{"record":{"id":"45f15c342ef680d6","repo":"hyperledger/fabric","slug":"error-marshaling-signatureheader","errorCode":null,"errorMessage":"error marshaling SignatureHeader","messagePattern":"error marshaling SignatureHeader","errorType":"exception","errorClass":null,"httpStatus":null,"severity":"error","filePath":"protoutil/proputils.go","lineNumber":195,"sourceCode":"\treturn respBytes, errors.Wrap(err, \"error marshaling ProposalResponse\")\n}\n\n// GetBytesHeader get the bytes of Header from the message\nfunc GetBytesHeader(hdr *common.Header) ([]byte, error) {\n\tif hdr == nil {\n\t\treturn nil, errors.New(\"error marshaling Header: proto: Marshal called with nil\")\n\t}\n\tbytes, err := proto.Marshal(hdr)\n\treturn bytes, errors.Wrap(err, \"error marshaling Header\")\n}\n\n// GetBytesSignatureHeader get the bytes of SignatureHeader from the message\nfunc GetBytesSignatureHeader(hdr *common.SignatureHeader) ([]byte, error) {\n\tif hdr == nil {\n\t\treturn nil, errors.New(\"error marshaling SignatureHeader: proto: Marshal called with nil\")\n\t}\n\tbytes, err := proto.Marshal(hdr)\n\treturn bytes, errors.Wrap(err, \"error marshaling SignatureHeader\")\n}\n\n// GetBytesTransaction get the bytes of Transaction from the message\nfunc GetBytesTransaction(tx *peer.Transaction) ([]byte, error) {\n\tif tx == nil {\n\t\treturn nil, errors.New(\"error marshaling Transaction: proto: Marshal called with nil\")\n\t}\n\tbytes, err := proto.Marshal(tx)\n\treturn bytes, errors.Wrap(err, \"error unmarshalling Transaction\")\n}\n\n// GetBytesPayload get the bytes of Payload from the message\nfunc GetBytesPayload(payl *common.Payload) ([]byte, error) {\n\tif payl == nil {\n\t\treturn nil, errors.New(\"error marshaling Payload: proto: Marshal called with nil\")\n\t}\n\tbytes, err := proto.Marshal(payl)\n\treturn bytes, errors.Wrap(err, \"error marshaling Payload\")","sourceCodeStart":177,"sourceCodeEnd":213,"githubUrl":"https://github.com/hyperledger/fabric/blob/2736b63f8fd5932511d56fe68b7039d15977f7f6/protoutil/proputils.go#L177-L213","documentation":"This is the wrapper error from GetBytesSignatureHeader: the underlying proto.Marshal failed while serializing a *common.SignatureHeader. The wrapped cause (e.g. 'proto: Marshal called with nil' or a real marshal failure) is carried by the errors.Wrap chain. It indicates proposal/envelope header bytes could not be produced.","triggerScenarios":"Any error returned by proto.Marshal(hdr) inside GetBytesSignatureHeader, most commonly hdr == nil reaching the marshal call from callers such as TestProposal or proposal-signing helpers.","commonSituations":"Test code constructing Proposals by hand; code paths where UnmarshalSignatureHeader failed silently upstream or was never called, leaving nil sub-messages.","solutions":["Inspect the wrapped cause via errors.Cause / %v of the returned error to confirm nil vs real marshal failure","Guarantee the SignatureHeader is non-nil and populated before serialization","Use higher-level helpers (protoutil.CreateProposal, SignOrPanic) that build the header correctly"],"exampleFix":"// before\nbytes, err := proto.Marshal(hdr) // hdr nil -> wrapped error\n// after\nif hdr == nil {\n\treturn nil, errors.New(\"nil SignatureHeader\")\n}\nbytes, err := proto.Marshal(hdr)","handlingStrategy":"try-catch","validationCode":"if hdr == nil || !hdr.ProtoReflect().IsValid() {\n\treturn errors.New(\"SignatureHeader nil or invalid\")\n}","typeGuard":"func isValidMessage(m proto.Message) bool {\n\treturn m != nil && m.ProtoReflect() != nil && m.ProtoReflect().IsValid()\n}","tryCatchPattern":"if err != nil {\n\tvar cause error\n\tfor e := err; e != nil; e = errors.Unwrap(e) { cause = e }\n\tlog.Printf(\"SignatureHeader marshal failed, cause: %v\", cause)\n\treturn err\n}","preventionTips":["Inspect the wrapped root cause before fixing the marshal call site","Populate Creator/Nonce/Txid before serialization","Prefer SignOrPanic-style helpers that fail fast at creation"],"tags":["hyperledger-fabric","protobuf","serialization","wrapped-error"],"backgroundTag":"proto-marshal-nil-message","analyzedSha":"2736b63f8fd5932511d56fe68b7039d15977f7f6","analyzedAt":"2026-09-04T08:52:36.465Z","contentChangedAt":"2026-09-04T08:52:36.465Z","schemaVersion":2},"datasetVersion":"2026-09-08T10:18:20.063Z"}