PRAGMA table_info returned no columns for view '{}'. The vie

Error message

PRAGMA table_info returned no columns for view '{}'. The view may be corrupted or the database schema is invalid.

What it means

Thrown by the CLI helper get_view_columns (cli/app.rs:1464) while rendering '.schema' output for a view. It runs PRAGMA table_info(<view>) to build the SQLite-compatible '/* view(col1,col2) */' comment; if the pragma yields zero rows, the view's column list cannot be resolved and the CLI treats it as a broken schema entry rather than printing an empty column list.

Source

Thrown at cli/app.rs:1484

        let pragma_sql = format!("PRAGMA table_info({view_name})");

        let mut columns = Vec::new();
        let handler = |row: &turso_core::Row| {
            // Column name is in the second column (index 1) of PRAGMA table_info
            if let Ok(Value::Text(col_name)) = row.get::<&Value>(1) {
                columns.push(col_name.as_str().to_string());
            }
            Ok(())
        };
        if let Err(err) = self.handle_row(&pragma_sql, handler) {
            return Err(anyhow::anyhow!(
                "Error retrieving columns for view '{}': {}",
                view_name,
                err
            ));
        }
        if columns.is_empty() {
            anyhow::bail!("PRAGMA table_info returned no columns for view '{}'. The view may be corrupted or the database schema is invalid.", view_name);
        }
        Ok(columns.join(","))
    }

    fn query_one_table_schema(
        &mut self,
        db_prefix: &str,
        db_display_name: &str,
        table_name: &str,
    ) -> anyhow::Result<bool> {
        // Yeah, sqlite also has this hardcoded: https://github.com/sqlite/sqlite/blob/31efe5a0f2f80a263457a1fc6524783c0c45769b/src/shell.c.in#L10765
        match table_name {
            "sqlite_master" | "sqlite_schema" | "sqlite_temp_master" | "sqlite_temp_schema" => {
                let schema = format!(
                                    "CREATE TABLE {table_name} (\n type text,\n name text,\n tbl_name text,\n rootpage integer,\n sql text\n);",
                                );
                let _ = self.writeln(&schema);
                return Ok(true);

View on GitHub (pinned to bad083fafb)

Solutions

Run PRAGMA integrity_check; on the database to test the file.
Inspect the raw schema row: SELECT name, sql FROM sqlite_schema WHERE type='view' AND name='<view>';
Drop and recreate the view from its stored SQL (DROP VIEW v; CREATE VIEW v AS ...).
If the file itself is corrupt, restore from a backup or salvage readable data with .dump before re-importing.

Example fix

-- before: schema entry exists but columns cannot be resolved
.schema broken_view
-- Error: PRAGMA table_info returned no columns for view 'broken_view'...

-- after: drop and recreate the view from its stored SQL
DROP VIEW broken_view;
CREATE VIEW broken_view AS SELECT id, name FROM t;
.schema broken_view

Defensive patterns

Strategy: fallback

Validate before calling

-- Run before rendering a view's schema; skip the column comment when empty:
SELECT count(*) FROM pragma_table_info('myview'); -- 0 means the error would fire

Try / catch

// Mirror what the CLI itself does at the call site (app.rs:1452):
let columns = self.get_view_columns(view).unwrap_or_else(|_| "x".to_string());
// Render the schema comment with the fallback instead of propagating the error.

Prevention

Run PRAGMA integrity_check after any suspected corruption event before using .schema.
Validate views right after CREATE VIEW with PRAGMA table_info(v) so breakage is caught early.
Keep schema DDL in version-controlled migration files so a broken view can be recreated exactly.

When it happens

Trigger: Running '.schema' on a database where a CREATE VIEW row exists in sqlite_schema but PRAGMA table_info(<view>) returns no rows: a view whose SELECT body can no longer be resolved, a truncated/corrupted schema row, or a database hand-edited or partially written by another tool.

Common situations: Opening a database produced by a broken or incompatible tool; a file corrupted by an interrupted write or bad copy; a view created against tables or extensions that no longer exist so the column list cannot be derived.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of tursodatabase/turso@bad083fafb (2026-08-16). Data as JSON: /api/errors/5f7cb0de01025b69. Report an issue: GitHub.