stablyai/orca · error · Error

Refusing to delete unregistered worktree path: ${worktreePat

Error message

Refusing to delete unregistered worktree path: ${worktreePath}

What it means

Final fallthrough throw in the unregistered-worktree branch of worktrees:remove: the path is not a Git-registered worktree, is not provably an Orca orphan (cleanup checks failed), and is not already removed. Orca refuses to delete an unregistered path it cannot prove is a worktree, rather than risk deleting an arbitrary directory.

Source

Thrown at src/main/ipc/worktrees.ts:2629

                  args.worktreeId,
                  removedPushTarget,
                  store,
                  localWorktreeGitOptions
                )
                invalidateAuthorizedRootsCache()
              }
              runtime.clearOptimisticReconcileToken(args.worktreeId)
              removeWorktreeMetadataAndTransientState(store, args.worktreeId, removalHostId)
              preservedBranchCleanupByScope.delete(
                preservedBranchCleanupScopeKey({
                  worktreeId: args.worktreeId,
                  hostId: removalHostId
                })
              )
              notifyWorktreesChanged(mainWindow, repoId)
              return {}
            }
            throw new Error(`Refusing to delete unregistered worktree path: ${worktreePath}`)
          }
          const canonicalWorktreePath = registeredWorktree.path
          const deleteBranch = removedMeta?.preserveBranchOnDelete !== true

          // Why: a Git lock must block before archive hooks or linked-path cleanup mutate the workspace; dirty-file force is separate.
          try {
            assertWorktreeUnlockedForRemoval(registeredWorktree)
          } catch (error) {
            throw new Error(
              formatWorktreeRemovalError(error, canonicalWorktreePath, args.force ?? false)
            )
          }

          // Why: a prior forced Windows recovery can delete the dir but leave a stale Git registration; verify before clearing metadata.
          if (
            !repo.connectionId &&
            args.force === true &&
            process.platform === 'win32' &&

View on GitHub (pinned to 1136503c6a)

Solutions

Verify the path is actually a worktree of this repo (`git worktree list`); if not, no Orca removal applies.
If the registration is merely stale, run `git worktree prune` on the host and retry.
For genuinely orphaned Orca directories that fail the safety check, remove them manually rather than forcing Orca to delete an unproven path.

Defensive patterns

Strategy: try-catch

Validate before calling

// Confirm the path is a registered worktree before attempting removal.
const worktrees = await invoke('worktrees:list', { repoId })
const exists = worktrees.some((w) => w.id === worktreeId)
if (!exists) {
  // Possibly stale; run prune or drop the row instead of forcing delete.
  return
}

Try / catch

try {
  await invoke('worktrees:remove', { worktreeId })
} catch (e) {
  if (e.message.startsWith('Refusing to delete unregistered worktree path')) {
    // Inspect `git worktree list`; prune or remove manually — do not force blindly.
  } else throw e
}

Prevention

Run `git worktree prune` to resolve stale registrations before removing.
Never force-delete a path Orca cannot classify as a worktree.
Remove genuinely orphaned directories manually on the host.

When it happens

Trigger: A worktrees:remove where the target path is unregistered by Git, fails the safe-orphan and leftover-directory checks, and isn't detected as already removed — i.e. an unregistered path Orca cannot safely classify.

Common situations: The worktreeId points at a path that was moved/renamed, is a non-worktree directory, or whose Git registration and Orca metadata are both inconsistent; or the path sits outside the repo and fails isDangerousWorktreeRemovalPath.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of stablyai/orca@1136503c6a (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/2bb124a897ffbb4d. Report an issue: GitHub.