{"record":{"id":"0b1cea93629e894b","repo":"owasp-amass/amass","slug":"unable-to-load-the-file-in-the-alterations-wordlis","errorCode":null,"errorMessage":"unable to load the file in the alterations wordlist_file setting: %s: %v","messagePattern":"unable to load the file in the alterations wordlist_file setting: (.+?): (.+?)","errorType":"error_code","errorClass":null,"httpStatus":null,"severity":"error","filePath":"config/brute.go","lineNumber":104,"sourceCode":"\t\twordlistPaths, ok := wordlistPathRaw.([]interface{})\n\t\tif !ok {\n\t\t\treturn fmt.Errorf(\"alterations wordlist_file is not an array\")\n\t\t}\n\n\t\tfor _, wordlistPathRaw := range wordlistPaths {\n\t\t\twordlistPath, ok := wordlistPathRaw.(string)\n\t\t\tif !ok {\n\t\t\t\treturn fmt.Errorf(\"alterations wordlist_file item is not a string\")\n\t\t\t}\n\n\t\t\tabsPath, err := c.AbsPathFromConfigDir(wordlistPath)\n\t\t\tif err != nil {\n\t\t\t\treturn fmt.Errorf(\"failed to get absolute path for wordlist file: %w\", err)\n\t\t\t}\n\n\t\t\twordlist, err := GetListFromFile(absPath)\n\t\t\tif err != nil {\n\t\t\t\treturn fmt.Errorf(\"unable to load the file in the alterations wordlist_file setting: %s: %v\", absPath, err)\n\t\t\t}\n\n\t\t\tc.AltWordlist = append(c.AltWordlist, wordlist...)\n\t\t}\n\t}\n\n\tc.AltWordlist = stringset.Deduplicate(c.AltWordlist)\n\treturn nil\n}\n","sourceCodeStart":86,"sourceCodeEnd":114,"githubUrl":"https://github.com/owasp-amass/amass/blob/79299dce87b0085db0f2f4ef3e9c52cccb49f514/config/brute.go#L86-L114","documentation":"Once the absolute wordlist path is resolved, loadAlterationSettings loads its contents with GetListFromFile and wraps any failure as 'unable to load the file in the alterations wordlist_file setting: <path>: <reason>'. This means the file exists at the resolved path but could not be opened/read or parsed into a wordlist.","triggerScenarios":"LoadSettings with an alterations.wordlist_file entry whose absPath exists per os.Stat but GetListFromFile fails: the file was deleted after stat (race), it is a directory, read permission is denied, or opening it returns an OS error.","commonSituations":"Wordlist file removed between validation and load; pointing the entry at a directory instead of a file; unreadable file due to restrictive permissions or running as a different user; mounted volume not yet available at startup.","solutions":["Verify the path points to a regular readable file, not a directory: `file <absPath>` and `ls -l <absPath>`.","Fix read permissions: `chmod +r <absPath>` (and check directory execute bits).","Confirm the file is mounted/available in containers before starting the tool.","If the file was moved, update wordlist_file in the config to the new location."],"exampleFix":"// before (config.yaml)\nalterations:\n  wordlist_file:\n    - \"/usr/share/wordlists\"  # a directory\n// after\nalterations:\n  wordlist_file:\n    - \"/usr/share/wordlists/common.txt\"","handlingStrategy":"validation","validationCode":"info, err := os.Stat(absPath)\nif err != nil { return err }\nif info.IsDir() {\n    return fmt.Errorf(\"%s is a directory, expected a wordlist file\", absPath)\n}\nf, err := os.Open(absPath)\nif err != nil { return fmt.Errorf(\"wordlist unreadable: %w\", err) }\nf.Close()","typeGuard":null,"tryCatchPattern":"if err := cfg.LoadSettings(path); err != nil {\n    if strings.Contains(err.Error(), \"unable to load the file in the alterations wordlist_file setting\") {\n        // inspect the path embedded in the error, fix perms or point at a regular file\n    }\n    return err\n}","preventionTips":["Point wordlist_file at regular files, not directories","Ensure files are readable by the user running the tool","Verify volumes/mounts are ready before startup in containers","Re-check paths after moving or cleaning up wordlist directories"],"tags":["config","filesystem","file-read","permissions"],"backgroundTag":"file-read-failed","analyzedSha":"79299dce87b0085db0f2f4ef3e9c52cccb49f514","analyzedAt":"2026-09-06T08:22:48.198Z","contentChangedAt":"2026-09-06T08:22:48.198Z","schemaVersion":2},"datasetVersion":"2026-09-14T00:17:10.932Z"}