What happens if…

Records, filters, limits and deletes: each case, what Gemmein does and what you do.

If…	What happens	What you do
The collection doesn't exist	`404 unknown_collection`	Ask your human to create it in the dashboard, with the name and the safety rule
Someone reads another person's records in a `private` collection	They see none: `list()` returns only their own and `get()` answers 404	Nothing
Someone edits or deletes a record they didn't write (`shared`, `community`)	404, the same answer as a record that doesn't exist	Nothing
A filter is used on a `private` collection	It narrows the person's own records; it never reaches anyone else's	Nothing
A list asks `count: true` and more than 10,000 match	`totalAtLeast: 10000`, no `total`	Show "10,000+"
`author` is used on a `private` collection	`403 author_not_visible`	Drop it; a private list is already the person's own
`author` names a person with no records	An empty page, and `total: 0` when counted	Nothing
A person publishes in a collection whose posts wait for approval	`403 moderation_required`; the post stays a draft	Save without `published: true` and show the author a "waiting for approval" state
An author edits an approved post there	It is saved and waits for approval again; Collections counts it as waiting	Nothing
`"publishing": "owner approves"` is set on a rule other than `community`, any `"publishing"` is set on `public_read`, or the value is misspelled	Refused by `gemmein dev` and before `gemmein sync` reaches the cloud (`invalid_publishing`); nothing is created or changed	Fix the file
The file and the cloud disagree on an existing collection's Publishing	`gemmein sync` reports it and changes nothing	Your human sets Publishing on the collection's page in the dashboard's Data
Someone asks the AI to build a team or workspace feature (invite colleagues, a company account, records shared inside an organisation)	The guide tells the AI it isn't supported	Keep each person's data their own; never build it from a shared collection filtered in the app
Posts wait and nobody approves them	They stay drafts; Collections shows how many wait	Tell your human they approve posts in the dashboard
Your code sends `id`, `userId`, `role` or another server-managed field	`403 forbidden`, and the message names the field	Remove it; the server sets these itself
The data is not a plain object	`400 invalid_body`	Send an object of fields
A record is deleted	It is kept 30 days and its files stay. After 30 days it is removed for good, with the files only it referenced. A file a buyer owns (a product's file, or one an access grant or payment names) and a file another record still references are kept	Nothing
Your human saves a record in the dashboard that changed since they opened it	Nothing is saved. The editor says the record changed since it was opened (`409 changed_since_opened`)	Nothing. They refresh and make the change again
A record's data is over 32 KB	`413 payload_too_large`	Keep large content in a file with `upload()`
A list asks for more than 100 records, or for 0	`400 invalid_limit`; the limit is never cut down for you. With no limit you get 25 records, `hasMore` and a `cursor`	Page with `cursor`
A `where` uses an unknown operator or too many fields	`400 invalid_filter`, naming the field and the operator	Fix the filter
One IP (an IPv6 address counts by its /64) writes more than 60 times in a minute	`429` with `resetAt`. Reads allow 150 a minute	Wait until `resetAt`; batch your own loops
A create times out and your code retries it without a `key`	The retry can make a second record	Give creates that must happen once a key: the retry then returns the first record
A secret key reads or writes outside its collections, or writes with a read-only scope	`403 scope_denied`	Ask your human to widen the key in the dashboard
A collection that still has records is deleted from the CLI	`409 collection_not_empty`	Delete its records first
Your human deletes a collection in the dashboard, typing its name	It goes; its records are kept 30 days, and the name can be used again for a new, empty collection	Nothing
HTML reaches a `community`, `addressed` or `direct` record	`400 html_not_allowed`	Store plain text
A live collection with fixed fields gets a field it doesn't have	`400 invalid_shape`	Build the field in Development and promote it

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Last updated 13 October 2026