anomalyco/sst · error · VisibleError

You must provide the password to connect to your locally run

Error message

You must provide the password to connect to your locally running OpenSearch domain either by setting the "dev.password" or by setting the top-level "password" property.

What it means

In `$dev` mode SST runs OpenSearch locally and the local instance requires a password. When neither `dev.password` nor the top-level `password` is provided, SST cannot configure the local connection and throws this VisibleError at component registration time.

Source

Thrown at platform/src/components/aws/open-search.ts:367

        const size = toGBs(v);
        if (size < 10) {
          throw new VisibleError(
            `Storage must be at least 10 GB for the ${name} OpenSearch domain.`,
          );
        }
        return size;
      });
    }

    function registerDev() {
      if (!args.dev) return undefined;

      if (
        $dev &&
        args.dev.password === undefined &&
        args.password === undefined
      ) {
        throw new VisibleError(
          `You must provide the password to connect to your locally running OpenSearch domain either by setting the "dev.password" or by setting the top-level "password" property.`,
        );
      }

      const dev = {
        enabled: $dev,
        url: output(args.dev.url ?? "http://localhost:9200"),
        username: args.dev.username ? output(args.dev.username) : username,
        password: output(args.dev.password ?? args.password ?? ""),
      };

      new DevCommand(`${name}Dev`, {
        dev: {
          title: name,
          autostart: true,
          command: `sst print-and-not-quit`,
        },
        environment: {

View on GitHub (pinned to a0bd20f762)

Solutions

1. Add `dev: { password: "password" }` to the OpenSearch args
2. Or set the top-level `password` property, which is used for both dev and production
3. Or load it from config/env so it isn't hardcoded

Example fix

// before
new sst.aws.OpenSearch("MySearch", {});
// after
new sst.aws.OpenSearch("MySearch", {
  dev: { password: "password" }
});

if ($dev && args.dev?.password === undefined && args.password === undefined) {
  throw new Error("Provide dev.password or password for local OpenSearch");
}

function hasDevPassword(args: { dev?: { password?: string }, password?: string }): boolean {
  return args.dev?.password !== undefined || args.password !== undefined;
}

try {
  new sst.aws.OpenSearch("MySearch", openSearchArgs);
} catch (e) {
  if (String(e).includes("dev.password")) {
    console.error("Add dev.password (or top-level password) to your OpenSearch args for `sst dev`");
  }
  throw e;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Declaring an sst.aws.OpenSearch component inside `if ($dev)` (or with dev enabled) while passing neither args.dev.password nor args.password during `sst dev`.

Common situations: Running `sst dev` for the first time after copying a production config that omits dev settings; team members lacking a local .env with the dev password.

Understand the failure class

Background: "X is required", "must be set", "cannot be empty": the missing-required-config error family, from Vertex AI project/location to WeChat keys — this error's family across 18 libraries.

Related errors

• You must provide the password to connect to your locally run
• You must provide the password to connect to your locally run
• You must provide the password to connect to your locally run
• Invalid function definition for the "${name}" Function
• The provided ARN "${arn}" is not a OpenSearch domain ARN.

AI-assisted analysis of anomalyco/sst@a0bd20f762 (2026-08-30). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c8c137d35f4d84d9. Report an issue: GitHub.