feat(sync): remove target avatar when source has none

Add removeProjectAvatar and removeGroupAvatar methods to keep avatars
fully in sync by clearing the target avatar when the source has none.

changelog.md

@@ -1,5 +1,13 @@
 # Changelog
 
+## 2026-02-28 - 2.9.0 - feat(sync)
+remove target avatar when source has none to keep avatars fully in sync
+
+- Add removeProjectAvatar and removeGroupAvatar methods for GitLab and Gitea APIs
+- In syncProjectMetadata, remove target project avatar when source has no avatar and no group fallback applies
+- When useGroupAvatarsForProjects is enabled but the group also has no avatar, remove the target avatar
+- In syncGroupMetadata, remove target group avatar when source group has no avatar
+
 ## 2026-02-28 - 2.8.0 - feat(sync)
 add sync subsystem: SyncManager, OpsServer sync handlers, Sync UI and state, provider groupFilter support, and realtime sync log streaming via TypedSocket
 

package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "@serve.zone/gitops",
-  "version": "2.8.0",
+  "version": "2.9.0",
   "description": "GitOps management app for Gitea and GitLab - manage secrets, browse projects, view CI pipelines, and stream build logs",
   "main": "mod.ts",
   "type": "module",

ts/classes/syncmanager.ts

@@ -1139,6 +1139,7 @@ export class SyncManager {
       } else if (config.useGroupAvatarsForProjects) {
         // Project has no avatar — inherit from parent group
         const groupPath = sourceFullPath.substring(0, sourceFullPath.lastIndexOf('/'));
+        let groupAvatarApplied = false;
         if (groupPath) {
           try {
             const sourceGroup = await this.fetchGroupRaw(sourceConn, groupPath);
@@ -1147,6 +1148,7 @@ export class SyncManager {
               if (groupMeta.avatarUrl) {
                 logger.syncLog('info', `Applying group avatar to ${targetFullPath}`, 'api');
                 await this.syncProjectAvatar(sourceConn, targetConn, sourceFullPath, targetFullPath, groupMeta.avatarUrl, targetProject);
+                groupAvatarApplied = true;
               }
             }
           } catch (err) {
@@ -1154,6 +1156,15 @@ export class SyncManager {
             logger.syncLog('warn', `Group avatar sync failed for ${targetFullPath}: ${errMsg}`, 'api');
           }
         }
+        // If group also has no avatar, remove target avatar
+        if (!groupAvatarApplied && targetMeta.avatarUrl) {
+          await this.removeProjectAvatar(targetConn, targetFullPath, targetProject);
+        }
+      } else {
+        // No source avatar, no group fallback — remove target avatar if present
+        if (targetMeta.avatarUrl) {
+          await this.removeProjectAvatar(targetConn, targetFullPath, targetProject);
+        }
       }
     } catch (err) {
       const errMsg = err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err);
@@ -1199,6 +1210,8 @@ export class SyncManager {
       // Sync avatar
       if (sourceMeta.avatarUrl) {
         await this.syncGroupAvatar(sourceConn, targetConn, sourceGroupPath, targetGroupPath, sourceMeta.avatarUrl, targetGroup);
+      } else if (targetMeta.avatarUrl) {
+        await this.removeGroupAvatar(targetConn, targetGroupPath, targetGroup);
       }
     } catch (err) {
       const errMsg = err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err);
@@ -1383,6 +1396,25 @@ export class SyncManager {
     }
   }
 
+  private async removeProjectAvatar(
+    targetConn: interfaces.data.IProviderConnection,
+    targetFullPath: string,
+    targetRawProject: any,
+  ): Promise<void> {
+    logger.syncLog('info', `Removing avatar from ${targetFullPath}`, 'api');
+    if (targetConn.providerType === 'gitlab') {
+      await this.rawApiCall(targetConn, 'PUT', `/api/v4/projects/${targetRawProject.id}`, {
+        avatar: '',
+      });
+    } else {
+      const segments = targetFullPath.split('/');
+      const repo = segments.pop()!;
+      const owner = segments[0] || '';
+      await this.rawApiCall(targetConn, 'DELETE',
+        `/api/v1/repos/${encodeURIComponent(owner)}/${encodeURIComponent(repo)}/avatar`);
+    }
+  }
+
   private async syncGroupAvatar(
     sourceConn: interfaces.data.IProviderConnection,
     targetConn: interfaces.data.IProviderConnection,
@@ -1422,6 +1454,23 @@ export class SyncManager {
     }
   }
 
+  private async removeGroupAvatar(
+    targetConn: interfaces.data.IProviderConnection,
+    targetGroupPath: string,
+    targetRawGroup: any,
+  ): Promise<void> {
+    logger.syncLog('info', `Removing avatar from group ${targetGroupPath}`, 'api');
+    if (targetConn.providerType === 'gitlab') {
+      await this.rawApiCall(targetConn, 'PUT', `/api/v4/groups/${targetRawGroup.id}`, {
+        avatar: '',
+      });
+    } else {
+      const orgName = targetGroupPath.split('/')[0] || targetGroupPath;
+      await this.rawApiCall(targetConn, 'DELETE',
+        `/api/v1/orgs/${encodeURIComponent(orgName)}/avatar`);
+    }
+  }
+
   private uint8ArrayToBase64(bytes: Uint8Array): string {
     let binary = '';
     for (let i = 0; i < bytes.length; i++) {