ENOENT

ENOENT

Error message

Failed to read version: package.json not found (bad installation?)

What it means

getDevVersion reads package.json from the installation to determine the dev/build version; when readFile fails with ENOENT it translates that into this explicit error, indicating the CLI was installed or packaged without package.json — a broken installation. This is a boundary translation so the user sees a meaningful message instead of a raw Node ENOENT stack.

Source

Thrown at packages/cli/src/commands/version.ts:42

interface PackageJson {
  name: string;
  version: string;
}

/**
 * Get version for development mode (reads package.json)
 */
async function getDevVersion(): Promise<{ name: string; version: string }> {
  // Read root package.json (monorepo version), not the CLI package's own
  const pkgPath = join(SCRIPT_DIR, '../../../../package.json');

  let content: string;
  try {
    content = await readFile(pkgPath, 'utf-8');
  } catch (error) {
    const err = error as NodeJS.ErrnoException;
    if (err.code === 'ENOENT') {
      throw new Error('Failed to read version: package.json not found (bad installation?)');
    } else if (err.code === 'EACCES') {
      throw new Error('Failed to read version: permission denied reading package.json');
    }
    throw new Error(`Failed to read version: ${err.message}`);
  }

  let pkg: PackageJson;
  try {
    pkg = JSON.parse(content) as PackageJson;
  } catch (_error) {
    throw new Error('Failed to read version: package.json is malformed');
  }

  return { name: pkg.name, version: pkg.version };
}

/**
 * Get the git commit hash at runtime (dev mode).

View on GitHub (pinned to 0773b97458)

Solutions

Reinstall archon cleanly (bun install -g / npm i -g the package) so package.json ships with the installation.
Verify the file exists at the location the binary resolves (`node -e "console.log(require.resolve('.../package.json'))"` or check the install dir).
If using a packaged standalone binary, ensure the packaging step includes package.json in the bundle.
Check PATH/symlinks point at the real install directory, not a stale copy.

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

import { existsSync } from 'node:fs';
const pkgPath = new URL('../package.json', import.meta.url).pathname;
if (!existsSync(pkgPath)) {
  throw new Error(`Installation incomplete: ${pkgPath} missing — reinstall the package before running version info`);
}

Try / catch

try {
  const info = await devInfo();
} catch (err) {
  if (err instanceof Error && err.message.includes('package.json not found (bad installation?)')) {
    // trigger a clean reinstall of the package
  } else throw err;
}

Prevention

Install via the package manager (npm/bun install -g), not by copying binaries out of node_modules.
Keep package.json out of .dockerignore when building images that run version info.
Let interrupted installs fail loudly and rerun them rather than running from a half-extracted tree.
Check symlinks on PATH point at the real install directory.

When it happens

Trigger: devInfo -> getDevVersion calls readFile(pkgPath) and Node rejects with code 'ENOENT': the resolved package.json path does not exist because the binary was moved out of its package tree, a partial/failed install, a stripped production bundle, or PKG_PATH resolving to the wrong directory (e.g. run from a copied standalone binary).

Common situations: Installing via a copied binary without its package layout; npm/bun install interrupted mid-extract; Docker image built with .dockerignore excluding package.json; running the CLI from a relocated symlink whose target tree is missing.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of coleam00/Archon@0773b97458 (2026-09-01). Data as JSON: /api/errors/595b5156f7201bef. Report an issue: GitHub.