basecamp/kamal · error · RuntimeError

Passbolt CLI is not installed

Error message

Passbolt CLI is not installed

What it means

Kamal calls check_dependencies! before using the Passbolt adapter; it probes `passbolt --version` and raises this error (passbolt.rb:122) when the exit status is non-zero, i.e. no working `passbolt` executable is on PATH. It is a hard precondition: no passbolt secret can be fetched until the CLI is installed and invocable by the same environment that runs Kamal.

Solutions

1. Install the passbolt CLI on the machine that runs Kamal, and verify with `passbolt --version`.
2. Ensure the binary is on PATH for the exact user and context invoking kamal; for cron/systemd use an absolute PATH or symlink the binary into /usr/local/bin.
3. Re-run `passbolt configure` after installing so credentials and server config exist.
4. Add a CI step that fails fast when `command -v passbolt` returns nothing.

Example fix

// before
$ kamal deploy
RuntimeError: Passbolt CLI is not installed

// after
# install the passbolt CLI for your platform, then:
$ passbolt --version && passbolt configure
$ command -v passbolt   # e.g. /usr/local/bin/passbolt
$ kamal deploy

# Fail fast before any passbolt-dependent Kamal task
system('passbolt --version >/dev/null 2>&1') or abort('Passbolt CLI is not installed — install it and run `passbolt configure`')

When it happens

Trigger: Using any `passbolt/...` secret reference (kamal secrets fetch, kamal deploy, kamal env push) on a machine where the passbolt CLI binary is absent, not executable, or not on PATH for the invoking user or shell — common in CI containers, cron jobs, systemd units, and freshly provisioned machines.

Common situations: Fresh dev machine or CI image without the CLI; the CLI installed via a version manager (rbenv/asdf) that is not activated in the deploy shell; PATH stripped or overridden by cron/systemd; binary installed under a different name or only for another user.

Related errors

• Bitwarden Secrets Manager CLI is not installed
• Could not read folders from Passbolt
• Could not read # from Passbolt
• Doppler CLI is not installed
• Enpass CLI is not installed

AI-assisted analysis of basecamp/kamal@eee0083b38 (2026-08-21). Data as JSON: /api/errors/241ca0e84b46cf2b. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at lib/kamal/secrets/adapters/passbolt.rb:122

      found_paths = all_folders.map { |f| get_folder_path(f, all_folders) }
      missing_paths = folder_paths.map { |path| path.join("/") } - found_paths
      raise RuntimeError, "Could not find the following folders in Passbolt: #{missing_paths.join(", ")}" if missing_paths.any?

      all_folders
    end

    def get_folder_path(folder, all_folders, path = [])
      path.unshift(folder["name"])
      return path.join("/") if folder["folder_parent_id"].to_s.empty?

      parent = all_folders.find { |f| f["id"] == folder["folder_parent_id"] }
      return path.join("/") unless parent

      get_folder_path(parent, all_folders, path)
    end

    def check_dependencies!
      raise RuntimeError, "Passbolt CLI is not installed" unless cli_installed?
    end

    def cli_installed?
      `passbolt --version 2> /dev/null`
      $?.success?
    end
end

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