gastownhall/beads · error

atomicfile: sync: %w

Error message

atomicfile: sync: %w

What it means

Writer.Close fsyncs the temp file so its contents survive a crash before the rename. If f.Sync() fails, Close closes and removes the temp file and returns this wrapped error; the target file is never modified.

Source

Thrown at internal/atomicfile/atomicfile.go:85

// After Close returns successfully, the target contains exactly the data
// written. On error the temp file is removed and the target is untouched.
func (w *Writer) Close() error {
	if w.done {
		return nil
	}
	w.done = true

	// Ensure permissions before rename — CreateTemp uses 0600 by default.
	if err := w.f.Chmod(w.perm); err != nil {
		_ = w.f.Close()
		_ = os.Remove(w.f.Name())
		return fmt.Errorf("atomicfile: chmod: %w", err)
	}

	if err := w.f.Sync(); err != nil {
		_ = w.f.Close()
		_ = os.Remove(w.f.Name())
		return fmt.Errorf("atomicfile: sync: %w", err)
	}

	if err := w.f.Close(); err != nil {
		_ = os.Remove(w.f.Name())
		return fmt.Errorf("atomicfile: close: %w", err)
	}

	if err := os.Rename(w.f.Name(), w.target); err != nil {
		_ = os.Remove(w.f.Name())
		return fmt.Errorf("atomicfile: rename: %w", err)
	}

	return nil
}

// Abort discards the temp file without renaming. The target is untouched.
// Safe to call multiple times or after Close.
func (w *Writer) Abort() error {

View on GitHub (pinned to 71377f2769)

Solutions

1. Check kernel/dmesg or mount logs for underlying I/O errors and replace failing hardware
2. Move the write target to a filesystem with reliable fsync (local disk)
3. If the mount genuinely can't fsync, write to a local temp dir and copy/move into place

if err := w.Close(); err != nil {
    if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "atomicfile: sync") {
        log.Printf("fsync failed (fs/hardware issue?): %v", err)
    }
    return err
}

When it happens

Trigger: Sync fails when the underlying file handle is bad, the filesystem does not support fsync (some overlay/FUSE/network filesystems), or I/O errors occur (failing disk, full journal).

Common situations: Running inside containers on filesystems without proper fsync support, USB/NFS mounts with I/O errors, or hardware failure during a large export.

Related errors

• failed to create temp file: %w
• failed to sync temp file: %w
• failed to close temp file: %w
• failed to rename temp file: %w
• ensureProxiedServerConfig: write %s: %w

AI-assisted analysis of gastownhall/beads@71377f2769 (2026-08-30). Data as JSON: /api/errors/f127710030cce015. Report an issue: GitHub.