Langfuse self hosted setup not working due to Postgres DB error

[hkrpydev-hkr]

Describe your question

We have a Langfuse self hosted setup where we are trying to bring up the Langfuse application in EKS and connect to already created Postgres RDS cluster which is hosted outside of this EKS (not self bundled setup). During which, we are getting below error:

Do we know what is the issue here and how to resolve this? Also, what permissions does the Postgres user need to have on the externally hosted Postgres DB instance?

Also, what permissions does the Langfuse application need on Elasticache Valkey/Redis store and Clickhouse DB instances?

Raw query failed. Code: 42P01. Message: relation "cron_jobs" does not exist │
│ at ei.handleRequestError (/app/node_modules/.pnpm/@prisma+client@6.17.1_prisma@6.17.1_typescript@5.9.2__typescript@5.9.2/node_modules/@prisma/client/runtime/library.js:121:7268) │
│ at ei.handleAndLogRequestError (/app/node_modules/.pnpm/@prisma+client@6.17.1_prisma@6.17.1_typescript@5.9.2__typescript@5.9.2/node_modules/@prisma/client/runtime/library.js:121:65 │
│ at ei.request (/app/node_modules/.pnpm/@prisma+client@6.17.1_prisma@6.17.1_typescript@5.9.2__typescript@5.9.2/node_modules/@prisma/client/runtime/library.js:121:6300) │
│ at async a (/app/node_modules/.pnpm/@prisma+client@6.17.1_prisma@6.17.1_typescript@5.9.2__typescript@5.9.2/node_modules/@prisma/client/runtime/library.js:130:9551) │
│ at async m (/app/web/.next/server/pages/api/public/health.js:13:2267) │
│ at async l (/app/web/.next/server/pages/api/public/health.js:13:1954) │
│ at async l (/app/web/.next/server/pages/api/public/ready.js:37:3747) │
│ at async /app/node_modules/.pnpm/@sentry+nextjs@10.18.0_@opentelemetry+context-async-hooks@2.1.0_@opentelemetry+api@1.9.0__@op_bbg5x5dp3vii2gnm47fzfnqyzq/node_modules/@sentry/nextj │
│ at async ts (/app/node_modules/.pnpm/next@15.5.4_@babel+core@7.28.4_@opentelemetry+api@1.9.0_@playwright+test@1.47.2_babel-plugin-suglwur6bmlmt5d5g262whr2oy/node_modules/next/dist │
│ at async to.render (/app/node_modules/.pnpm/next@15.5.4@babel+core@7.28.4_@opentelemetry+api@1.9.0_@playwright+test@1.47.2_babel-plugin-_suglwur6bmlmt5d5g262whr2oy/node_modules/ne │
│ 2026-01-15T04:26:07.253Z error prisma:error │
│ Invalid prisma.$queryRaw() invocation: │
│ │
│ │
│ Raw query failed. Code: 42P01. Message: relation "cron_jobs" does not exist │
│ 2026-01-15T04:26:07.253Z error Telemetry, unexpected error: │
│ Invalid prisma.$queryRaw() invocation:

Langfuse Cloud or Self-Hosted?

Self-Hosted

If Self-Hosted

3.124.1

If Langfuse Cloud

No response

SDK and integration versions

No response

Pre-Submission Checklist

• I have checked for existing issues/discussions and consulted Langfuse AI.

[inkeep-ai-assistant[bot]]

The error indicates that database migrations haven't run successfully. The cron_jobs table should be created during the automatic migration process.

Database Migration Issue

By default, Langfuse automatically runs PostgreSQL migrations on startup(1). The error suggests this process failed or was disabled. Check if LANGFUSE_AUTO_POSTGRES_MIGRATION_DISABLED is set to true(1). If so, set it to false or remove it entirely to enable automatic migrations.

Required PostgreSQL Permissions

For large deployments, configure the database user with long timeouts as migrations might need a while to complete(1). The user needs sufficient permissions to:

• Create tables and schemas
• Run ALTER statements
• Execute migrations

If your database user lacks the CREATE DATABASE permission, you must create a shadow database and configure the SHADOW_DATABASE_URL(2)(1). This is often required for Cloud databases(2).

ClickHouse Permissions

The ClickHouse user specified in CLICKHOUSE_USER must have the following grants(3):

GRANT INSERT ON default.* TO 'user';
GRANT SELECT ON default.* TO 'user';
GRANT ALTER UPDATE, ALTER DELETE ON default.* TO 'user';
GRANT CREATE ON default.* TO 'user';
GRANT DROP TABLE ON default.* TO 'user';

(3)

Replace 'user' with your actual ClickHouse username and adjust the database name if you're using a different database than default(3).

Redis/Valkey Permissions

The documentation doesn't specify explicit permission requirements for Redis/Valkey beyond authentication credentials (REDIS_AUTH or REDIS_CONNECTION_STRING)(1).

Troubleshooting Steps

1. Ensure LANGFUSE_AUTO_POSTGRES_MIGRATION_DISABLED is not set to true(1)
2. Verify your PostgreSQL user has sufficient permissions
3. Configure SHADOW_DATABASE_URL if your user lacks CREATE DATABASE permission(2)(1)
4. Check that DIRECT_URL is configured with a user that has appropriate migration permissions(2)(1)

📚 Sources:

1. Environment Variables
2. Deployment Guide (v2)
3. ClickHouse

---

Have another question? Just tag @inkeep.

[hkrpydev-hkr]

@inkeep

The above error we posted is with auto migration = false

And we are getting below error with auto migration = true. How do we overcome this error?

Datasource "db": PostgreSQL database "langfuse", schema "public" at "irt-db-langfuseapi-01.cluster-c6tkun0b5rnk.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com:5432" │
│ │
│ 351 migrations found in prisma/migrations │
│ │
│ Error: ERROR: permission denied for schema public │
│ 0: sql_schema_connector::sql_migration_persistence::initialize │
│ with namespaces=None filters=SchemaFilter { external_tables: [], external_enums: [] } │
│ at schema-engine/connectors/sql-schema-connector/src/sql_migration_persistence.rs:17 │
│ 1: schema_core::state::ApplyMigrations │
│ at schema-engine/core/src/state.rs:244 │
│ │
│ Applying database migrations failed. This is mostly caused by the database being unavailable.

[inkeep-ai-assistant[bot]]

The error "permission denied for schema public" indicates your PostgreSQL user lacks the necessary permissions to run migrations on the public schema.

Required PostgreSQL Permissions

Your database user needs comprehensive permissions on the public schema to successfully run migrations. The user must have permissions to:

• Create and modify tables
• Create and modify schemas
• Execute ALTER statements
• Create databases (or use a shadow database if this permission is unavailable)(1)

Resolution Steps

1. Grant Schema Permissions

Connect to your PostgreSQL database as a superuser and grant the necessary permissions to your Langfuse database user:

GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON SCHEMA public TO your_langfuse_user;
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON ALL TABLES IN SCHEMA public TO your_langfuse_user;
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON ALL SEQUENCES IN SCHEMA public TO your_langfuse_user;
ALTER DEFAULT PRIVILEGES IN SCHEMA public GRANT ALL ON TABLES TO your_langfuse_user;
ALTER DEFAULT PRIVILEGES IN SCHEMA public GRANT ALL ON SEQUENCES TO your_langfuse_user;

2. Configure Migration User

If you want to use a different user specifically for migrations (with elevated permissions), set the DIRECT_URL environment variable to use a superuser or table owner for migrations(2)(1):

DIRECT_URL=postgresql://migration_user:password@host:port/database

This allows Langfuse to use different credentials for migrations while keeping your regular DATABASE_URL for application operations(2).

3. Shadow Database Configuration

If your database user lacks the CREATE DATABASE permission, you must create a shadow database and configure the SHADOW_DATABASE_URL(1). This is often required for Cloud databases:

SHADOW_DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@host:port/shadow_database

Table Ownership Considerations

If you encounter permission errors during migrations after changing database users, verify table ownership(2):

\dt public.*

If tables are owned by a different user, you can transfer ownership(2):

ALTER TABLE table_name OWNER TO new_user;

**

📚 Sources:

1. Environment Variables
2. PostgreSQL table ownership and migration failures in self-hosted Langfuse

---

Have another question? Just tag @inkeep.

[hkrpydev-hkr]

@inkeep

Ok, is it recommended to have migrations enabled or disabled in self hosted Postgres DB and self hosted Clickhouse DB?

[inkeep-ai-assistant[bot]]

It is recommended to keep automatic migrations enabled for both PostgreSQL and ClickHouse in self-hosted deployments.

PostgreSQL Migrations

Automatic PostgreSQL migrations are enabled by default and should remain enabled(1). The environment variable LANGFUSE_AUTO_POSTGRES_MIGRATION_DISABLED defaults to false(1). Only disable this if you need to run migrations manually as part of a controlled deployment process.

ClickHouse Migrations

Automatic ClickHouse migrations are also enabled by default and should remain enabled(1). The environment variable LANGFUSE_AUTO_CLICKHOUSE_MIGRATION_DISABLED defaults to false(1).

Special Consideration for Zero-Downtime Upgrades

There is one exception: during zero-downtime upgrades from v2 to v3, you should temporarily disable background migrations(2). Set LANGFUSE_ENABLE_BACKGROUND_MIGRATIONS=false in the environment variables of new Langfuse web and worker containers until traffic is shifted(2). Afterwards, remove the overwrite or set to true(2).

Why Keep Migrations Enabled

Keeping automatic migrations enabled ensures:

• Database schema stays synchronized with the application version
• New features and bug fixes are properly applied
• Reduced operational complexity and manual intervention

If you experience permission errors with automatic migrations, the recommended approach is to grant the necessary permissions to your database users rather than disabling migrations(1).

📚 Sources:

1. ClickHouse
2. Migrate Langfuse v2 to v3

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Have another question? Just tag @inkeep.