fix(server): return a clear "restart required" error on missing DB schema

[wideplain]

Problem

When a DB-backed request hits a SQLite no such table / no such column error, the global error handler in server/index.js returns a generic 500 INTERNAL_ERROR.

This occurs in a very common real-world situation: the package is updated on disk (new schema / migrations in initializeDatabase()), but the running server process is not restarted. Because the new schema is only applied at startup, the long-lived old process keeps running against a DB that lacks the new tables (projects, sessions, …). DB-backed actions — deleting/archiving/renaming a session or project — then throw no such table: sessions and fail silently from the user's point of view (the trash icon appears to do nothing).

Sidebar listings still work because they're read from disk (~/.claude/projects/*/*.jsonl), which makes the failure even more confusing: items are visible but can't be mutated.

Fix

In the global error handler, detect this specific class of error (SQLITE_ERROR / SqliteError with a no such table|column message) and return a 503 with code SCHEMA_NOT_INITIALIZED and an actionable message asking the user to restart the server, instead of burying it in a generic 500.

No behavior change for any other error.

Notes

• This is a defensive, fail-loud safety net. A complementary change (detecting the running-server-vs-frontend version skew and showing a "restart required" banner) is a good follow-up.

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

Summary by CodeRabbit

• Bug Fixes
  • Improved error handling for uninitialized database schemas. The server now detects schema-related failures and returns a clear HTTP 503 response with guidance to restart the server for proper initialization, replacing generic error messages.

[coderabbitai]

No actionable comments were generated in the recent review. 🎉

ℹ️ Recent review info

⚙️ Run configuration

Configuration used: Repository UI

Review profile: CHILL

Plan: Pro

Run ID: d963afc2-a942-4edb-a350-3f1ebba32824

📥 Commits

Reviewing files that changed from the base of the PR and between a12ca8e and cb49f4d.

📒 Files selected for processing (1)

• server/index.js

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📝 Walkthrough

Walkthrough

The global Express error handler in server/index.js gains a new branch that pattern-matches SQLite "no such table" and "no such column" error messages. When matched, it logs a specific message and returns HTTP 503 with error code SCHEMA_NOT_INITIALIZED and a restart-required message, bypassing the generic 500 response.

Changes

SQLite Schema Error Handling

Layer / File(s)	Summary
SQLite schema error → 503 middleware branch server/index.js	Adds a conditional in the global error middleware that detects SQLite missing-table/column errors and returns 503 with SCHEMA_NOT_INITIALIZED and a restart instruction instead of falling through to the generic 500 handler.

🐇 When tables go missing, don't panic or frown,
A 503 will gently set things down.
"Restart the server!" the rabbit suggests,
So initializeDatabase() handles the rest.
No more cryptic 500s—just clear guidance found! 🗄️✨

🚥 Pre-merge checks | ✅ 5

✅ Passed checks (5 passed)

Check name	Status	Explanation
Description Check	✅ Passed	Check skipped - CodeRabbit’s high-level summary is enabled.
Title check	✅ Passed	The title accurately and specifically describes the main change: detecting SQLite schema errors and returning a clear 'restart required' error response instead of a generic error.
Docstring Coverage	✅ Passed	No functions found in the changed files to evaluate docstring coverage. Skipping docstring coverage check.
Linked Issues check	✅ Passed	Check skipped because no linked issues were found for this pull request.
Out of Scope Changes check	✅ Passed	Check skipped because no linked issues were found for this pull request.

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✨ Finishing Touches

🧪 Generate unit tests (beta)

• Create PR with unit tests

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