[[!comment format=mdwn
 username="joey"
 subject="""comment 7"""
 date="2023-05-19T18:55:35Z"
 content="""
The reason dropkeys does not error on an unknown key is that it's entirely
possible to get a repository into a state where a key's content is present
but the key is otherwise unknown to git-annex. Eg, it doesn't have any
location tracking information for it, there are no files in the git repo
that point to it, etc. 

It makes sense to support dropping the content of such a key.

And, dropkeys intentionally operates the same on a key when its content is
not present as it does when the content is present and it successfully
dropped it. Because in either case the result is now that the specified
key's content is not present.
"""]]
