Unable to Duplicate Collections with Field Configurations

[Pachat]

Describe the Bug

Description

There appears to be no reliable way to duplicate a collection in Directus v10.9.3, either through the API or direct database manipulation. This is particularly problematic for complex collections with many fields and UI configurations.

Current Behavior

When attempting to duplicate a collection:

1. The database table can be duplicated successfully
2. Metadata can be copied to directus_collections
3. Field definitions can be copied to directus_fields
4. However, the duplicated collection's fields remain invisible in the admin UI

To Reproduce

Steps to Reproduce

1. Start with an existing collection (e.g., "project" with 200+ fields including UI elements)
2. Create a new collection (e.g., "project24") by copying:
   • Database table structure and data
   • Collection metadata
   • Field definitions
   • Relations

Attempted Solutions:

1. Using Directus Services API to programmatically duplicate the collection
2. Direct SQL duplication:

   -- Copy table structure and data
   CREATE TABLE new_collection AS SELECT * FROM source_collection;
   
   -- Copy collection metadata
   INSERT INTO directus_collections (...) SELECT ...;
   
   -- Copy field definitions with new IDs
   INSERT INTO directus_fields (...) SELECT ...;
   
   -- Copy relations
   INSERT INTO directus_relations (...) SELECT ...;

3. Various approaches to handle field IDs and ordering
4. Attempts to force UI refresh through collection hiding/unhiding
5. Server restarts after duplication

Verification Steps:

1. Check database table (success: 120+ fields present)
2. Check directus_fields (success: 200+ fields including UI elements)
3. Check directus_collections (success: collection properly registered)
4. Access Admin UI (failure: no fields visible)

Expected Behavior

After duplication:

1. New collection should be fully functional in Admin UI
2. All fields should be visible and configurable
3. UI elements (notices, accordions, etc.) should maintain their configuration
4. Relations should be properly mapped to the new collection

Directus Version

10.9.3

Hosting Strategy

Self-Hosted (Docker Image)

Database

PostgreSQL

[linear[bot]]

GEN-1283 Unable to Duplicate Collections with Field Configurations