# X_BRANCH_EXISTS

## Means

that branch database already exists

## Typical cause

two conditions, one code: `x db branch create <name>` for a name already taken — refused rather than overwritten, because a silent re-clone discards whatever the branch already held — or a `dropBranch()` aimed at the database this session is itself connected to, which Postgres cannot drop from underneath its own connection

## Fix

`x db branch delete <name>   # then re-create, or pick another name` — `x db branch list --json` lists what exists. To drop the database you are connected to, reconnect elsewhere first: `DATABASE_URL=.../postgres`

[Entity and database](/error-codes#entity-and-database)