GoogleContainerTools/skaffold · error

action %v not found for k8s execution mode

Error message

action %v not found for k8s execution mode

What it means

Analogous to the local mode check: createActions in the k8sjob exec environment looks up each requested action name in acsCfgByName and errors when an action referenced for the KubernetesCluster execution mode has no corresponding definition in the loaded skaffold config.

Source

Thrown at pkg/skaffold/actions/k8sjob/exec_env.go:134

func (e ExecEnv) Stop() {
	// This is to drain the logs from the succeeded jobs. Failed jobs were already removed from the cluster.
	e.logger.Stop()
}

func (e ExecEnv) createActions(bs []graph.Artifact, acsNames []string) ([]actions.Action, error) {
	var acs []actions.Action
	var toTrack []graph.Artifact
	builtArtifacts := map[string]graph.Artifact{}

	for _, b := range bs {
		builtArtifacts[b.ImageName] = b
	}

	for _, aName := range acsNames {
		aCfg, found := e.acsCfgByName[aName]
		if !found {
			return nil, fmt.Errorf("action %v not found for k8s execution mode", aName)
		}

		jmp := aCfg.ExecutionModeConfig.KubernetesClusterExecutionMode.JobManifestPath
		o := aCfg.ExecutionModeConfig.KubernetesClusterExecutionMode.Overrides
		jm, err := e.getJobManifest(jmp, o)
		if err != nil {
			return nil, err
		}

		ts, artifactsToTrack := e.createTasks(aCfg, jm, builtArtifacts)

		acs = append(acs, *actions.NewAction(aCfg.Name, *aCfg.Config.Timeout, *aCfg.Config.IsFailFast, ts))
		toTrack = append(toTrack, artifactsToTrack...)
	}

	e.logger.RegisterArtifacts(toTrack)

	return acs, nil

View on GitHub (pinned to a1189de023)

Solutions

1. Compare the action name in the error with keys under `actions:` in your skaffold.yaml and fix the typo.
2. Activate the profile that defines the action (-p <profile>) or move the definition into the active config.
3. Validate YAML structure so the action lands under actions.<name> (skaffold config accepts it) rather than a sibling key.

Example fix

// before (skaffold.yaml)
action:
  myTest: ...
// after
actions:
  myTest: ...

// Validate action names in the k8s execution-mode config exist
const yaml = require('js-yaml').load(require('fs').readFileSync('skaffold.yaml','utf8'));
for (const a of yaml.verify?.executionMode?.kubernetesCluster?.actions ?? []) {
  if (!yaml.actions?.[a]) throw new Error(`action ${a} not defined under actions:`);
}

When it happens

Trigger: Running skaffold run/verify with executionMode kubernetesCluster (or --action flag) where the named action is absent from the `actions:` stanza of the effective skaffold.yaml.

Common situations: Action defined only for local mode configs; profile not activated that contains the action; typo in name inside the kubernetesCluster execution-mode action list; YAML indentation placing the action outside the actions map.

Related errors

• action %v not found for local execution mode
• unable to connect to Kubernetes: %w
• c.Message (pod status condition message)
• unable to lookup minikube executable. Please add it to PATH
• value must be one of `always`, `missing`, or `never`

AI-assisted analysis of GoogleContainerTools/skaffold@a1189de023 (2026-09-05). Data as JSON: /api/errors/5184cc58596e991b. Report an issue: GitHub.