How to fix P1003: Database does not exist in Prisma

Check your .env file or environment variables for the DATABASE_URL. Make sure:
- The database name is correct
- The host and port are correct
- For SQLite: the file path exists
- For special characters: they are properly URL-encoded

Example PostgreSQL URL: postgresql://username:password@localhost:5432/mydatabase
Example SQLite URL: file:./dev.db

If using a cloud database, verify you have the correct connection string from your provider.

For server-based databases, connect to your database server using a tool like psql, mysql, or SQL Server Management Studio and verify:

-- PostgreSQL
SELECT datname FROM pg_database WHERE datname = 'your_database_name';

-- MySQL
SHOW DATABASES LIKE 'your_database_name';

-- SQL Server
SELECT name FROM sys.databases WHERE name = 'your_database_name';

If the database doesn't exist, you need to create it first.

If the database doesn't exist, create it using your database management tool:

-- PostgreSQL
CREATE DATABASE your_database_name;

-- MySQL
CREATE DATABASE your_database_name;

-- SQL Server
CREATE DATABASE your_database_name;

-- SQLite (file-based)
-- The database file is created automatically when Prisma connects

For SQLite, ensure the directory path exists and Prisma has write permissions.

For SQLite databases, verify:
1. The file path in your DATABASE_URL is correct
2. The directory containing the .db file exists
3. Your application has read/write permissions to that directory
4. The file isn't locked by another process

Example: If your DATABASE_URL is file:./data/dev.db, make sure the data directory exists in your project root.

You can use absolute paths for more reliability:
file:/absolute/path/to/your/project/data/dev.db

Before running your application, test the database connection:

1. For PostgreSQL: psql "postgresql://username:password@localhost:5432/mydatabase"
2. For MySQL: mysql -u username -p -h localhost mydatabase
3. For SQL Server: Use sqlcmd or a GUI tool
4. For SQLite: sqlite3 path/to/your.db (verify the file exists)

If you can't connect manually, the issue is with your database server configuration, not Prisma.

Once the database exists, run Prisma migrations to set up the schema:

npx prisma migrate dev
# or for production
npx prisma migrate deploy

This will create the necessary tables and schema in your newly created database.