Troubleshooting SQL databases

When you run your application locally with encore run, Encore provisions local databases using Docker. If this fails with a database error, it can often be resolved by making sure you have Docker installed and running, or by restarting the Encore daemon using encore daemon.

If this does not resolve the issue, here are steps to resolve common errors:

Error: sqldb: unknown database

This error is often caused by a problem with the initial migration file, such as incorrect naming or location.

Verify that you've created the migration file correctly, then try encore run again.

Error: could not connect to the database

When you can't connect to the database in your local environment, there's likely an issue with Docker:

Make sure that you have Docker installed and running, then try encore run again.
If this fails, restart the Encore daemon by running encore daemon, then try encore run again.

Error: Creating PostgreSQL database cluster Failed

This means Encore was not able to create the database. Often this is due to a problem with Docker.

Check if you have permission to access Docker by running docker images.
Set the correct permissions with sudo usermod -aG docker $USER (Learn more in the Docker documentation)
Then log out and log back in so that your group membership is refreshed.

Error: unable to add CA to cert pool

This error is commonly caused by the presence of the file $HOME/.postgresql/root.crt on the filesystem. When this file is present the PostgreSQL client library will assume the database server has that root certificate, which will cause the above error.

Remove or rename the file, then try encore run again.