494

When I run PM> Remove-Migration -context BloggingContext in VS2015 with an ASP.NET Core project using EF Core, I get the following error:

System.InvalidOperationException: The migration '20160703192724_MyFirstMigration' has already been applied to the database. Unapply it and try again. If the migration has been applied to other databases, consider reverting its changes using a new migration.
    at Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Migrations.Design.MigrationsScaffolder.RemoveMigration(String projectDir, String rootNamespace, Boolean force) 
    at Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Design.MigrationsOperations.RemoveMigration(String contextType, Boolean force) 
    at Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Tools.Cli.MigrationsRemoveCommand.<>c__DisplayClass0_0.<Configure>b__0() 
    at Microsoft.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.Execute(String[] args) 
    at Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Tools.Cli.Program.Main(String[] args) 
The migration '20160703192724_MyFirstMigration' has already been applied to the database. Unapply it and try again. If the migration has been applied to other databases, consider reverting its changes using a new migration.

How can I unapply it? I'm using latest release of ASP.NET Core 1.0, EF Core, and VS2015 Update 3.

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21 Answers 21

Reset to default
573

Use:

CLI

> dotnet ef database update <previous-migration-name>

Package Manager Console

PM> Update-Database <previous-migration-name>

Example:

PM> Update-Database MyInitialMigration

Then try to remove last migration.

Removing migration without database update doesn't work because you applied changes to database.

If using PMC, Try: PM> update-database 0 This will wipe the database and allow you to remove the Migration Snapshot on your Solution

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7 Comments

I'm still getting the same error. I first used dotnet ef database update MyFirstMigration --context BloggingContext that worked successfully. Then I ran dotnet ef migrations remove --context BloggingContext that gave me the same error message as in my post
You'll need to update to the migration before MyFirstMigration. If that is the 1st migration (as the name implies) then you can use dotnet ef database update 0 to revert(unapply) all migrations from the database. You should then be able to run dotnet ef migrations remove.
Also it's worth noting that you should only use the name of the migration, excluding the date-prefix
Call dotnet ef migrations remove after this
Your second statement: "Then try to remove last migration" is not complete in this answer, please say exactly what you mean. remove the migration file? execute a command? ...
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331

To unapply a specific migration(s):

dotnet ef database update LastGoodMigrationName
or
PM> Update-Database -Migration LastGoodMigrationName

To unapply all migrations:

dotnet ef database update 0
or
PM> Update-Database -Migration 0

To remove last migration:

dotnet ef migrations remove
or
PM> Remove-Migration

To remove all migrations:

just remove Migrations folder.

To remove last few migrations (not all):

There is no a command to remove a bunch of migrations and we can't just remove these few migrations and their *.designer.cs files since we need to keep the snapshot file in the consistent state. We need to remove migrations one by one (see To remove last migration above).

To unapply and remove last migration:

dotnet ef migrations remove --force
or
PM> Remove-Migration -Force
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6 Comments

I keep seeing the word unapply all over these posts. It just hit me it's not a technical term, it's the word un - apply
I wonder what is the method "down" used for ?
While viewing folder named Migrations in my Visual Studio IDE, and running above commands in my Package Manager Console, it would be super useful if this answer would state the expected results. For example, does removing effect the contents of the Migrations folder? That is, should the files resulting from an Add-Migration be removed, or do they remain and I need to remove them manually?? Thanks!
@Pajri Aprilio When you remove a migration, the 'down' part lists the steps necessary to undo said migration.
The command "Remove-Migration -Force" works for me. Thanks.
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190

To completely remove all migrations and start all over again, do the following:

dotnet ef database update 0
dotnet ef migrations remove
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9 Comments

But you don't want to remove all migrations. For example, you want to keep the default migration VS creates for identity (User Accounts) under Data\Migrations folder.
It's good to know dotnet ef database update 0, but running dotnet ef migrations remove afterwards will remove default migration for Identity, which might not be desired.
@nam "But you don't want to remove all migrations." But some of us do. Don't assume what I want :)
This didn't work for me. The first line was ok and remove all the migrations, on the second line I still get The migration '20180618103514_InitialMigration' has already been applied to the database. Revert it and try again. If the migration has been applied to other databases, consider reverting its changes using a new migration.
@ShimmyWeitzhandler Yes. stackoverflow.com/a/55323154/109941
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82

To revert the last applied migration you should:

  1. Revert migration from database:
    • PM> Update-Database <prior-migration-name>
    • PS/cmd> dotnet ef database update <prior-migration-name>
  2. If you call dbContext.Database.Migrate()/MigrateAsync() in Main/Startup: remove the latest migration file from project (or it will be reapplied again on next step)
  3. Update model snapshot:
    • PM> Remove-Migration
    • PS/cmd> dotnet ef migrations remove
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4 Comments

Thank you! This worked perfectly Fascinated that out of all the solutions no one ever mentioned the need for step 2.
not sure about the second step, in my case(latest VS2017) the migration file will be deleted automatically after calling Remove-Migration without problem. I'm not sure what you said "it will be reapplied again on next step"!
@S.Serpooshan Indeed. I manually deleted it but when I ran Remove-Migration it complained about my previous migration having been applied to the database. But, it works.
The second step I think is only necessary if you call dbContext.Database.Migrate() in your startup.cs
57

You can still use the Update-Database command.

Update-Database -Migration <migration name> -Context <context name>

However, judging by the name of your migration i'm assuming it's the first migration so that command may not work. You should be able to delete the entry from the __MigrationHistory table in your database and then run the Remove-Migration command again. You could also delete the migration file and just start again.

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2 Comments

You can call Update-Database from Package Management Console or call dotnet ef database update from the command prompt from the project directory.
Just to clarify Brad's answer here - <migration name> should be the name of the migration you want to go back to (i.e. probably the migration before the one you screwed up), not the name of the migration you want to undo.
45

You should delete migration '20160703192724_MyFirstMigration' record from '_EFMigrationsHistory' table.

otherwise below command will remove migration and delete migrations folder:

PMC Command:

   > remove-migration -force

CLI Command:

   > dotnet ef migrations remove -f

Link About CLI Commands

Link About PMC Commands

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1 Comment

Worked for me .NET6. When using plain Remove-Migration, the framework first added it to the database and then refused to remove the migration because it was in the database. So, after Update-Database <good_migration_name>, use the Remove-Migration -force and it does what's requried including the model snapshot.
40

Simply you can target a Migration by value

 Update-Database -Migration:0

Then go ahead and remove it

 Remove-Migration

NOTE this is for when you want to clear database.

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4 Comments

This worked for me but I'm using EF and .NET core 2.0 with VS2017
Watch out: -Migration:0 means go back to the state with no migrations. This will clear your database
Yes according to the question asked. You can increment the value depending on the migration you want to roll back to
Workin in .Net Core 3.1
24

A summary of everything you need to know

All the commands will be written using dotnet.

This solution is provided for .net Core 3.1, but should be compatible with next versions as well

Removing migrations:

  • Removing a migration deletes the file from your project
  • Removing a migration can only be done, if the migration is not applied to the database yet
  • To remove last created migration: cd to_your_project then dotnet ef migrations remove

Note: Removing a migration works only, if you didn't execute yet dotnet ef database update or called in your c# code Database.Migrate(), in other words, only if the migration is not applied to your database yet.

Unapplying migrations (revert migrations):

  • Removes unwanted changes from the database
  • Does not delete the migration file from your project, but allows you to remove it after unapplying
  • To revert a migration, you can either:
    • Create a new migration dotnet ef migrations add <your_changes> and apply it, which is recommended by microsoft.
    • Or, update your database to a specified migration (which is basically unapplying or reverting the non chosen migrations) with dotnet ef database update <your_migration_name_to_jump_back_to>

Note: If you choose to reverse a migration but the specific column or table involved is already present and being used in your database, this action will remove that column or table entirely. As a result, you will lose any data stored in them.

After reverting the migration, you can remove your unwanted migration

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1 Comment

In your last note, I think you wanted to say: "if the destination migration you want to have after un-appling a migration, does not contain..." or "if the migration you want to un-apply to, does not contain"
14

As the question itself deals with a first migration this answer is for anyone who is here looking for way to revert their last migration since most answers do not cover the alternate scenarios (For most of us it's not our first migration and we cannot wipe the entire migration history).

These commands are for Package Manager Console.

Let's say you have the following migrations in your code:

  • 20220110_InitialMigration
  • 20200210_GoodMigration
  • 20200210_LastGoodMigration
  • 20200210_BadMigration
  • 20200210_BadMigrationAgain

If you have already applied the migration to the db like in the question

  1. Run:

    Update-Database -Migration <Last_Good_Migration_Name>

    Note: The name should be without date prefix. Eg: Update-Database -Migration LastGoodMigration

  2. Then to remove the bad migration run:

    Remove-Migration

    Note: Since we have two bad migrations run the Remove Migration command twice.

If you haven't applied the migration to the db

Just run:

Remove-Migration

In our case run the Remove Migration command twice.

Hope this helps someone.

UPDATE August 2023

If you have multiple db contexts add -Context Context_Name to each command. For example: Remove-Migration -Context MyDbContext

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Comments

13

In Package Manager Console:

Update-Database Your_Migration_You_Want_To_Revert_To

More options and explanation on how to revert migrations can be seen here

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2 Comments

Useful link, should be a comment of the question
This is what you want to use in .NET core
10

In general if you are using the Package Manager Console the right way to remove a specific Migration is by referencing the name of the migration

Update-Database -Migration {Name of Migration} -Context {context}

Another way to remove the last migration you have applied according to the docs is by using the command:

dotnet ef migrations remove

This command should be executed from the developer command prompt (how to open command prompt) inside your solution directory.

For example if your application is inside name "Application" and is in the folder c:\Projects. Then your path should be:

C:\Projects\Application
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1 Comment

The question was what to do if `dotnet ef migrations remove' returns an error "The migration has already been applied to the database"
9

In order to unapply a migration in EF Core 1.0 use the command:

dotnet ef database update {migration_name}

Use the migration name of the migration until which you would like to preserve your changes. The list of names of the migration can be found using:

dotnet ef migrations list
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Comments

8

To "unapply" the most (recent?) migration after it has already been applied to the database:

  1. Open the SQL Server Object Explorer (View -> "SQL Server Object Explorer")
  2. Navigate to the database that is linked to your project by expanding the small triangles to the side.
  3. Expand "Tables"
  4. Find the table named "dbo._EFMigrationsHistory".
  5. Right click on it and select "View Data" to see the table entries in Visual Studio.
  6. Delete the row corresponding to your migration that you want to unapply (Say "yes" to the warning, if prompted).
  7. Run "dotnet ef migrations remove" again in the command window in the directory that has the project.json file. Alternatively, run "Remove-Migration" command in the package manager console.

Hope this helps and is applicable to any migration in the project... I tested this out only to the most recent migration...

Happy coding!

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3 Comments

This will not actually un-apply the migration, just make the framework "think" it has not been applied. Your database will be in an inconsistent state if you do this.
Manually editing the data in your __EFMigrationsHistory is terrible advice. Don't do it. That table is only meant to be used under-the-hood by the migration tools. If you start manually editing the data, a single mistake can create all kinds of crazy unexpected behavior in your project. It's a much better idea to use one of the other recommended solutions.
We had a situation where a junior team member got confused with switching branches, and ended up deleting the migration manually from both (although it was still in the __EFMigrationsHistory table since it was already applied), so we lost the "down." This is what we ended up having to do, plus some manual reversals in SSMS. So don't do it - unless you have no other choice at this point. At least all he did was add a single new field.
8

To revert all the migrations which are applied to DB simply run:

update-database 0

It should be followed with running Remove-Migration as many times as there are migration files visible in the Migration directory. The command deletes the latest migration and also updates the snapshot.

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Comments

8 
dotnet ef database update <the-migration-you-want-to-recover>
dotnet ef migrations remove

Don't forget the remove-Call since this will remove the migration files for you and update the Snapshot-file.

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1 Comment

Did you really mean database remove or did you mean migrations remove?
3

at first run the following command :

PM>update-database -migration:0

and then run this one :

PM>remove_migration

Finish

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Comments

3

Simply try using -force parameter. So the final command would looks like :

Remove-Migration -force

VS Package Manager Console

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3

Just adding a new response when using SQL scripts.

First, get the list of migration of your project with:

dotnet ef migrations list

It will give something like that :

migration1
...
migrationN-1
migrationN

Now execute :

dotnet ef migrations script migrationN migrationN-1

It will produce a SQL script that you will be able to execute on your database that will revert your last migration.

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2

Removing a Migration

You can remove the last migration if it is not applied to the database. Use the following remove commands to remove the last created migration files and revert the model snapshot.

Package Manager Console

PM> remove-migration

CLI> dotnet ef migrations remove

The above commands will remove the last migration and revert the model snapshot to the previous migration. Please note that if a migration is already applied to the database, then it will throw the following exception.

The migration has already been applied to the database. Revert it and try again. If the migration has been applied to other databases, consider reverting its changes using a new migration.

Reverting a Migration

Suppose you changed your domain class and created the second migration named MySecondMigration using the add-migration command and applied this migration to the database using the Update command. But, for some reason, you want to revert the database to the previous state. In this case, use the update-database command to revert the database to the specified previous migration snapshot.

Package Manager Console

PM> Update-database MyFirstMigration

CLI

dotnet ef database update MyFirstMigration.

The above command will revert the database based on a migration named MyFirstMigration and remove all the changes applied for the second migration named MySecondMigration. This will also remove MySecondMigration entry from the __EFMigrationsHistory table in the database.

Note: This will not remove the migration files related to MySecondMigration. Use the remove commands to remove them from the project.

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2

Because I've been redirected to this question for searching about roll back migration in ef not ef core, I'm adding this answer to the question for everybody who want to know about the same problem in ef. If you're using ef you can use the following command to roll back the migration:

Update-Database [[-Migration] <String>] 
                [-Context <String>]
                [-Project <String>]
                [-StartupProject <String>] 
                [<CommonParameters>]

Based on question:

Update-Database -Migration <previous-migration-name> -context BloggingContext
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-1

1.find table "dbo._EFMigrationsHistory", then delete the migration record that you want to remove. 2. run "remove-migration" in PM(Package Manager Console). Works for me.

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1 Comment

This will lead to an inconsistent state of the database (e.g. a column is already dropped)

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