GoogleContainerTools/skaffold · error

could not set information job object: %w

Error message

could not set information job object: %w

What it means

After creating the Windows job object, Start configures it with JOB_OBJECT_LIMIT_KILL_ON_JOB_CLOSE via SetInformationJobObject; this error wraps failure of that call. It means the kernel rejected the extended limit information struct for the job object.

Source

Thrown at pkg/skaffold/kubectl/exec_windows.go:60

// Start starts the specified command in a job object but does not wait for it to complete
func (c *Cmd) Start() error {
	handle, err := windows.CreateJobObject(nil, nil)
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("could not create job object: %w", err)
	}

	// https://gist.github.com/hallazzang/76f3970bfc949831808bbebc8ca15209
	info := windows.JOBOBJECT_EXTENDED_LIMIT_INFORMATION{
		BasicLimitInformation: windows.JOBOBJECT_BASIC_LIMIT_INFORMATION{
			LimitFlags: windows.JOB_OBJECT_LIMIT_KILL_ON_JOB_CLOSE,
		},
	}
	if _, err := windows.SetInformationJobObject(
		handle,
		windows.JobObjectExtendedLimitInformation,
		uintptr(unsafe.Pointer(&info)),
		uint32(unsafe.Sizeof(info))); err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("could not set information job object: %w", err)
	}

	if err := c.Cmd.Start(); err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("could not start the command: %w", err)
	}

	processHandle, err := getHandleFromProcess(c.Process)
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("could not get handle from process: %w", err)
	}

	if err := windows.AssignProcessToJobObject(handle, processHandle); err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("could not assign job object: %w", err)
	}

	c.handle = handle
	go func() {
		<-c.ctx.Done()

View on GitHub (pinned to a1189de023)

Solutions

1. Update golang.org/x/sys to the latest version so the JOBOBJECT structs match current Windows ABI
2. Rerun in an unrestricted (non-elevated-issue) terminal and check for AV interference
3. Retry the command — transient Win32 failures are rare but possible
4. If persistent, capture the wrapped %w error's Win32 code for a Windows support/debugging angle

Example fix

// go.mod
// before
golang.org/x/sys v0.0.0-2021...
// after
golang.org/x/sys v0.20.0

if err := c.Start(); err != nil {
    if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "could not set information job object") {
        return fmt.Errorf("job object config rejected (%w); update golang.org/x/sys and retry", err)
    }
    return err
}

When it happens

Trigger: SetInformationJobObject returns non-zero (Win32 failure) when applying JOBOBJECT_EXTENDED_LIMIT_INFORMATION — e.g. invalid handle from a prior partial failure, access denied, or struct size/layout mismatch from an incompatible golang.org/x/sys/windows version.

Common situations: Outdated golang.org/x/sys/windows package with struct layout mismatches on newer Windows builds, corrupted handle state, restricted-process scenarios similar to job-object creation failures.

Related errors

• could not create job object: %w
• could not assign job object: %w
• could not start the command: %w
• could not get handle from process: %w
• starting cmd: %w

AI-assisted analysis of GoogleContainerTools/skaffold@a1189de023 (2026-09-05). Data as JSON: /api/errors/4cac1237cc86bd62. Report an issue: GitHub.