> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://apidocs.scripe.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Not cancellable

# `not_cancellable`

**HTTP status:** `409 Conflict`

You called `POST /v1/jobs/{jobId}/cancel` on a job that is already
running, finished, failed, or cancelled.

```json theme={null}
{
  "error": {
    "code": "not_cancellable",
    "message": "Job is in 'RUNNING'; only QUEUED jobs can be cancelled in v1.",
    "request_id": "req_01J9Z…",
    "docs_url": "https://docs.scripe.io/api/v1/errors#not_cancellable"
  }
}
```

## Why running jobs aren't cancellable

The worker pool processes a job to completion once it picks it up — it
doesn't poll for cancellation mid-run. Accepting a cancel on a
`RUNNING` job would be a lie: the AI provider call would still bill,
the post would still be created, and the job would still flip to
`DONE`. Returning a hard `409` is honest.

A future revision (Phase 6) may add a cooperative cancellation hook on
the per-handler dispatch table. For now, **only `QUEUED` jobs are
cancellable**.

## Common triggers

1. **Cancel called too late.** The worker dequeue cadence is fast
   (sub-second). If you submit and immediately cancel, the worker may
   already have moved the row to `RUNNING`. Add a small delay if the
   submit-cancel pattern is intentional (e.g. a user clicking "stop"
   immediately after submit).
2. **Stale state on the client.** You polled a `QUEUED` snapshot but
   acted on it after the worker started. Re-fetch
   `GET /v1/jobs/{jobId}` and check status before retrying cancel.
3. **The job already finished.** `DONE`, `FAILED`, and `CANCELLED` are
   all terminal — there's nothing left to cancel.

## How to handle it

1. **Don't retry the cancel.** A retry will hit the same 409 every time.
2. **Re-fetch `GET /v1/jobs/{jobId}`** so your client UI reflects the
   actual state.
3. **If you genuinely need to abort a running job**, the workspace
   admin can manually neutralize the result — but the worker will still
   complete and bill.

## Related

* [Jobs](../jobs.md) — full lifecycle reference.
* [Conventions](../conventions.md) — error envelope shape.