Vaultwarden fails to start after update – DB migration error (SSO)

[archos]

After updating the Vaultwarden app on Cloudron, the application never reaches the Running state and gets stuck in a start / restart loop.

The app logs show the following error:

Dec 29 18:21:11 9: vaultwarden::main
Dec 29 18:21:11 [2025-12-29 17:21:11.256][panic][ERROR] thread 'main' panicked at 'Error running migrations: QueryError(DieselMigrationName { name: "2024-03-06-170000_add_sso_users", version: MigrationVersion("20240306170000") }, DatabaseError(Unknown, "Referencing column 'user_uuid' and referenced column 'uuid' in foreign key constraint 'sso_users_ibfk_1' are incompatible."))': src/db/mod.rs:505
Dec 29 18:21:11 [INFO] Using saved config from `/app/data/config.json` for configuration.
Dec 29 18:21:11 [WARNING] Please use the admin panel to make changes to them:
Dec 29 18:21:11 [WARNING] SIGNUPS_ALLOWED, INVITATIONS_ALLOWED, YUBICO_CLIENT_ID, YUBICO_SECRET_KEY
Dec 29 18:21:11 [WARNING] The following environment variables are being overridden by the config.json file.
Dec 29 18:21:14 2025-12-29T18:21:14+01:00
Dec 29 18:21:14 2025-12-29T18:21:14+01:00
Dec 29 18:21:14 2025-12-29T18:21:14+01:00
Dec 29 18:21:14 2025-12-29T18:21:14+01:00
Dec 29 18:21:14 /--------------------------------------------------------------------\
Dec 29 18:21:14 0: vaultwarden::init_logging::{{closure}}
Dec 29 18:21:14 10: std::sys::backtrace::__rust_begin_short_backtrace
Dec 29 18:21:14 11: main
Dec 29 18:21:14 12: <unknown>
Dec 29 18:21:14 13: __libc_start_main
Dec 29 18:21:14 14: _start
Dec 29 18:21:14 1: std::panicking::panic_with_hook
Dec 29 18:21:14 2: std::panicking::panic_handler::{{closure}}
Dec 29 18:21:14 3: std::sys::backtrace::__rust_end_short_backtrace

It looks like the migration related to SSO fails, but I’m not sure what the correct or recommended way to handle this situation is.

Has anyone encountered this issue?
Is there a supported way to fix this without manually modifying the database?

Thanks for any pointers.

[IniBudi]

@james said in Vaultwarden fails to start after update – DB migration error (SSO):

Hello @archos
I think, I have the same issue.
This is the log:

[2025-12-29 19:23:43.075][panic][ERROR] thread 'main' panicked at 'Error running migrations: QueryError(DieselMigrationName { name: "2024-03-06-170000_add_sso_users", version: MigrationVersion("20240306170000") }, DatabaseError(Unknown, "Referencing column 'user_uuid' and referenced column 'uuid' in foreign key constraint 'sso_users_ibfk_1' are incompatible."))': src/db/mod.rs:505

And seems to be already reported upstream: https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/issues/6611

---

EDIT:
I followed the guided instructions and was able to fix it => https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/wiki/Using-the-MariaDB-(MySQL)-Backend#foreign-key-errors-collation-and-charset

be sure to replace "vaultwarden" in the SQL querries with your cloudron database name.

I experienced the exact same issue when upgrading to the latest version. I managed to resolve it following @james's suggestion.

Here is a recap of the step-by-step process I executed, which might help others:

• 1. Enter Recovery Mode
     Go to the Cloudron dashboard and enable Recovery Mode for your Vaultwarden application.
• 2. Access the MySQL Database
     Open the application Terminal and click the MySQL button to access the database console..
• 3. Identify the Vaultwarden Database Name
     Run the following command to see the list of databases:

SHOW DATABASES;

Note the database name that appears (it is usually a random string like 9121d...). You will need this for the next steps.

• 4. Change the Database Charset

Replace YourDatabaseVaultwarden in the command below with the actual database name retrieved in Step 3, then run:

ALTER DATABASE `YourDatabaseVaultwarden` CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci; 

• 5. Generate Table Modification Commands
     Run this query to generate the specific ALTER TABLE commands for your existing tables:

SELECT CONCAT('ALTER TABLE `', TABLE_NAME,'` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;') 
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA="YourDatabaseVaultwarden"
AND TABLE_TYPE="BASE TABLE";

Copy the output generated by this command. You can paste this list into ChatGPT or Gemini and ask it to format it for the next step (wrapping it between the foreign key check commands).

• 6. Execute the Final Fix
     The final command block should follow this structure:

SET foreign_key_checks=0;
-- Copy/Paste the output from above here
SET foreign_key_checks=1;

If you are unsure about the formatting, I simply copied the raw table list from the terminal in Step 5 and asked an AI to format it into valid MySQL syntax using the structure above.

Here is an example of what the final command looks like (Note: Do not copy-paste the specific table list below; use the one generated from your own database in Step 5, as your tables might differ):

SET foreign_key_checks=0;
ALTER TABLE `__diesel_schema_migrations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `attachments` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `ciphers_collections` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `ciphers` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `collections` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `devices` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `emergency_access` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `favorites` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `folders_ciphers` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `folders` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `invitations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `org_policies` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `organizations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `sends` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `twofactor_incomplete` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `twofactor` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `users_collections` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `users_organizations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `users` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
SET foreign_key_checks=1;

Once you have adapted the command to your specific tables, execute it in the MySQL terminal.

Finally, disable Recovery Mode and restart your Vaultwarden app. Hopefully, this serves as a solution for you as well.

Apologies if there are any technical inaccuracies; I utilized AI to guide me through this solution, and thankfully, it worked perfectly.

Thanks,
Regards

[Kubernetes]

@archos No issues on my Cloudron after updating Vaultwarden.

[robi]

Another restart could do it, but if not, it could need more memory to complete the migration, so bumping that and another restart.

[archos]

@Kubernetes said in Vaultwarden fails to start after update – DB migration error (SSO):

@archos No issues on my Cloudron after updating Vaultwarden.
Thanks for the feedback.
On our server we have two Vaultwarden apps — both were updated, but only one updated without issues. The other one fails with the migration error.

[archos]

@robi Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve tried restarting and increased the app memory — it’s now set to 4 GB, which should be sufficient. Unfortunately, it still ends with the same migration error.

[james]

Hello @archos
I think, I have the same issue.
This is the log:

[2025-12-29 19:23:43.075][panic][ERROR] thread 'main' panicked at 'Error running migrations: QueryError(DieselMigrationName { name: "2024-03-06-170000_add_sso_users", version: MigrationVersion("20240306170000") }, DatabaseError(Unknown, "Referencing column 'user_uuid' and referenced column 'uuid' in foreign key constraint 'sso_users_ibfk_1' are incompatible."))': src/db/mod.rs:505

And seems to be already reported upstream: https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/issues/6611

---

EDIT:
I followed the guided instructions and was able to fix it => https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/wiki/Using-the-MariaDB-(MySQL)-Backend#foreign-key-errors-collation-and-charset

be sure to replace "vaultwarden" in the SQL querries with your cloudron database name.

[archos]

@james Thanks for the links. The workaround looks rather complex, and I honestly don’t feel confident performing manual database changes. I’m wondering whether it would be safer to resolve this by reinstalling the app and restoring from a backup.

[james]

Hello @archos
I am unsure if that would work.
The restore from backup might also restore the old charset and thus recreating the issue.

You can always clone the app from the latest backup, tinker to your liking with zero risk.

[crazybrad]

@archos Thanks for reporting this and saving others from a potential problem. I have disabled automatic updates of VaultWarden for now until this sorts out. @james Is it possible to manually restore the last VaultWarden backup prior to the update and then disable automatic updates?

[james]

Hello @crazybrad

@crazybrad said in Vaultwarden fails to start after update – DB migration error (SSO):

@james Is it possible to manually restore the last VaultWarden backup prior to the update and then disable automatic updates?

Yes.

[andreasdueren]

Looks like it's a larger upgrade with various issues

[xarp]

Same here. Oh boy.

[jadudm]

Restoring the previous version from backup worked for me, and I then disabled automatic updates.

[IniBudi]

@james said in Vaultwarden fails to start after update – DB migration error (SSO):

Hello @archos
I think, I have the same issue.
This is the log:

[2025-12-29 19:23:43.075][panic][ERROR] thread 'main' panicked at 'Error running migrations: QueryError(DieselMigrationName { name: "2024-03-06-170000_add_sso_users", version: MigrationVersion("20240306170000") }, DatabaseError(Unknown, "Referencing column 'user_uuid' and referenced column 'uuid' in foreign key constraint 'sso_users_ibfk_1' are incompatible."))': src/db/mod.rs:505

And seems to be already reported upstream: https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/issues/6611

---

EDIT:
I followed the guided instructions and was able to fix it => https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/wiki/Using-the-MariaDB-(MySQL)-Backend#foreign-key-errors-collation-and-charset

be sure to replace "vaultwarden" in the SQL querries with your cloudron database name.

I experienced the exact same issue when upgrading to the latest version. I managed to resolve it following @james's suggestion.

Here is a recap of the step-by-step process I executed, which might help others:

• 1. Enter Recovery Mode
     Go to the Cloudron dashboard and enable Recovery Mode for your Vaultwarden application.
• 2. Access the MySQL Database
     Open the application Terminal and click the MySQL button to access the database console..
• 3. Identify the Vaultwarden Database Name
     Run the following command to see the list of databases:

SHOW DATABASES;

Note the database name that appears (it is usually a random string like 9121d...). You will need this for the next steps.

• 4. Change the Database Charset

Replace YourDatabaseVaultwarden in the command below with the actual database name retrieved in Step 3, then run:

ALTER DATABASE `YourDatabaseVaultwarden` CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci; 

• 5. Generate Table Modification Commands
     Run this query to generate the specific ALTER TABLE commands for your existing tables:

SELECT CONCAT('ALTER TABLE `', TABLE_NAME,'` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;') 
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA="YourDatabaseVaultwarden"
AND TABLE_TYPE="BASE TABLE";

Copy the output generated by this command. You can paste this list into ChatGPT or Gemini and ask it to format it for the next step (wrapping it between the foreign key check commands).

• 6. Execute the Final Fix
     The final command block should follow this structure:

SET foreign_key_checks=0;
-- Copy/Paste the output from above here
SET foreign_key_checks=1;

If you are unsure about the formatting, I simply copied the raw table list from the terminal in Step 5 and asked an AI to format it into valid MySQL syntax using the structure above.

Here is an example of what the final command looks like (Note: Do not copy-paste the specific table list below; use the one generated from your own database in Step 5, as your tables might differ):

SET foreign_key_checks=0;
ALTER TABLE `__diesel_schema_migrations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `attachments` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `ciphers_collections` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `ciphers` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `collections` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `devices` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `emergency_access` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `favorites` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `folders_ciphers` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `folders` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `invitations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `org_policies` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `organizations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `sends` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `twofactor_incomplete` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `twofactor` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `users_collections` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `users_organizations` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `users` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
SET foreign_key_checks=1;

Once you have adapted the command to your specific tables, execute it in the MySQL terminal.

Finally, disable Recovery Mode and restart your Vaultwarden app. Hopefully, this serves as a solution for you as well.

Apologies if there are any technical inaccuracies; I utilized AI to guide me through this solution, and thankfully, it worked perfectly.

Thanks,
Regards

[archos]

@IniBudi Many thanks for the guide, everything seems to be working fine now.
The application has been successfully updated and is running properly.

[sangemaru]

Description

Aplication not responding. Investigated logs show database migration error.

Steps to reproduce

Vaultwarden App updated to 1.23.0

Logs

2025-12-30T08:56:20Z /--------------------------------------------------------------------\
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 0: vaultwarden::init_logging::{{closure}}
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 10: std::sys::backtrace::__rust_begin_short_backtrace
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 11: main
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 12: <unknown>
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 13: __libc_start_main
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 14: _start
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 1: std::panicking::panic_with_hook
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 2: std::panicking::panic_handler::{{closure}}
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 3: std::sys::backtrace::__rust_end_short_backtrace
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 4: __rustc::rust_begin_unwind
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 5: core::panicking::panic_fmt
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 6: core::result::unwrap_failed
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 7: vaultwarden::db::DbPool::from_config
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 8: vaultwarden::main::{{closure}}
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z 9: vaultwarden::main
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z => Exporting env vars expected by Vaultwarden
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z => Starting Bitwarden
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z Please generate a secure Argon2 PHC string by using `vaultwarden hash` or `argon2`.
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z See: https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/wiki/Enabling-admin-page#secure-the-admin_token
2025-12-30T08:56:20Z [2025-12-30 08:56:20.876][panic][ERROR] thread 'main' panicked at 'Error running migrations: QueryError(DieselMigrationName { name: "2024-03-06-170000_add_sso_users", version: MigrationVersion("20240306170000") }, DatabaseError(Unknown, "Referencing column 'user_uuid' and referenced column 'uuid' in foreign key constraint 'sso_users_ibfk_1' are incompatible."))': src/db/mod.rs:505

Troubleshooting Already Performed

Restored 1.22.2 application Backup restored functionality

System Details

Generate Diagnostics Data

Diagnostic Data sent to support@cloudron.io

Cloudron Version

9.0.15

Ubuntu Version

Distributor ID:	Ubuntu
Description:	Ubuntu 24.04.3 LTS
Release:	24.04
Codename:	noble

Cloudron installation method

• Manual with ./cloudron-setup

Output of cloudron-support --troubleshoot

Vendor: netcup Product: KVM Server
Linux: 6.8.0-90-generic
Ubuntu: noble 24.04
Execution environment: kvm
Processor: AMD EPYC 9645 96-Core Processor
BIOS pc-i440fx-9.2  CPU @ 2.0GHz x 8
RAM: 16370004KB
Disk: /dev/vda1       425G
[OK]	node version is correct
[OK]	IPv6 is enabled and public IPv6 address is working
[OK]	docker is running
[OK]	docker version is correct
[OK]	MySQL is running
[OK]	nginx is running
[OK]	dashboard cert is valid
[OK]	dashboard is reachable via loopback
[OK]	No pending database migrations
[OK]	Service 'mysql' is running and healthy
[OK]	Service 'postgresql' is running and healthy
[OK]	Service 'mongodb' is running and healthy
[OK]	Service 'mail' is running and healthy
[OK]	Service 'graphite' is running and healthy
[OK]	Service 'sftp' is running and healthy
[OK]	box v9.0.15 is running
[OK]	netplan is good
[OK]	DNS is resolving via systemd-resolved
[OK]	Dashboard is reachable via domain name
[WARN]	Domain serenichron.agency expiry check skipped because whois does not have this information
[OK]	unbound is running

[fbartels]

This has been reported along with a potential fix in https://forum.cloudron.io/topic/14812/vaultwarden-fails-to-start-after-update-db-migration-error-sso

[jadudm]

The fix that @inibudi posted worked for me.

[jdaviescoates]

@archos said in Vaultwarden fails to start after update – DB migration error (SSO):

After updating the Vaultwarden app on Cloudron

From/ to which version?

[james]

Hello @jdaviescoates
From version Cloudron package version 1.22.2 => Vaultwarden Version 1.34.3 to Cloudron package version 1.23.0 => Vaultwarden Version 1.35.0