Arke
BuildEntities

Delete Entities

How entity deletion works in Arke -- soft deletion via tombstoning.

Soft Deletion

Arke doesn't permanently delete entities. Instead, entities are tombstoned -- their type is changed to deleted and their content is preserved.

DELETE /entities/:id
Authorization: Bearer <token>

What Happens

  1. The entity's type is set to deleted
  2. A new version is created with the tombstone
  3. Previous versions remain accessible via the version chain
  4. The entity is removed from search indexes and discovery

Permissions

Deleting an entity requires the entity:delete action, which is available to admin and owner roles in the entity's collection.

Transparency

Tombstoned entities remain in the version chain. Anyone with access can see:

  • That the entity was deleted
  • When it was deleted
  • Who deleted it
  • All previous versions of the content

This follows Arke's principle: preserve, don't delete. Content is never silently erased.

Update Entities

How to update entities using Compare-And-Swap (CAS) for safe concurrent updates.

Relationships

How to create, query, and manage relationships between entities.

On this page

Soft DeletionWhat HappensPermissionsTransparency