directus-extension-safe-rename

A Directus extension that lets you safely rename collections and fields — updating all metadata, relations, permissions, presets, flows, and more in a single atomic transaction.

Built by Contensu — a Directus agency.

Why?

Directus does not provide a built-in way to rename collections or fields after they are created. Doing it manually means hunting down every reference across a dozen system tables — and missing one breaks your project silently.

This extension handles all of that automatically.

Features

• 🏷️ Rename collections — renames the table and updates all Directus system tables
• 🔤 Rename fields — renames the column and updates all references across metadata, relations, permissions, presets, flows, panels, and more
• 🔗 Relation-aware — updates field references in related collections too (O2M, M2M, M2A)
• 🔒 Atomic transactions — all changes happen in a single DB transaction, rolls back on failure
• 🧹 Cache clearing — automatically clears Directus schema cache after renaming
• 🛡️ Protected collections — prevents renaming of Directus system collections (directus_*)

What gets updated

When renaming a collection

| Table | Columns updated | | ------------------------ | ----------------------------------- | | directus_collections | collection, group | | directus_fields | collection | | directus_relations | many_collection, one_collection | | directus_permissions | collection | | directus_presets | collection | | directus_shares | collection | | directus_versions | collection | | directus_revisions | collection, item | | directus_activity | collection | | directus_notifications | collection | | directus_comments | collection | | directus_flows | options.collections[] | | directus_operations | options.collection |

When renaming a field

| Table | Columns updated | | ---------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | directus_fields | field, group, options, display_options, conditions, validation | | directus_relations | many_field, one_field, one_collection_field, junction_field, sort_field | | directus_collections | archive_field, sort_field, display_template, item_duplication_fields | | directus_permissions | fields (CSV), permissions, validation, presets (JSON) | | directus_presets | layout_query, layout_options, filter | | directus_flows | options | | directus_operations | options | | directus_panels | options |

Requirements

• Directus ^11.0.0
• Admin access required

Installation

Via npm (recommended)

npm install @contensu/directus-extension-safe-rename

Then restart your Directus instance.

Via Directus Marketplace

This extension requires direct database access and is classified as a non-sandboxed extension. It will not appear in the Directus Marketplace by default.

To enable Marketplace installation, set the following environment variable in your Directus instance:

MARKETPLACE_TRUST="all"

⚠️ This setting allows installation of all non-sandboxed extensions from the Marketplace. Only enable it if you trust the extensions you are installing.

For more details, see the Directus self-hosting extensions guide.

Usage

1. Go to Settings → Project Settings and enable the Schema Rename module under the Modules bar
2. The Schema Rename module will now appear in the left sidebar — click it
3. Select a collection from the list
4. To rename the collection — edit the collection name field and click Rename Collection
5. To rename fields — edit any field name in the list and click Rename Fields

Database Support

| Database | Status | | ------------- | --------- | | PostgreSQL 13 | ✅ Tested | | PostgreSQL 16 | ✅ Tested | | MySQL 8 | ✅ Tested | | MariaDB 11 | ✅ Tested | | SQLite | ✅ Tested |

Tested against Directus 11.14.1, 11.16.1, and 11.17.0.

CI & Releases

Every pull request runs a full integration test suite across 15 jobs (3 Directus versions × 5 databases) via GitHub Actions. Releases are published to npm automatically when a version tag is pushed.

Roadmap

• [ ] Impact analyzer — preview all changes before applying
• [ ] Translations support

Contributing

Pull requests are welcome. Please open an issue first to discuss what you would like to change.

License

MIT © Contensu