docs-v2/content/shared/influxdb3-cli/delete/database.md

The influxdb3 delete database command deletes a database.

Usage

# Syntax
influxdb3 delete database [OPTIONS] <DATABASE_NAME>

Arguments

• DATABASE_NAME: The name of the database to delete. Valid database names are alphanumeric and start with a letter or number. Dashes (-) and underscores (_) are allowed.

  Environment variable: INFLUXDB3_DATABASE_NAME

Options

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Option		Description
-H	--host	Host URL of the running {{< product-name >}} server (default is http://127.0.0.1:8181)
	--hard-delete	When to hard delete data (never/now/default/timestamp). Default behavior is a soft delete that allows recovery
	--token	Authentication token
	--tls-ca	Path to a custom TLS certificate authority (for self-signed or internal certificates)
	--tls-no-verify	Disable TLS certificate verification (Not recommended in production, useful for self-signed certificates)
-h	--help	Print help information
	--help-all	Print detailed help information
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Option		Description
-H	--host	Host URL of the running {{< product-name >}} server (default is http://127.0.0.1:8181)
	--data-only	Delete only data while preserving schemas and all associated resources (tokens, triggers, caches, etc.). Default behavior deletes everything
	--remove-tables	Used with --data-only to remove table resources (caches) while preserving database-level resources (tokens, triggers, processing engine configurations)
	--hard-delete	When to hard delete data (never/now/default/timestamp). Default behavior is a soft delete that allows recovery
	--token	Authentication token
	--tls-ca	Path to a custom TLS certificate authority (for self-signed or internal certificates)
	--tls-no-verify	Disable TLS certificate verification (Not recommended in production, useful for self-signed certificates)
-h	--help	Print help information
	--help-all	Print detailed help information
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Option environment variables

You can use the following environment variables to set command options:

Environment Variable	Option
INFLUXDB3_HOST_URL	--host
INFLUXDB3_AUTH_TOKEN	--token
INFLUXDB3_TLS_NO_VERIFY	--tls-no-verify

Examples

• Delete a database
• Delete a database while specifying the token inline {{% show-in "enterprise" %}}- Delete database data only (preserve schema and resources)
• Delete database data and tables (preserve database resources){{% /show-in %}}
• Hard delete a database immediately
• Hard delete a database at a specific time

In the examples below, replace the following:

• {{% code-placeholder-key %}}DATABASE_NAME{{% /code-placeholder-key %}}: Database name
• {{% code-placeholder-key %}}AUTH_TOKEN{{% /code-placeholder-key %}}: Authentication token

Delete a database

influxdb3 delete database DATABASE_NAME

Delete a database while specifying the token inline

influxdb3 delete database --token AUTH_TOKEN DATABASE_NAME

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Delete database data only (preserve schema and resources)

Delete all data from a database while preserving:

• Database schema (tables and columns)
• Authentication tokens
• Processing engine configurations and triggers
• Last value caches (LVC) and distinct value caches (DVC)

This is useful when you want to clear old data and re-write new data to the same schema without recreating resources.

influxdb3 delete database --data-only DATABASE_NAME

Delete database data and tables (preserve database resources)

Delete all data and table resources (caches) while preserving database-level resources:

• Authentication tokens
• Processing engine triggers
• Processing engine configurations

This is useful when you want to start fresh with a new schema but keep existing authentication and trigger configurations.

influxdb3 delete database --data-only --remove-tables DATABASE_NAME

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Hard delete a database immediately

Permanently delete a database and all its data immediately without the ability to recover.

influxdb3 delete database --hard-delete now DATABASE_NAME

Hard delete a database at a specific time

Schedule a database for permanent deletion at a specific timestamp.

influxdb3 delete database --hard-delete "2024-01-01T00:00:00Z" DATABASE_NAME