{"record":{"id":"bfeaf42e6c7dc2fc","repo":"grafana/k6","slug":"couldn-t-parse-the-configuration-from-q-w","errorCode":null,"errorMessage":"couldn't parse the configuration from %q: %w","messagePattern":"couldn't parse the configuration from %q: %w","errorType":"validation","errorClass":null,"httpStatus":null,"severity":"error","filePath":"internal/cmd/config.go","lineNumber":153,"sourceCode":"func readDiskConfig(gs *state.GlobalState) (Config, error) {\n\t// Try to see if the file exists in the supplied filesystem\n\tif _, err := gs.FS.Stat(gs.Flags.ConfigFilePath); err != nil {\n\t\tif errors.Is(err, fs.ErrNotExist) && gs.Flags.ConfigFilePath == gs.DefaultFlags.ConfigFilePath {\n\t\t\t// If the file doesn't exist, but it was the default config file (i.e. the user\n\t\t\t// didn't specify anything), silence the error\n\t\t\terr = nil\n\t\t}\n\t\treturn Config{}, err\n\t}\n\n\tdata, err := fsext.ReadFile(gs.FS, gs.Flags.ConfigFilePath)\n\tif err != nil {\n\t\treturn Config{}, fmt.Errorf(\"couldn't load the configuration from %q: %w\", gs.Flags.ConfigFilePath, err)\n\t}\n\tvar conf Config\n\terr = json.Unmarshal(data, &conf)\n\tif err != nil {\n\t\treturn Config{}, fmt.Errorf(\"couldn't parse the configuration from %q: %w\", gs.Flags.ConfigFilePath, err)\n\t}\n\treturn conf, nil\n}\n\n// Permissions for the on-disk config file and its containing directory.\n// The config can contain the Grafana Cloud API token (collectors.cloud.token),\n// so it must not be readable by other local users.\nconst (\n\tconfigFileMode = fs.FileMode(0o600)\n\tconfigDirMode  = fs.FileMode(0o700)\n)\n\n// writeDiskConfig serializes the configuration to a JSON file and writes it in the supplied\n// location on the supplied filesystem.\n//\n// The file may contain the Grafana Cloud API token, so it is written with\n// owner-only permissions (0o600), inside a directory created with owner-only\n// permissions (0o700). If the file or directory already exists with looser","sourceCodeStart":135,"sourceCodeEnd":171,"githubUrl":"https://github.com/grafana/k6/blob/93accf6570dcd306ca5e99cc44c393ee3797761b/internal/cmd/config.go#L135-L171","documentation":"Emitted by readDiskConfig when the on-disk config file was read successfully but json.Unmarshal failed to decode it as JSON. Any syntax error — trailing commas, single quotes, comments, truncated files, BOM-prefixed files — produces this error wrapping the encoding/json error (e.g. 'invalid character ... looking for beginning of value').","triggerScenarios":"Hand-editing ~/.config/loadimpact/k6.json and leaving invalid JSON; writing YAML into the JSON config file; a truncated file from an interrupted write; a UTF-8 BOM emitted by a Windows editor; trailing comma after the last key.","commonSituations":"Adding a token or default options to the config file manually; converting between k6's JSON config and script YAML options; editors auto-adding commas or smart quotes; CI images baked with a malformed config.","solutions":["Validate the exact file from the error message with a JSON linter: `jq . <path>` — jq pinpoints the offending offset","Fix the reported character/position (remove trailing commas, use double quotes, drop comments/BOM)","Keep the config minimal and prefer environment variables (K6_* env config) where JSON pitfalls recur","If unsure, move the file away and let k6 regenerate/ignore it, then re-add needed keys one at a time"],"exampleFix":"// before (~/.config/loadimpact/k6.json)\n{ \"collectors\": { \"cloud\": { \"token\": \"abc\", } } }  // trailing comma -> couldn't parse the configuration\n\n// after\n{ \"collectors\": { \"cloud\": { \"token\": \"abc\" } } }","handlingStrategy":"validation","validationCode":"# Fail fast on malformed config JSON before any k6 call\ncfg=\"${K6_CONFIG:-$HOME/.config/loadimpact/k6.json}\"\n[ ! -f \"$cfg\" ] || jq -e . \"$cfg\" >/dev/null || { echo \"invalid JSON in $cfg\"; exit 1; }","typeGuard":"// Go callers embedding k6 can pre-validate:\nfunc validK6Config(data []byte) bool { var v map[string]any; return json.Unmarshal(data, &v) == nil }","tryCatchPattern":null,"preventionTips":["Edit JSON configs with an editor/CI step that runs a JSON lint (jq, jsonlint) on save","Never paste YAML into the JSON config file","Prefer env vars (K6_*) for machine-managed settings to keep the JSON file minimal"],"tags":["config","json","parsing"],"backgroundTag":null,"analyzedSha":"93accf6570dcd306ca5e99cc44c393ee3797761b","analyzedAt":"2026-08-15T21:23:27.118Z","schemaVersion":2},"datasetVersion":"2026-08-15T22:17:37.221Z"}