bee-san/RustScan · error

Could not infer ScriptConfig path.

Error message

Could not infer ScriptConfig path.

What it means

ScriptConfig::read_config loads ~/.rustscan_scripts.toml. If the OS cannot determine a home directory, it returns the anyhow error 'Could not infer ScriptConfig path.' before even attempting to read the file. (A missing or malformed file produces different errors.)

Solutions

1. Set HOME before invoking rustscan (export HOME=/home/user)
2. Run under a user account that has a home directory defined in /etc/passwd
3. In systemd, add Environment=HOME=%h or set it in the unit's [Service] section
4. Ensure the Docker image defines ENV HOME (e.g. ENV HOME=/root)

Example fix

# before: systemd unit
[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/bin/rustscan -a target --scripts
# after
[Service]
Environment=HOME=/root
ExecStart=/usr/bin/rustscan -a target --scripts

use std::env;

fn can_locate_script_config() -> Result<(), String> {
    match env::var_os("HOME") {
        Some(h) if !h.is_empty() => Ok(()),
        _ => Err("HOME is not set; rustscan cannot locate ~/.rustscan_scripts.toml".into()),
    }
}

fn script_config_path_exists() -> bool {
    dirs::home_dir()
        .map(|h| h.join(".rustscan_scripts.toml").is_file())
        .unwrap_or(false)
}

match ScriptConfig::read_config() {
    Ok(cfg) => use(cfg),
    Err(e) if e.to_string().contains("Could not infer ScriptConfig path") => {
        eprintln!("HOME is unset; export HOME or use the default ScriptConfig");
        use(ScriptConfig::default());
    }
    Err(e) => return Err(e),
}

When it happens

Trigger: Calling read_config() when dirs::home_dir() is None — HOME unset on Unix, no user profile on Windows, service accounts without home dirs.

Common situations: Docker/CI containers running rustscan without HOME; systemd units with a sanitized environment; cron jobs with a minimal PATH/env; running as 'nobody' or a metasploit/service user with no home directory.

Understand the failure class

Background: "environment variable is not set" and "Missing keys in environment" errors: what missing required env var messages mean and how to fix them — this error's family across 28 libraries.

Related errors

• Could not infer scripts path.
• Could not infer config file path.
• Can't find scripts folder
• Exit code =
• Failed to parse execution format.

AI-assisted analysis of bee-san/RustScan@e9dadb4a30 (2026-09-02). Data as JSON: /api/errors/48de7df31dd276de. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at src/scripts/mod.rs:395

                None
            }
        }
    }
}

#[derive(Debug, Deserialize, Clone)]
pub struct ScriptConfig {
    pub tags: Option<Vec<String>>,
    pub ports: Option<Vec<String>>,
    pub developer: Option<Vec<String>>,
    pub directory: Option<String>,
}

#[cfg(not(tarpaulin_include))]
impl ScriptConfig {
    pub fn read_config() -> Result<ScriptConfig> {
        let Some(mut home_dir) = dirs::home_dir() else {
            return Err(anyhow!("Could not infer ScriptConfig path."));
        };
        home_dir.push(".rustscan_scripts.toml");

        let content = fs::read_to_string(home_dir)?;
        let config = toml::from_str::<ScriptConfig>(&content)?;
        Ok(config)
    }
}

#[cfg(test)]
mod tests {
    use super::*;

    // Function for testing only, it inserts static values into ip and open_ports
    // Doesn't use impl in case it's implemented in the super module at some point
    fn into_script(script_f: ScriptFile) -> Script {
        Script::build(
            script_f.path,

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