DataTables server-side pagination: no automatic page reset when total records decrease

No built-in configuration flag or API method exists in DataTables 1.10.x or the 2.0.0 alpha release to automatically reset the start index when the server reports a lower recordsTotal. When the computed start index exceeds the supplied recordsTotal, DataTables displays zero rows while leaving pagination controls on the same page index, and the library does not redirect to the first page.

Confirmed facts

DataTables calculates the start index solely from the current page number and page length, transmitting it to the server without verifying whether start exceeds the supplied recordsTotal. When start exceeds recordsTotal the library shows zero rows but leaves the pagination controls on the same page index. No version-specific change or built-in option forces an automatic reset to the first page in 1.10.x or the 2.0.0 alpha.

Likely explanation

The design places the burden on the server implementation to detect out-of-range requests. The server can either return an empty data set with a corrected start index, or provide the first page of data to avoid an unusable table view.

Steps needed for this case

1. On the server, check if the received start index is greater than the supplied recordsTotal. If so, either return the first page of data or an empty set with a note that the request is out of range.
2. If a client-side workaround is acceptable, bind a handler to the draw.dt or xhr event to log the start, length, and recordsTotal values. This enables reproducible diagnosis and, if desired, a subsequent .page('first') call after data render.
3. Verify the behavior by sending a server response where recordsTotal is smaller than the computed start index; observe that DataTables shows zero rows and pagination remains on the current index.

Diagnostic question: What version of DataTables are you using, and what are the current start index, page length, and server-supplied recordsTotal values? This detail determines whether a server-side guard or a targeted client-side handler is the recommended approach.