Four repositories stuck in "Repository has been locked" after a failed transfer to my org

[vernikr-personal]

Hi,

I need advice on four repositories that are stuck in a locked state after a failed ownership transfer.

Account: vernikr-personal (user id 14224999)
Target org: vernikr (created 2026-10-16, free plan)

On 2026-10-16 I created the organization "vernikr" and moved my repositories into it using the built-in
"Transfer ownership" option in each repository's Settings. Almost all moved fine. These four did not:

• https://github.com/vernikr-personal/biblio-mcp (repo id 1409363760)
• https://github.com/vernikr-personal/browser-agent (repo id 1412584686)
• https://github.com/vernikr-personal/browser-agent-mcp (repo id 1412584723)
• https://github.com/vernikr-personal/size-report (repo id 1368970154)

Current symptoms (reproduced today):

1. Git access fails:
   remote: Repository 'vernikr-personal/size-report' is disabled.
   remote: Please ask the owner to check their account.
   fatal: unable to access '...': The requested URL returned error: 403

2. Any write through the REST API fails:
   PUT /repos/vernikr-personal/biblio-mcp/contents/
   HTTP 403 {"message": "Repository has been locked."}

3. Re-running the transfer fails:
   POST /repos/vernikr-personal/size-report/transfer {"new_owner":"vernikr"}
   HTTP 422 "Repository name vernikr/size-report has been retired and cannot be reused"

4. Creating a repository with the same name in the org also fails with the same 422, so the target
   names are retired and appear unrecoverable by me.

5. Reading via REST API still works (contents and commits return 200), so data is intact, and a
   brand-new repository on the same account pushes fine — so this is repository-specific, not an
   account restriction.

I already opened a support ticket; it was closed by the virtual assistant because my account is on
GitHub Free (technical issues for repositories are pointed to Community).

Questions:

• Is there any self-service way to clear the locked state, or does it always require Support?
• Is there a supported way to release a retired repository name in an organization?
• If renaming is the recommended workaround, is the plan below safe: create vernikr/-v2, push the
  full history there (identical commit SHAs), and rename later once the names are free?

Thanks!

[reddy895]

Based on the 403 Repository has been locked responses and the 422 retired-name errors, this appears to require GitHub Support to investigate the repository transfer state. I don't know of a documented self-service API to clear this lock or release a retired repository name.

Your -v2 workaround is reasonable for preserving the code, but verify the backup before making changes:

git clone --mirror <source-repo-url>
cd <repo-name>.git
git push --mirror <new-repo-url>

This preserves Git refs and commit history that are available to clone, but it does not transfer GitHub-specific metadata such as issues, pull requests, settings, or Actions secrets. Also, git push --mirror can overwrite or delete refs at the destination, so use a new, empty repository.

I'd keep the four original repositories untouched and update your existing Support ticket with the repository IDs, exact 403/422 responses, and timestamps. Ask Support specifically to restore the transfer state and release the retired target names. I wouldn't assume a later rename will work until GitHub confirms the names are available.