Mysql: Bogus foreign key constraint fail

I get this error message:

ERROR 1217 (23000) at line 40: Cannot delete or update a parent row: a foreign key constraint fails

... when I try to drop a table:

DROP TABLE IF EXISTS `area`;

... defined like this:

CREATE TABLE `area` (
  `area_id` char(3) COLLATE utf8_spanish_ci NOT NULL,
  `nombre_area` varchar(30) COLLATE utf8_spanish_ci NOT NULL,
  `descripcion_area` varchar(100) COLLATE utf8_spanish_ci NOT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`area_id`),
  UNIQUE KEY `nombre_area_UNIQUE` (`nombre_area`)
) ENGINE=InnoDB DEFAULT CHARSET=utf8 COLLATE=utf8_spanish_ci;

The funny thing is that I already dropped all other tables in the schema that have foreign keys against area. Actually, the database is empty except for the area table.

How can it possibly have child rows if there isn't any other object in the database? As far as I know, InnoDB doesn't allow foreign keys on other schemas, does it?

(I can even run a RENAME TABLE area TO something_else command :-?)

 Answers

Two possibilities:

1. There is a table within another schema ("database" in mysql terminology) which has a FK reference
2. The innodb internal data dictionary is out of sync with the mysql one.

You can see which table it was (one of them, anyway) by doing a "SHOW ENGINE INNODB STATUS" after the drop fails.

If it turns out to be the latter case, I'd dump and restore the whole server if you can.

MySQL 5.1 and above will give you the name of the table with the FK in the error message.

---

Disable foreign key checking

SET FOREIGN_KEY_CHECKS=0

---

hopefully its work

SET foreign_key_checks = 0; DROP TABLE table name; SET foreign_key_checks = 1;

---

Maybe you received an error when working with this table before. You can rename the table and try to remove it again.

ALTER TABLE `area` RENAME TO `area2`;
DROP TABLE IF EXISTS `area2`;

---

Cannot delete or update a parent row: a foreign key constraint fails (table1.user_role, CONSTRAINT FK143BF46A8dsfsfds@#5A6BD60 FOREIGN KEY (user_id) REFERENCES user (id))

What i did in two simple steps . first i delete the child row in child table like

mysql> delete from table2 where role_id = 2 && user_id =20;

Query OK, 1 row affected (0.10 sec)

and second step as deleting the parent

delete from table1 where id = 20;

Query OK, 1 row affected (0.12 sec)

By this i solve the Problem which means Delete Child then Delete parent

i Hope You got it. :)