{"record":{"id":"c9da5d1d4a8e351b","repo":"googleapis/mcp-toolbox","slug":"unable-to-initialize-tool-q-w","errorCode":null,"errorMessage":"unable to initialize tool %q: %w","messagePattern":"unable to initialize tool %q: %w","errorType":"exception","errorClass":null,"httpStatus":null,"severity":"error","filePath":"internal/server/server.go","lineNumber":288,"sourceCode":"\treturn toolsMap, groupsMap, nil\n}\n\n// initializeTools initializes and validates the tools from the config.\nfunc initializeTools(ctx context.Context, cfg ServerConfig, sourcesMap map[string]sources.Source, instrumentation *telemetry.Instrumentation, l log.Logger) (map[string]tools.Tool, error) {\n\ttoolsMap := make(map[string]tools.Tool)\n\tfor name, tc := range cfg.ToolConfigs {\n\t\tvar src sources.Source\n\t\tt, err := func() (tools.Tool, error) {\n\t\t\t_, span := instrumentation.Tracer.Start(\n\t\t\t\tctx,\n\t\t\t\t\"toolbox/server/tool/init\",\n\t\t\t\ttrace.WithAttributes(attribute.String(\"tool_type\", tc.ToolConfigType())),\n\t\t\t\ttrace.WithAttributes(attribute.String(\"tool_name\", name)),\n\t\t\t)\n\t\t\tdefer span.End()\n\t\t\tt, err := tc.Initialize(ctx)\n\t\t\tif err != nil {\n\t\t\t\treturn nil, fmt.Errorf(\"unable to initialize tool %q: %w\", name, err)\n\t\t\t}\n\n\t\t\tif srcName := t.GetSourceName(); srcName != \"\" && sourcesMap != nil {\n\t\t\t\tvar ok bool\n\t\t\t\tsrc, ok = sourcesMap[srcName]\n\t\t\t\tif !ok && !cfg.SkipSourceValidation {\n\t\t\t\t\treturn nil, fmt.Errorf(\"unable to retrieve source %q for tool %q\", srcName, name)\n\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t}\n\n\t\t\tif !cfg.SkipSourceValidation {\n\t\t\t\terr = t.ValidateSource(src)\n\t\t\t\tif err != nil {\n\t\t\t\t\treturn nil, err\n\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\treturn t, nil\n\t\t}()","sourceCodeStart":270,"sourceCodeEnd":306,"githubUrl":"https://github.com/googleapis/mcp-toolbox/blob/8cc6e09de2ad7b8bffc77751799585a1401a48eb/internal/server/server.go#L270-L306","documentation":"initializeTools iterates cfg.ToolConfigs and calls each tool's ToolConfig.Initialize(ctx). Any failure inside a tool's own initialization (invalid parameters schema, unsupported tool type, source client construction, statement parsing) is wrapped with the tool's config name so the developer knows which tool entry broke server startup.","triggerScenarios":"Server startup (InitializeConfigs/NewServer) or InitializeOfflineConfigs where any entry in cfg.ToolConfigs fails tc.Initialize(ctx) — e.g. a bad SQL statement template, missing required tool field, or a tool referencing an auth service that fails to build.","commonSituations":"Typos in tool config fields after upgrading toolbox versions (schema changes), invalid statement templates with mismatched parameters, or a tool kind whose Initialize requires network/resources unavailable at startup.","solutions":["Read the wrapped cause: it names the failing tool and the underlying reason; fix that tool's config.","Validate the tool's YAML against the docs for its kind (field names and required fields change between versions).","Run `toolbox` in dev mode or a unit test with only that one tool defined to isolate the failure.","Check the release notes if the config was working before an upgrade — tool kinds/fields may have changed."],"exampleFix":"// before\nmy_tool:\n  kind: postgres-sql\n  source: my-db\n  statment: \"SELECT 1\"\n\n// after (typo fixed)\nmy_tool:\n  kind: postgres-sql\n  source: my-db\n  statement: \"SELECT 1\"","handlingStrategy":"validation","validationCode":"// Dry-run each tool config before serving\nfor name, tc := range cfg.ToolConfigs {\n    if _, err := tc.Initialize(ctx); err != nil {\n        return fmt.Errorf(\"tool %q fails init: %w\", name, err)\n    }\n}","typeGuard":null,"tryCatchPattern":"if _, err := server.NewServer(ctx, cfg); err != nil {\n    var toolName string\n    if n, e := fmt.Sscanf(err.Error(), \"unable to initialize tool %q\", &toolName); n == 1 && e == nil {\n        log.Printf(\"offending tool: %s, cause: %v\", toolName, errors.Unwrap(err))\n    }\n    return err\n}","preventionTips":["Run `toolbox` config validation in CI before deploying config changes.","After upgrading toolbox, diff tool kind schemas against release notes.","Define one tool per PR change to keep failures isolated.","Test SQL statement templates with real parameters locally first."],"tags":["go","tools","configuration","startup"],"backgroundTag":"config-initialization-failed","analyzedSha":"8cc6e09de2ad7b8bffc77751799585a1401a48eb","analyzedAt":"2026-09-05T01:10:36.887Z","contentChangedAt":"2026-09-05T01:10:36.887Z","schemaVersion":2},"datasetVersion":"2026-09-08T10:18:20.063Z"}