DROP EXTERNAL LOCATION

Removes an external location registration. The underlying storage and any data it contains are not touched.

Category: configurationPrivilege: adminDeltaForge extension

Syntax

DROP EXTERNAL LOCATION [IF EXISTS] <name>

Description

## Overview DROP EXTERNAL LOCATION removes the location registration from the catalog. The cloud-side data, the bound storage credential, and any tables that were rooted at the location are NOT touched. ## Behavior - Without IF EXISTS, dropping a non-existent location raises an error. With IF EXISTS, the operation succeeds silently. - Grants stored against the location (object type EXTERNAL_LOCATION) are removed. - The bound storage credential is unaffected. It can continue to back other locations. - Tables and schemas previously rooted at the dropped location lose their managed-location reference. They may still resolve through the underlying URL if it is reachable directly, but the location-level governance and grants no longer apply. ## Access Control Requires the admin role. ## Compatibility DeltaForge extension.

Parameters

Name	Type	Description
`name`		Specifies the location to drop.
`if_exists`		Skip silently if the location does not exist.

Examples

DROP EXTERNAL LOCATION old_landing;

DROP EXTERNAL LOCATION IF EXISTS old_landing;

Pitfalls

DROP EXTERNAL LOCATION does not delete files in the underlying object store. Data persists at the URL after the drop. To delete data, use the storage provider's tooling (or VACUUM / DROP TABLE WITH FILES on individual tables before dropping the location).