laravel/framework · error · SQLiteDatabaseDoesNotExistException

Database file at path [{$path}] does not exist. Ensure this

Error message

Database file at path [{$path}] does not exist. Ensure this is an absolute path to the database.

What it means

Thrown as Illuminate\Database\SQLiteDatabaseDoesNotExistException by SQLiteConnector::parseDatabasePath() when the SQLite file path cannot be resolved via realpath()/base_path(). Unlike most drivers, SQLite happily opens a non-existent file, so Laravel pre-checks and refuses to silently create the wrong database.

Source

Thrown at src/Illuminate/Database/Connectors/SQLiteConnector.php:61

        // SQLite supports "in-memory" databases that only last as long as the owning
        // connection does. These are useful for tests or for short lifetime store
        // querying. In-memory databases shall be anonymous (:memory:) or named.
        if ($path === ':memory:' ||
            str_contains($path, '?mode=memory') ||
            str_contains($path, '&mode=memory') ||
            str_starts_with($path, 'file:')
        ) {
            return $path;
        }

        $path = realpath($path) ?: (function_exists('base_path') ? realpath(base_path($path)) : false);

        // Here we'll verify that the SQLite database exists before going any further
        // as the developer probably wants to know if the database exists and this
        // SQLite driver will not throw any exception if it does not by default.
        if ($path === false) {
            throw new SQLiteDatabaseDoesNotExistException($database);
        }

        return $path;
    }

    /**
     * Set miscellaneous user-configured pragmas.
     *
     * @param  \PDO  $connection
     * @param  array  $config
     * @return void
     */
    protected function configurePragmas($connection, array $config): void
    {
        if (! isset($config['pragmas'])) {
            return;
        }

View on GitHub (pinned to bd6b5437e6)

Solutions

Create the database file first: touch database/database.sqlite, or run php artisan migrate with --force / answer 'yes' to the create prompt.
Use an absolute path in DB_DATABASE (e.g. /var/www/app/database/database.sqlite).
For tests or ephemeral runs, use DB_DATABASE=:memory:.
Verify the path with is_file($path) at boot and create it if missing.

Example fix

// before (.env)
DB_DATABASE=database.sqlite  // relative; realpath() fails

// after
DB_DATABASE=/var/www/app/database/database.sqlite
// or create it:
// touch database/database.sqlite

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

if (($driver ?? null) === 'sqlite' && $path !== ':memory:' && ! str_starts_with($path, 'file:') && ! is_file($path)) {
    touch(dirname($path) ?: throw new \RuntimeException('Missing dir')) && touch($path);
}

Type guard

function sqlitePathExistsOrInMemory(string $path): bool {
    return $path === ':memory:'
        || str_contains($path, '?mode=memory')
        || str_contains($path, '&mode=memory')
        || str_starts_with($path, 'file:')
        || is_file($path);
}

Try / catch

try {
    DB::connection()->getPdo();
} catch (\Illuminate\Database\SQLiteDatabaseDoesNotExistException $e) {
    @touch($e->path);
    DB::purge();
    DB::connection()->getPdo();
}

Prevention

Use absolute paths for DB_DATABASE with sqlite.
Create the file in your deploy/CI script before migrating.
Use :memory: for ephemeral/test runs.
Ship an empty database.sqlite in the repo if appropriate.

When it happens

Trigger: Configuring a sqlite connection with a 'database' path that does not exist on disk and is not :memory: / a file: URI / a mode=memory DSN. Triggered on first connect (ConnectionFactory -> SQLiteConnector -> parseDatabasePath).

Common situations: Wrong/relative path in DB_DATABASE; the database file was deleted or never created; deploying to a fresh environment where database/database.sqlite wasn't shipped; typo'd path; running migrations before the SQLite file exists.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of laravel/framework@bd6b5437e6 (2026-08-06). Data as JSON: /data/errors/f9c126925e867797.json. Report an issue: GitHub.