hasura/graphql-engine · error · OrderableRelationshipError

The orderable relationship '{relationship_name}' defined for

Error message

The orderable relationship '{relationship_name}' defined for '{orderable_type}' is a remote relationship and remote relationships are not supported in ordering

What it means

Thrown when an orderable relationship defined for a type is a remote relationship. Remote relationships span different data sources and cannot be evaluated inside ORDER BY clauses, so metadata resolution rejects them.

Source

Thrown at v3/crates/metadata-resolve/src/stages/order_by_expressions/error.rs:75

    #[error(
        "The type of the order by expression {order_by_expression_name} referenced in field {field_name} does not match the field type. Order by expression type: {order_by_expression_type}; field type: {field_type}. "
    )]
    OrderableFieldTypeError {
        order_by_expression_name: OrderByExpressionName,
        order_by_expression_type: TypeName,
        field_type: QualifiedBaseType,
        field_name: FieldName,
    },
    #[error("{0}")]
    GraphqlConfigError(#[from] graphql_config::GraphqlConfigError),
    #[error("{message}")]
    UnsupportedFeature { message: String },
}

#[derive(Debug, thiserror::Error)]
#[allow(clippy::enum_variant_names)]
pub enum OrderableRelationshipError {
    #[error(
        "The orderable relationship '{relationship_name}' defined for '{orderable_type}' is a remote relationship and remote relationships are not supported in ordering"
    )]
    RemoteRelationshipsNotSupported {
        orderable_type: Qualified<CustomTypeName>,
        relationship_name: RelationshipName,
    },
    #[error(
        "The orderable relationship '{relationship_name}' defined for '{orderable_type}' is not supported in ordering because the data connector '{data_connector_name}' does not support relationships"
    )]
    RelationshipsNotSupported {
        orderable_type: Qualified<CustomTypeName>,
        relationship_name: RelationshipName,
        data_connector_name: Qualified<open_dds::data_connector::DataConnectorName>,
    },
    #[error(
        "The orderable relationship '{relationship_name}' defined for '{orderable_type}' is not supported in ordering because the data connector '{data_connector_name}' does not support nested relationships in ordering"
    )]
    NestedRelationshipsNotSupported {

View on GitHub (pinned to 724551b9ae)

Solutions

1. Find the orderable relationship named in the error on the given type in your OpenDD metadata
2. If it is a remote relationship, remove it from the ordering configuration (orderable relationships / order_by_expressions)
3. Replace it with an equivalent local (same data connector) relationship if ordering is required

Example fix

// before (OpenDD yaml)
orderable_relationships:
  - relationship_name: remoteAuthors
// after: remove the remote relationship, keep only local ones
orderable_relationships:
  - relationship_name: localAuthors

for (const rel of orderableRelationships) {
  const def = relationships[rel.relationship_name];
  if (def?.target_source?.type !== 'localDataConnector') {
    throw new Error(`${rel.relationship_name} is remote and cannot be orderable`);
  }
}

const isLocalRelationship = (r) => r.target_source?.data_connector_name !== undefined;

When it happens

Trigger: Adding a relationship to a type's orderable_relationships (or order_by_expressions using it) where the relationship targets a remote schema/data connector instead of a local data connector relationship.

Common situations: Copy-pasting an orderable relationship configuration onto a type that also has remote relationships; migrating a relationship from local to remote while leaving it listed as orderable.

Related errors

• {message}
• Duplicate order by expression found: {order_by_expression}
• Cannot order by array relationship {relationship_name} in or
• The orderable field "{field_name}" has field arguments and c
• The orderable relationship '{relationship_name}' defined for

AI-assisted analysis of hasura/graphql-engine@724551b9ae (2026-08-28). Data as JSON: /api/errors/51995a46be4fbb38. Report an issue: GitHub.