rake db:create throws “database does not exist” error with postgresql

Question

I\'m using rails 4.1.5 with postgresql 9.1 under Debian 7, and I\'m not able to create a database in my development environment. When I run

bin/rake db:create


        

Answer 1

None of the solutions worked for me, but then I saw that some answers mentioned preloading as part of the problem. I realized I had config.eager_load = true in config/environments/development.rb. I changed it to false and it solved the problem.

Answer 2

You might try running this command-

bin/rake db:create RAILS_ENV=development

Or this command-

bin/rake db:migrate RAILS_ENV=development

Answer 3

None of the solutions worked for me, but this worked for me.

$ brew services list
$ brew services restart postgresql

Answer 4

Here is the list of commands I run at each deployment (including the first one)

//create pids folder if no yet
mkdir -p tmp/pids

//create dbs if no yet
bundle exec rake db:create

//run all new migrations
bundle exec rails db:migrate

//seed db with data if required
bundle exec rake db:seed

//start the server with config
bundle exec puma -C config/puma.rb

Answer 5

I found the issue ...

It has to do with Rails initializers: Rails seems to load all the initializers before executing bin/rake db:create.

And, in this particular application, there are a few custom initializers which depend on an ActiveRecord model (which, in turn, depends on the database being created, available and with the corresponding table).

Therefore rake never gets to actually execute the task, it fails when executing the initializers. I should have known if I had carefully read the full error message log. This is the full log (see below, in bold, the offending lines):

/home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/postgresql_adapter.rb:898:in `rescue in connect': FATAL:  database "ds-dev" does not exist
Run `$ bin/rake db:create db:migrate` to create your database (ActiveRecord::NoDatabaseError)
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/postgresql_adapter.rb:888:in `connect'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/postgresql_adapter.rb:568:in `initialize'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/postgresql_adapter.rb:41:in `new'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/postgresql_adapter.rb:41:in `postgresql_connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:435:in `new_connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:445:in `checkout_new_connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:416:in `acquire_connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:351:in `block in checkout'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/monitor.rb:211:in `mon_synchronize'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:350:in `checkout'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:265:in `block in connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/monitor.rb:211:in `mon_synchronize'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:264:in `connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_adapters/abstract/connection_pool.rb:541:in `retrieve_connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_handling.rb:113:in `retrieve_connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/connection_handling.rb:87:in `connection'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activerecord-4.1.5/lib/active_record/model_schema.rb:209:in `table_exists?'
from /home/rs/pr/ds/app/models/property.rb:32:in `get'
from /home/rs/pr/ds/config/initializers/custom/setup_mail.rb:3:in `'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:241:in `load'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:241:in `block in load'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:232:in `load_dependency'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:241:in `load'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/engine.rb:648:in `block in load_config_initializer'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/notifications.rb:161:in `instrument'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/engine.rb:647:in `load_config_initializer'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/engine.rb:612:in `block (2 levels) in '
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/engine.rb:611:in `each'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/engine.rb:611:in `block in '
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/initializable.rb:30:in `instance_exec'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/initializable.rb:30:in `run'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/initializable.rb:55:in `block in run_initializers'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:226:in `block in tsort_each'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:348:in `block (2 levels) in each_strongly_connected_component'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:418:in `block (2 levels) in each_strongly_connected_component_from'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:427:in `each_strongly_connected_component_from'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:417:in `block in each_strongly_connected_component_from'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/initializable.rb:44:in `each'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/initializable.rb:44:in `tsort_each_child'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:411:in `call'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:411:in `each_strongly_connected_component_from'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:347:in `block in each_strongly_connected_component'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:345:in `each'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:345:in `call'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:345:in `each_strongly_connected_component'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:224:in `tsort_each'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/tsort.rb:205:in `tsort_each'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/initializable.rb:54:in `run_initializers'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/railties-4.1.5/lib/rails/application.rb:300:in `initialize!'
from /home/rs/pr/ds/config/environment.rb:5:in `'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:247:in `require'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:247:in `block in require'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:232:in `load_dependency'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/activesupport-4.1.5/lib/active_support/dependencies.rb:247:in `require'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/spring-1.1.3/lib/spring/application.rb:92:in `preload'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/spring-1.1.3/lib/spring/application.rb:140:in `serve'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/spring-1.1.3/lib/spring/application.rb:128:in `block in run'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/spring-1.1.3/lib/spring/application.rb:122:in `loop'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/spring-1.1.3/lib/spring/application.rb:122:in `run'
from /home/rs/.rvm/gems/ruby-2.1.2/gems/spring-1.1.3/lib/spring/application/boot.rb:18:in `'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/rubygems/core_ext/kernel_require.rb:55:in `require'
from /home/rs/.rvm/rubies/ruby-2.1.2/lib/ruby/2.1.0/rubygems/core_ext/kernel_require.rb:55:in `require'
from -e:1:in `'

I will work on refactoring the code, in order to get rid of any model dependencies in the initializers (which I'm pretty sure it must be a very bad practice).

Answer 6

Had the same issue today (in OS X).

Solved with:

psql -U postgres
CREATE ROLE rolename WITH CREATEDB LOGIN;

Use \du to check if it's created.

Use \password rolename to create a password for that user/role.

Then you can setup DB with bundle exec rake db:migrate