ahmetb/kubectx · error

failed to modify yaml doc: %w

Error message

failed to modify yaml doc: %w

What it means

Wrapper error in deleteContext: kc.DeleteContextEntry(name) failed to remove the context's YAML node from the kubeconfig document (kyaml manipulation failure, e.g. malformed 'contexts' tree). The in-memory edit never happened; cause wrapped with %w.

Source

Thrown at cmd/kubectx/delete.go:83

	// resolve "." to a real name
	if name == "." {
		if cur == "" {
			return deleteName, false, errors.New("can't use '.' as the no active context is set")
		}
		wasActiveContext = true
		name = cur
	}

	exists, err := kc.ContextExists(name)
	if err != nil {
		return name, false, fmt.Errorf("failed to check context: %w", err)
	}
	if !exists {
		return name, false, errors.New("context does not exist")
	}

	if err := kc.DeleteContextEntry(name); err != nil {
		return name, false, fmt.Errorf("failed to modify yaml doc: %w", err)
	}
	if err := kc.Save(); err != nil {
		return name, wasActiveContext, fmt.Errorf("failed to save modified kubeconfig file: %w", err)
	}
	return name, wasActiveContext, nil
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 12ad6fb22e)

Solutions

1. Inspect the kubeconfig 'contexts' section for structural problems
2. Back up and repair the kubeconfig, then retry the delete

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at cmd/kubectx/delete.go:83 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of ahmetb/kubectx@12ad6fb22e (2026-09-02). Data as JSON: /api/errors/8c9ee0f37aeacd1f. Report an issue: GitHub.