInconsistencyDropOptions) run() error {
	var op errors.Op = "commands.metadataInconsistencyDropOptions.run"

View on GitHub (pinned to 724551b9ae)

Solutions

1. Re-run `metadata inconsistency list` to see the current inconsistent objects and confirm the server is reachable
2. Check the wrapped error for auth/network specifics and fix credentials/connectivity
3. Ensure the admin secret has full metadata management permissions
4. If drop keeps failing on specific objects, manually remove/repair those resources via the metadata API or restore a known-good metadata file with `metadata apply`

Example fix

# before
hasura metadata inconsistency drop  # failed to drop inconsistent metadata
# after
hasura metadata inconsistency list  # inspect, fix perms/connectivity, then retry drop

// verify consistent read access before dropping
if _, err := cli.GetCommonMetadataOps(ec).ExportMetadata(); err != nil {
  return fmt.Errorf("server not accessible for inconsistency operations: %w", err)
}

if err := dropCmd.Execute(); err != nil {
  if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "failed to drop inconsistent metadata") {
    // re-list inconsistencies, verify perms, retry with backoff
  }
}

When it happens

Trigger: Running `metadata inconsistency drop` where opts.run() fails: the server API call to drop inconsistent objects returns an error (auth, network, server 500), or the inconsistency state cannot be safely resolved automatically.

Common situations: Running drop without sufficient admin permissions; server reachable at listing time but failing mid-drop; severe inconsistency that the automatic dropper cannot handle; network blip during the operation; attempting drop on a server version with a different inconsistency API.

Related errors

• failed to list inconsistent metadata: %w
• failed to read metadata status: %w
• failed to reload metadata: %w
• error building project metadata: %w
• exporting metadata from server: %w

AI-assisted analysis of hasura/graphql-engine@724551b9ae (2026-08-28). Data as JSON: /api/errors/3a04bfeeaa548899. Report an issue: GitHub.