ActiveAdmin “Delete” link redirects to show instead of deleting on Rails 8 (Turbo / importmap / propshaft)

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Summary

ActiveAdmin’s “Delete” link redirects to the show page instead of deleting the record in Rails 8 applications using Turbo, importmap, and propshaft. This issue arises because Turbo intercepts the link and treats it as a navigatable request, ignoring the data-method="delete" attribute.

Root Cause

  • Turbo’s default behavior overrides Rails UJS’s data-method handling, causing DELETE requests to be treated as GET requests.
  • ActiveAdmin relies on Rails UJS for handling data-method attributes, which conflicts with Turbo’s interception mechanism.

Why This Happens in Real Systems

  • Turbo’s aggressive interception: Turbo intercepts all links and forms by default, assuming they are navigatable actions.
  • Rails UJS and Turbo conflict: Rails UJS and Turbo both attempt to handle data-method attributes, leading to inconsistent behavior.

Real-World Impact

  • Data integrity risks: Records are not deleted as intended, leading to stale or incorrect data in the system.
  • User confusion: Users expect the “Delete” action to remove the record, but instead, they are redirected to the show page.
  • Development delays: Engineers spend time debugging and workarounding the issue instead of focusing on core features.

Example or Code

// app/javascript/application.js
import "@hotwired/turbo-rails"
import "controllers"
import Rails from "@rails/ujs"

Rails.start() // Rails UJS is initialized but conflicts with Turbo

How Senior Engineers Fix It

  • Use data-turbo-method instead of data-method: Turbo recognizes data-turbo-method for non-GET requests.
  • Disable Turbo for specific links: Add data-turbo="false" to the delete link to bypass Turbo’s interception.
  • Update ActiveAdmin configuration: Ensure ActiveAdmin is compatible with Turbo by using the latest version or applying patches.

Example Fix:


actions do
  link_to "Remove", resource_path(student), data: { turbo_method: :delete, confirm: "Are you sure?" }
end

Why Juniors Miss It

  • Lack of understanding of Turbo’s interception mechanism: Juniors may not realize Turbo overrides Rails UJS behavior.
  • Overlooking documentation: Turbo’s documentation on data-turbo-method and data-turbo attributes is often missed.
  • Assuming compatibility: Juniors may assume ActiveAdmin and Turbo work seamlessly without considering underlying conflicts.

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