The server reports that the client tried to use a database connection that is already closed or was never established.
connection_does_not_exist occurs when PostgreSQL receives a command on a session that is no longer open. Re-establish the session or create a new connection object to resolve the error.
connection_does_not_exist
The connection_does_not_exist error (SQLSTATE 08003) signals that the backend no longer recognizes the client session. The client sent a command, but the server reports that no active connection is linked to that process ID.
The error usually appears in client logs, ORMs, or middleware when they reuse a stale connection from a pool or after network timeouts.
Fixing it is critical because any subsequent SQL commands on that handle will fail.
Most occurrences trace back to idle-timeout policies, abrupt network drops, backend restarts, or mismanaged connection pooling. When the client attempts to reuse the orphaned handle, PostgreSQL returns SQLSTATE 08003 immediately.
Validate the connection before use, close stale handles, or force the pool to eject broken sessions.
Reconnecting creates a fresh backend process that accepts commands normally.
Web servers with long-lived pools, background workers resuming from sleep, and scripts that fork without reconnecting are common triggers. Each scenario benefits from explicit connection health checks.
Configure poolers with validation queries, enable TCP keepalives, and monitor server restarts.
Using a modern IDE like Galaxy helps detect dropped sessions early by surfacing connection state in the editor.
Errors such as 57P01 (admin_shutdown), 08006 (connection_failure), and 53300 (too_many_connections) often coexist. Their fixes overlap: correct pooling, adjust server limits, and harden network reliability.
.
The backend closes sessions left in a transaction beyond the idle_in_transaction_session_timeout, leaving the client with a dangling handle.
Mid-stream packet loss or stateful firewalls dropping idle TCP sessions severs the socket while the client believes it is still live.
A manual restart, crash, or failover kills existing backends.
Pooled connections created before the restart become invalid.
Child processes inherit file descriptors without renegotiating the libpq state, producing orphaned connections.
.
The symptom appears on the client side, but the root cause can be server restarts, network issues, or pooling misconfigurations.
No data corruption occurs. The statement never executes because the connection is invalid. Reconnect and retry safely.
Use validation queries in pools, enable TCP keepalives, and monitor PostgreSQL logs for 08003 entries.
Long sleeps exceed idle timeouts or firewall state limits, closing the socket without your app noticing.
.avif)
.avif){kind=logo}
