create table xxx(A Int64, S String) Engine=MergeTree partition by A order by S;
insert into xxx select 1, toString(number) from numbers(10000000);
alter table xxx drop partition 1;
select count() from xxx
┌─count()─┐
│ 0 │
└─────────┘
system kill;
sudo /etc/init.d/clickhouse-server restart
select count() from xxx
┌─count()─┐
│ 6291270 │
└─────────┘
alter table xxx drop partition 1 --- removes from a disk active parts and leaves inactive.
by design.