Data Backup and Removal
This article describes how removed data is backed up and when it is removed permanently.
What is deleted_at
Every record that you create in our database has a couple of properties built-in. One of those properties is deleted_at which is null when the record is created.
When you delete a record, our system by default fills this property with a datetime of the delete operation.
For example, you can delete a record like this:
mutation DefaultDelete {
model_delete(id: "3") {
deleted_at
id
}
}
From now on, most GraphQL queries will not show those records anymore. You can get them again by filtering records by existing deleted_at property (deleted_at: { exists: true }).
Fo example:
query models {
models(
per_page: 10
filter: {
deleted_at: { exists: true }
}
) {
results {
deleted_at
id
}
}
}
Automatic delayed permanent removal
After 30 days of the date set in deleted_at, the data will be permanently deleted at 5am UTC.
For example, if deleted_at is 2020-03-15T14:28:48.153Z (15 March 2020, 14:28 PM), the record will be deleted 30 days later at 5am (14 April 2020, 5 AM). Until this date you can still recover it by setting deleted_at to null.
Warning
If a record has been permanently deleted, you will not be able to recover it in any way.Manual permanent removal
You can force permanent removal by setting the deleted_at value to a date more than 30 days ago.
For example:
You want the record to be deleted as soon as possible.
Assume it is 30 April 2020, you would set deleted_at to a date that is more than 30 days ago, for example March 10, which means it will be permanently deleted in the next purge process at 5am UTC.
mutation Delete {
model_update(
id: "3"
model: {
deleted_at: "2020-03-15T14:28:48.153Z"
}
) {
id
}
}
Warning
If a record has been permanently deleted, you will not be able to recover it in any way.Undeleting data
If you want to bring back a record, you can nullify deleted_at and this record will not be marked as deleted.
mutation Undelete {
model_update(
id: "3"
model: { deleted_at: null }
) {
id
}
}
You can also set deleted_at to a different, future date to prolong its permanent removal, or move date backwards to speed up its removal.