# Elasticsearch ILM failed delete closed indices

**URL:** https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elasticsearch-ilm-failed-delete-closed-indices/354163
**Category:** Elastic Search
**Tags:** elastic-site-search
**Created:** [February 27, 2024, 2:00am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elasticsearch-ilm-failed-delete-closed-indices/354163 "2024-02-27T02:00:59Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Showing post:** 2

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### Author: ![rtwolfe94022](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/rtwolfe94022/32/132253_2.png) [@rtwolfe94022](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/rtwolfe94022)
#### Post date: [March 1, 2024, 6:08am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elasticsearch-ilm-failed-delete-closed-indices/354163/2 "2024-03-01T06:08:35Z")

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Yes, ILM can delete closed indices, but the error you're seeing indicates a problem with waiting for shard history leases to expire before deletion. To resolve this, check your cluster health, ensure no settings are blocking deletion, review your ILM policy, and consider manually moving the ILM step forward if it's stuck in an error state.

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_[View the full topic](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elasticsearch-ilm-failed-delete-closed-indices/354163)._