diff --git a/rust/lance/src/dataset/mem_wal/write.rs b/rust/lance/src/dataset/mem_wal/write.rs
index 57acaf42ccd..c286ba42cc2 100644
--- a/rust/lance/src/dataset/mem_wal/write.rs
+++ b/rust/lance/src/dataset/mem_wal/write.rs
@@ -1915,6 +1915,37 @@ impl ShardWriter {
         }
     }
 
+    /// Abort the writer without flushing.
+    ///
+    /// Shuts down the background flush tasks and leaves all buffered
+    /// memtable state to be dropped with the writer. Unlike
+    /// [`Self::close`], no WAL/MemTable flush is issued: pending in-memory
+    /// rows are discarded, not made durable, and no object-store IO is
+    /// performed. Used on drop-table, where the dataset directory is about
+    /// to be removed and a flush would only race fresh files back into a
+    /// doomed path.
+    ///
+    /// Caller-quiesce contract: `abort` takes `&self` (so it can be called
+    /// through the `Arc<ShardWriter>` callers hold) and therefore cannot
+    /// structurally bar a concurrent or subsequent `put` the way consuming
+    /// `close(self)` does. After abort the dispatchers are gone, so a later
+    /// `put` would buffer data that never flushes. Callers MUST stop
+    /// issuing writes before calling abort.
+    ///
+    /// Blocks until any flush already mid-`handle()` settles —
+    /// cancellation only fires between messages — so no flush task lingers
+    /// after abort returns. Idempotent: a second call re-cancels an
+    /// already-cancelled token and joins an already-emptied task set.
+    #[instrument(name = "sw_abort", level = "info", skip_all, fields(shard_id = %self.config.shard_id, epoch = self.epoch))]
+    pub async fn abort(&self) -> Result<()> {
+        info!(
+            "Aborting ShardWriter for shard {} (no flush)",
+            self.config.shard_id
+        );
+        self.task_executor.shutdown_all().await?;
+        Ok(())
+    }
+
     /// Close the writer gracefully.
     ///
     /// Flushes pending data and shuts down background tasks.
@@ -4220,6 +4251,63 @@ mod tests {
         writer.close().await.unwrap();
     }
 
+    /// `abort` tears down the background flush tasks WITHOUT flushing —
+    /// buffered memtable rows are discarded, not sealed into an L0
+    /// generation the way `close` would. Idempotent on a second call.
+    #[tokio::test]
+    async fn test_abort_discards_without_flushing_and_is_idempotent() {
+        let (store, base_path, base_uri, _temp_dir) = create_local_store().await;
+        let schema = create_test_schema();
+
+        // Thresholds high enough that nothing auto-flushes; the rows stay
+        // in the active memtable until abort discards them.
+        let config = ShardWriterConfig {
+            shard_id: Uuid::new_v4(),
+            shard_spec_id: 0,
+            durable_write: false,
+            sync_indexed_write: false,
+            max_wal_buffer_size: 64 * 1024 * 1024,
+            max_wal_flush_interval: None,
+            max_memtable_size: 64 * 1024 * 1024,
+            manifest_scan_batch_size: 2,
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        let writer = ShardWriter::open(store, base_path, base_uri, config, schema.clone(), vec![])
+            .await
+            .unwrap();
+
+        writer
+            .put(vec![create_test_batch(&schema, 0, 10)])
+            .await
+            .unwrap();
+        let flushed_before = writer
+            .manifest()
+            .await
+            .unwrap()
+            .map(|m| m.flushed_generations.len())
+            .unwrap_or(0);
+
+        writer.abort().await.unwrap();
+
+        // No generation was sealed — contrast with `close`, which flushes
+        // the 10 buffered rows into a new L0 generation.
+        let flushed_after = writer
+            .manifest()
+            .await
+            .unwrap()
+            .map(|m| m.flushed_generations.len())
+            .unwrap_or(0);
+        assert_eq!(
+            flushed_after, flushed_before,
+            "abort must not flush a new L0 generation"
+        );
+
+        // Idempotent: re-cancels the already-cancelled token, joins an
+        // already-emptied task set.
+        writer.abort().await.unwrap();
+    }
+
     /// On a successful flush commit the sealed generation is dropped from
     /// the queryable set (no leak), and its rows land in the manifest.
     #[tokio::test]
diff --git a/rust/lance/src/session.rs b/rust/lance/src/session.rs
index 8d5e9717570..e6940ebc035 100644
--- a/rust/lance/src/session.rs
+++ b/rust/lance/src/session.rs
@@ -200,6 +200,29 @@ impl Session {
         &self.metadata_cache.0
     }
 
+    /// Invalidate every cached entry belonging to the dataset at `uri`.
+    ///
+    /// Clears both Session caches scoped to the dataset: the metadata cache
+    /// (manifests, deletion vectors, row-id maps, per-file metadata) and the
+    /// index cache (every vector/scalar/FTS index nested under the URI). Both
+    /// cache families namespace their keys by the dataset URI via
+    /// [`LanceCache::with_key_prefix`], which appends a trailing `/`, so the
+    /// `"{uri}/"` prefix targets exactly this dataset and never bleeds into a
+    /// sibling whose URI shares this one as a prefix (e.g. `t.lance` vs
+    /// `t.lance2`).
+    ///
+    /// Used when a dataset at a reusable URI is dropped so a later
+    /// same-URI recreate cold-reads its own fresh state instead of serving
+    /// the dropped incarnation's cached manifests/indices. The `uri` MUST be
+    /// byte-identical to the URI the dataset was opened/cached under — the
+    /// match is a raw prefix comparison, so any normalization drift silently
+    /// clears nothing.
+    pub async fn invalidate_dataset(&self, uri: &str) {
+        let scoped = format!("{uri}/");
+        self.metadata_cache.0.invalidate_prefix(&scoped).await;
+        self.index_cache.0.invalidate_prefix(&scoped).await;
+    }
+
     /// Fetch statistics for the metadata cache
     pub async fn metadata_cache_stats(&self) -> lance_core::cache::CacheStats {
         self.metadata_cache.0.stats().await
@@ -339,4 +362,80 @@ mod tests {
 
         assert_ne!(index_keys, metadata_keys);
     }
+
+    #[tokio::test]
+    async fn test_invalidate_dataset_clears_only_that_uri() {
+        let session = Session::new(10_000, 10_000, Default::default());
+
+        // Two datasets whose URIs share a prefix (`t.lance` is a prefix of
+        // `t.lance2`) — the trailing-slash scoping must clear the first
+        // without touching the second.
+        let uri = "memory://db/t.lance";
+        let sibling = "memory://db/t.lance2";
+
+        // Per-dataset caches namespace their keys under `{uri}/`, exactly
+        // as the read path does via `for_dataset(uri)`.
+        session
+            .metadata_cache
+            .for_dataset(uri)
+            .insert_with_key(&TestKey("manifest/1"), Arc::new(vec![1]))
+            .await;
+        session
+            .index_cache
+            .for_dataset(uri)
+            .insert_with_key(&TestKey("idx/1"), Arc::new(vec![1]))
+            .await;
+        session
+            .metadata_cache
+            .for_dataset(sibling)
+            .insert_with_key(&TestKey("manifest/1"), Arc::new(vec![2]))
+            .await;
+        session
+            .index_cache
+            .for_dataset(sibling)
+            .insert_with_key(&TestKey("idx/1"), Arc::new(vec![2]))
+            .await;
+
+        session.invalidate_dataset(uri).await;
+
+        // The dropped dataset's metadata + index entries are gone...
+        assert!(
+            session
+                .metadata_cache
+                .for_dataset(uri)
+                .get_with_key(&TestKey("manifest/1"))
+                .await
+                .is_none(),
+            "metadata entry for the invalidated dataset must be cleared"
+        );
+        assert!(
+            session
+                .index_cache
+                .for_dataset(uri)
+                .get_with_key(&TestKey("idx/1"))
+                .await
+                .is_none(),
+            "index entry for the invalidated dataset must be cleared"
+        );
+
+        // ...while the prefix-sharing sibling is untouched.
+        assert!(
+            session
+                .metadata_cache
+                .for_dataset(sibling)
+                .get_with_key(&TestKey("manifest/1"))
+                .await
+                .is_some(),
+            "sibling dataset whose URI shares a prefix must NOT be cleared"
+        );
+        assert!(
+            session
+                .index_cache
+                .for_dataset(sibling)
+                .get_with_key(&TestKey("idx/1"))
+                .await
+                .is_some(),
+            "sibling index entry must NOT be cleared"
+        );
+    }
 }