function `{func}` not found. Use `baml run --list` to see av

Error message

function `{func}` not found. Use `baml run --list` to see available targets.

What it means

resolve_one looks a requested function name up against the loaded engine (engine.function_exists). When the name does not exist AND no similar names can be suggested (function_suggestions returned empty), the CLI bails with a plain not-found message pointing at `baml run --list`. This is the no-suggestion variant of the unknown-function error.

Source

Thrown at baml_language/crates/baml_cli/src/pack_command.rs:449

                .map(str::to_string)
                .ok_or_else(|| {
                    anyhow::anyhow!(
                        "cannot derive an output name from `{}`; pass `-o <PATH>` to name the output.",
                        file.display()
                    )
                });
        }
        crate::project_load::resolve_project_name(self.from.as_deref())
    }
}

/// Resolve a single function-name string against the engine; returns
/// canonical qualified/display/subcommand-name triple.
fn resolve_one(engine: &BexEngine, func: &str) -> Result<ResolvedPackTarget> {
    if !engine.function_exists(func) {
        let suggestions = function_suggestions(engine, func);
        if suggestions.is_empty() {
            anyhow::bail!(
                "function `{func}` not found. Use `baml run --list` to see \
                 available targets."
            );
        }
        anyhow::bail!(
            "function `{func}` not found. Did you mean one of:\n{}",
            suggestions
                .iter()
                .map(|s| format!("  - {s}"))
                .collect::<Vec<_>>()
                .join("\n")
        );
    }
    let qualified_name = canonicalize_function_name(engine, func);
    let display_name = qualified_name
        .strip_prefix("user.")
        .unwrap_or(&qualified_name)
        .to_string();

View on GitHub (pinned to bd85ce9dee)

Solutions

Run `baml run --list` to see the available target names and use one verbatim.
Check spelling/casing, including the full qualified name (e.g. `module.Function`).
Verify you're in (or passing `--from`) the project that actually defines the function.

Example fix

// before
baml pack -f MyFunciton

// after (check real name first)
baml run --list
baml pack -f MyFunction

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

# verify the function exists before packing
baml run --list | grep -Fxq "$FUNC" || { echo "unknown function: $FUNC" >&2; exit 2; }

Prevention

Look up exact names with `baml run --list` instead of typing from memory.
Use fully qualified names when multiple modules define functions.
Update scripts after renaming or deleting functions.

When it happens

Trigger: Running `baml pack <TARGET>` or `baml pack -f <NAME>` where the name matches no function in the project and is not similar to any existing one (so the suggestion list is empty).

Common situations: Typos with no close match; targeting a function defined in another project or branch; the function was deleted or renamed; running from a directory whose project doesn't include the function.

Understand the failure class

Background: 'Could not be found', 'does not exist', 'not found in database': the resource-not-found family when an ID, slug, key, or URI lookup comes back empty — this error's family across 20 libraries.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of BoundaryML/baml@bd85ce9dee (2026-09-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/dea7e872e733a66c. Report an issue: GitHub.