HKUDS/Vibe-Trading · error · StaleGoalError

expected_goal_id does not match target goal

Error message

expected_goal_id does not match target goal

What it means

Thrown by GoalStore._require_mutable_goal when the expected_goal_id passed for optimistic concurrency does not equal the target goal_id. The store requires callers to prove they are acting on the goal version they last saw; a mismatch means the client's reference is stale or simply wrong.

Source

Thrown at agent/src/goal/store.py:832

                    now,
                    goal_id,
                    session_id,
                ),
            )

        updated = self.get_goal(goal_id)
        if updated is None:
            raise RuntimeError("usage-updated goal could not be reloaded")
        return updated

    def _require_mutable_goal(
        self,
        session_id: str,
        goal_id: str,
        expected_goal_id: str,
    ) -> GoalRecord:
        if expected_goal_id != goal_id:
            raise StaleGoalError("expected_goal_id does not match target goal")
        session_id = normalize_required_text(session_id, "session_id")
        goal_id = normalize_required_text(goal_id, "goal_id")
        goal = self.get_goal(goal_id)
        if goal is None or goal.session_id != session_id:
            raise StaleGoalError("goal is not available for this session")
        if goal.status not in _CURRENT_STATUSES:
            raise StaleGoalError(f"goal status {goal.status.value!r} is not mutable")
        current = self.get_current_goal(session_id)
        if current is None or current.goal_id != goal_id:
            raise StaleGoalError("goal is not current for this session")
        return goal

    @staticmethod
    def _verification_status(evidence: EvidenceInput) -> str:
        """Return whether evidence has a traceable local artifact/run source."""
        if evidence.artifact_path:
            try:
                artifact = safe_document_path(evidence.artifact_path)

View on GitHub (pinned to 80ffdda44c)

Solutions

1. Re-fetch the session's current goal (get_current_goal) and retry with its goal_id as expected_goal_id
2. If racing another writer, resolve the conflict first — decide whether the stale operation should be dropped or re-applied to the new goal
3. Add a pre-call check expected_goal_id == goal_id to fail fast in client code

Example fix

// before
store.update_goal(session_id, goal_id=gid, expected_goal_id=old_gid, ...)
// after
current = store.get_current_goal(session_id)
if current is None or current.goal_id != gid:
    gid = current.goal_id
store.update_goal(session_id, goal_id=gid, expected_goal_id=gid, ...)

goal = store.get_goal(goal_id)
if goal is None or goal.goal_id != expected_goal_id:
    current = store.get_current_goal(session_id)
    goal_id = expected_goal_id = current.goal_id if current else None

def is_fresh_goal_ref(store, session_id: str, goal_id: str, expected: str) -> bool:
    return expected == goal_id and (store.get_current_goal(session_id) or object()).goal_id == goal_id

except StaleGoalError: refresh current goal from store and retry once; escalate if it persists

When it happens

Trigger: Calling update_goal, append_evidence, update_status, or account_usage with expected_goal_id != goal_id, e.g. after the session's current goal has switched and the client reuses an old expected id.

Common situations: Agent loop holds a cached goal id after a new goal was created; concurrent writers racing on the same session; copy-paste of ids between sessions.

Related errors

• goal is not current for this session
• {field_name} cannot be empty
• at least one goal criterion is required
• goal is not available for this session
• goal status {goal.status.value!r} is not mutable

AI-assisted analysis of HKUDS/Vibe-Trading@80ffdda44c (2026-08-28). Data as JSON: /api/errors/0006ed0b3277beae. Report an issue: GitHub.