Forks cannot be updated via UI after syncing another fork (Rate Limit / Visibility Problem)

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Summary

When updating multiple forks of template projects via the GitLab UI (e.g., Frontend and Backend templates in different groups), syncing one fork causes the second fork to show errors and it can no longer be updated. Error messages such as “Failed to fetch fork details. Try again later.” and “Source project has a limited visibility.” appear, while the browser console shows repeated 429 Too Many Requests.

The problem resolves itself after several hours (likely when the rate limit is lifted), but during that time it is impossible to use the GitLab UI to update the forks.

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Steps to reproduce

1. Create two template projects (frontend, backend) in Group1.
2. Fork both into Group2 as frontendFork1 and backendFork1.
3. Make changes to the frontend or/and backend template.
4. Update one fork via the UI ("Update Fork"/"Sync Fork").
   • ✅ Works fine for the first fork.
5. Immediately afterwards, try to open and update the second fork.
   • ❌ Error occurs already when opening the project page.

What happened (Actual behavior)

• UI error banner:
  “Failed to fetch fork details. Try again later.”
• Project overview shows:
  “Source project has a limited visibility.”
• Fork cannot be updated via the UI.
• Console error (repeated): POST https://gitlab.com/api/graphql 429 (Too Many Requests)
• Functionality is restored only after several hours (tested: problem in the evening, working again the next morning).

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What you expected to happen

• After updating one fork, it should still be possible to update another fork without errors.
• No unexpected 429 GraphQL rate-limit errors should occur with such a low number of operations (only two forks).
• Fork details should display correctly without misleading “limited visibility” warnings.

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Screenshots and logs

• Screenshot 1: Error banner “Failed to fetch fork details. Try again later.”
• Screenshot 2: Message “Source project has a limited visibility.”
• Console log excerpt:
• fetch.ts:81 POST https://gitlab.com/api/graphql 429 (Too Many Requests)
• Failed to fetch fork details. Try again later.

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Environment

• Platform: GitLab.com (SaaS)
• Groups setup:
• Group1: contains templates (frontend, backend)
• Group2: contains forks (frontendFork1, backendFork1)
• Reproducibility:
• Occurred 3 times on different days. (never worked)
• Always reproducible when syncing one fork and then attempting to sync the second. Which one was first does not matter.
• Duration until recovery:
• More than 1 hour (problem in the evening, worked again the next morning).
• Workarounds tested:
• None so far. Issue seems to be caused by GitLab’s GraphQL API itself.
• Self-managed:
• Not tested, only seen on GitLab.com.

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Impact

• Forks cannot be updated via UI for several hours.
• Blocks workflow when maintaining multiple forks in parallel.
• CLI may work as a workaround, but this is not suitable for users who rely on the UI.
• Negatively impacts developer experience.

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Possible cause / notes

• Appears to be hitting a GraphQL API rate limit, even though usage is very low (just two forks).
• The “Source project has a limited visibility” warning seems to be a UI side effect of the underlying error.
• Problem is reproducible multiple times, not a one-off glitch.

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