gitbutlerapp/gitbutler · error · anyhow::Error

Could not resolve stack '{stack}' by UUID or workspace branc

Error message

Could not resolve stack '{stack}' by UUID or workspace branch name

What it means

`resolve_stack_id()` in the `but api unapply-stack` debug command accepts either a stack UUID (parsed as `StackId`) or a workspace branch name matched against each stack segment's ref name (full or shortened). If the argument parses as neither a UUID nor any stack's branch name, it bails. Note the UUID attempt is tried first, so any argument that fails both lookups lands here.

Source

Thrown at crates/but-debug/src/command/api.rs:86

        stack.segments.iter().any(|segment| {
            segment.ref_name().is_some_and(|ref_name| {
                ref_name.as_bstr() == name.as_bytes()
                    || ref_name.shorten().as_bstr() == name.as_bytes()
            })
        })
    }
    if let Ok(stack_id) = stack.parse::<StackId>() {
        return Ok(stack_id);
    }

    let (_guard, _repo, workspace, _db) = ctx.workspace_and_db()?;
    let mut matches = workspace.stacks.iter().filter_map(|workspace_stack| {
        stack_matches(workspace_stack, stack)
            .then_some(workspace_stack.id)
            .flatten()
    });
    let Some(stack_id) = matches.next() else {
        bail!("Could not resolve stack '{stack}' by UUID or workspace branch name");
    };
    if matches.next().is_some() {
        bail!("Stack name '{stack}' is ambiguous in the current workspace");
    }
    Ok(stack_id)
}

View on GitHub (pinned to caf1f223d3)

Solutions

1. List the workspace's stacks and their exact branch names first (e.g. `but api branch-list`) and copy the exact ref or id.
2. Use the full ref (`refs/heads/<branch>`) if the short name doesn't match.
3. Prefer the stack UUID, which is unambiguous and skips name matching entirely.
4. Confirm you're in the right workspace/project — stacks from another project will never match.

Example fix

# before
but api unapply-stack feautre-x     # typo

# after
but api branch-list                  # find exact name/id
but api unapply-stack feature-x       # or the stack UUID

# Shell — resolve the stack id before running the command
but api branch-list > /tmp/stacks.txt
grep -F "<name>" /tmp/stacks.txt || { echo "no such stack"; exit 1; }

When it happens

Trigger: Running `but api unapply-stack <name>` where `<name>` is not a valid StackId and no workspace stack has a segment ref equal (or shortenable) to it — typo, branch not in the workspace, or stack already deleted.

Common situations: Typos in branch names; referring to a plain git branch that was never imported as a stack; stack renamed or removed since it was listed; UUID copied with a stray character.

Related errors

• Stack name '{stack}' is ambiguous in the current workspace
• Failed to parse diff header
• No stack selected!
• BUG: It should not be possible to omit sources
• implement list and call recursively

AI-assisted analysis of gitbutlerapp/gitbutler@caf1f223d3 (2026-08-20). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c3436c43ae16119e. Report an issue: GitHub.