different-ai/openwork · error

app.error_request_failed

Error message

app.error_request_failed

What it means

assertNoClientError inspects a result object for an error field and throws an Error whose message is describeProviderError(maybe.error, t("app.error_request_failed")). The literal 'app.error_request_failed' surfaces when the error value couldn't be described into a friendlier message (missing translation or undescribable error shape), so the user sees the generic localized fallback key. It marks a client-side/provider request that returned an error payload.

Source

Thrown at apps/app/src/react-app/domains/session/sync/actions-store.ts:302

    if (raw && !generic && raw !== heading) lines.push(raw);
    if (status && !heading.includes(String(status))) lines.push(`Status: ${status}`);
    if (provider && !heading.includes(provider)) lines.push(`Provider: ${provider}`);
    if (code) lines.push(`Code: ${code}`);
    if (response) lines.push(`Response: ${response}`);
    if (lines.length > 1) return lines.join("\n");

    if (raw && !generic) return raw;
    if (error && typeof error === "object") {
      const serialized = safeStringify(error);
      if (serialized && serialized !== "{}") return serialized;
    }
    return fallback;
  };

  const assertNoClientError = (result: unknown) => {
    const maybe = result as { error?: unknown } | null | undefined;
    if (!maybe || maybe.error === undefined) return;
    throw new Error(describeProviderError(maybe.error, t("app.error_request_failed")));
  };

  const lastPromptSent = () => snapshot.lastPromptSent;

  const selectedSessionAgent = () => {
    const id = options.selectedSessionId();
    if (!id) return null;
    return snapshot.sessionAgentById[id] ?? null;
  };

  const sessionRevertMessageId = () => options.selectedSession()?.revert?.messageID ?? null;

  async function createReadySession(workspaceId: string, initialPrompt?: string) {
    const id = workspaceId.trim();
    if (!id) return undefined;
    const c = options.client();
    if (!c) {
      return undefined;

View on GitHub (pinned to 2b7df46e8a)

Solutions

  1. Log the raw error payload (maybe.error) at the call site to find the real underlying provider error and fix that (API key, model ID, quota).
  2. Ensure the app.error_request_failed key exists in all locale files if users see the raw key instead of translated text.
  3. Extend describeProviderError to map the unrecognized error shape to a human-readable message.

Example fix

// before
throw new Error(describeProviderError(maybe.error, t("app.error_request_failed")));
// after
throw new Error(describeProviderError(maybe.error, t("app.error_request_failed"), { raw: safeStringify(maybe.error) }));
Defensive patterns

Strategy: try-catch

Validate before calling

const result = await sendPrompt(payload);
if (result && "error" in result && result.error !== undefined) {
  handleProviderError(result.error); // inspect before it becomes a generic message
}

Type guard

function hasClientError(r: unknown): r is { error: unknown } {
  return typeof r === "object" && r !== null && "error" in r && (r as { error?: unknown }).error !== undefined;
}

Try / catch

try {
  await sendPrompt(payload);
} catch (e) {
  if (e instanceof Error && e.message === "app.error_request_failed") {
    logRawProviderError(lastResult.error); // dig out the real cause
    showToast("Provider request failed — check model/API key/quota");
    return;
  }
  throw e;
}

Prevention

When it happens

Trigger: sendPrompt receives a result containing an error property from the provider/client layer, and describeProviderError falls back to the t("app.error_request_failed") translation — either because the error object has no recognizable shape or the i18n key is missing from the active locale.

Common situations: Provider API returned an error (rate limit, invalid model, bad API key) that the error-describer doesn't recognize; missing translation entry for app.error_request_failed in a custom locale file.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of different-ai/openwork@2b7df46e8a (2026-09-01). Data as JSON: /api/errors/5f4b316e70ac772a. Report an issue: GitHub.