can1357/oh-my-pi · error · ArchiveError

Invalid RPM package: corrupt ${what} header reserved bytes

Error message

Invalid RPM package: corrupt ${what} header reserved bytes

What it means

ArchiveError thrown by parseHeaderIntro() when bytes 4..8 of an RPM header intro (the reserved field) are non-zero. The RPM format requires these bytes to be zero; non-zero means the header region is malformed.

Source

Thrown at packages/utils/src/ar/rpm.ts:60

	const remainder = value % alignment;
	return remainder === 0 ? value : value + alignment - remainder;
}

async function readExact(source: ByteSource, start: number, end: number, what: string): Promise<Uint8Array> {
	if (!Number.isSafeInteger(start) || !Number.isSafeInteger(end) || start < 0 || end < start || end > source.size) {
		throw new ArchiveError(`Invalid RPM package: truncated ${what}`);
	}
	const bytes = await source.read(start, end);
	if (bytes.byteLength !== end - start) throw new ArchiveError(`Invalid RPM package: truncated ${what}`);
	return bytes;
}

function parseHeaderIntro(bytes: Uint8Array, options: FormatReadOptions, what: string): HeaderIntro {
	if (bytes.byteLength !== RPM_HEADER_INTRO_SIZE || readUInt32BE(bytes, 0) !== RPM_HEADER_MAGIC) {
		throw new ArchiveError(`Invalid RPM package: corrupt ${what} header magic`);
	}
	for (let offset = 4; offset < 8; offset++) {
		if (bytes[offset] !== 0) throw new ArchiveError(`Invalid RPM package: corrupt ${what} header reserved bytes`);
	}
	const indexCount = readUInt32BE(bytes, 8);
	const dataSize = readUInt32BE(bytes, 12);
	assertEntryCount(indexCount, options.limits);
	const indexSize = indexCount * RPM_INDEX_ENTRY_SIZE;
	const bodySize = indexSize + dataSize;
	if (!Number.isSafeInteger(bodySize)) throw new ArchiveError(`Invalid RPM package: ${what} header is too large`);
	assertIndexSize(RPM_HEADER_INTRO_SIZE + bodySize, options.limits, `RPM ${what} header`);
	return { indexCount, dataSize, bodySize, totalSize: RPM_HEADER_INTRO_SIZE + bodySize };
}

function validateHeaderBody(body: Uint8Array, intro: HeaderIntro, what: string): void {
	const indexSize = intro.indexCount * RPM_INDEX_ENTRY_SIZE;
	if (body.byteLength !== intro.bodySize) throw new ArchiveError(`Invalid RPM package: truncated ${what} header`);
	for (let index = 0; index < intro.indexCount; index++) {
		const recordOffset = index * RPM_INDEX_ENTRY_SIZE;
		const tag = readUInt32BE(body, recordOffset);
		const type = readUInt32BE(body, recordOffset + 4);

View on GitHub (pinned to 9690622007)

Solutions

1. Re-download the package and verify against repository checksums
2. Rebuild the package with standard tooling (rpmbuild)
3. If you generate RPM-like files yourself, zero bytes 4-8 of the header intro

Example fix

// before
intro[4] = flags; // custom field stuffed into reserved bytes
// after
intro[4] = 0; intro[5] = 0; intro[6] = 0; intro[7] = 0; // reserved must stay zero

// reserved bytes cannot be cheaply checked without parsing; verify file integrity first
if (!(await checksumMatches(path))) throw new Error('rpm failed checksum');

null

try {
  const rpm = await readRpmArchive(buf);
} catch (err) {
  if (err instanceof ArchiveError && err.message.includes('reserved bytes')) {
    // reject as non-conformant/corrupt package
  } else throw err;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Signature or main header intro whose reserved bytes were modified — hand-edited packages, corrupted downloads, or a writer that did not zero the reserved area.

Common situations: Repacked or tampered .rpm files, bit-flips from bad storage, files produced by non-conformant tooling.

Related errors

• Invalid RPM package: null tag ${tag} has values
• Invalid RPM package: corrupt ${what} header magic
• Invalid RPM package: tag ${tag} points outside header data
• Invalid RPM package: string tag ${tag} has an invalid count
• Invalid RPM package: string tag ${tag} exceeds header data

AI-assisted analysis of can1357/oh-my-pi@9690622007 (2026-08-31). Data as JSON: /api/errors/e446acd5991edc86. Report an issue: GitHub.