golang/go · error

parse %s: no go-import meta tags (%s)

Error message

parse %s: no go-import meta tags (%s)

What it means

Fired when matchGoImport returns an ImportMismatchError: meta tags exist but none has a prefix that is a path-prefix of the requested import path. The %s is resp.URL (final URL after redirects); the parenthesized %s lists the candidate prefixes that mismatched.

Source

Thrown at src/cmd/go/internal/vcs/vcs.go:1023

	defer body.Close()
	imports, err := parseMetaGoImports(body, mod)
	if len(imports) == 0 {
		if respErr := resp.Err(); respErr != nil {
			// If the server's status was not OK, prefer to report that instead of
			// an XML parse error.
			return nil, respErr
		}
	}
	if err != nil {
		return nil, fmt.Errorf("parsing %s: %v", importPath, err)
	}
	// Find the matched meta import.
	mmi, err := matchGoImport(imports, importPath)
	if err != nil {
		if _, ok := err.(ImportMismatchError); !ok {
			return nil, fmt.Errorf("parse %s: %v", url, err)
		}
		return nil, fmt.Errorf("parse %s: no go-import meta tags (%s)", resp.URL, err)
	}
	if cfg.BuildV {
		log.Printf("get %q: found meta tag %#v at %s", importPath, mmi, url)
	}
	// If the import was "uni.edu/bob/project", which said the
	// prefix was "uni.edu" and the RepoRoot was "evilroot.com",
	// make sure we don't trust Bob and check out evilroot.com to
	// "uni.edu" yet (possibly overwriting/preempting another
	// non-evil student). Instead, first verify the root and see
	// if it matches Bob's claim.
	if mmi.Prefix != importPath {
		if cfg.BuildV {
			log.Printf("get %q: verifying non-authoritative meta tag", importPath)
		}
		var imports []metaImport
		url, imports, err = metaImportsForPrefix(mmi.Prefix, mod, security)
		if err != nil {
			return nil, err

View on GitHub (pinned to b6b368adc5)

Solutions

1. Confirm the correct import path from the module's documentation
2. Verify the server's go-import meta tag prefix actually covers your import path (prefix must be an ancestor of the path)
3. Update to the module's new canonical path if it was renamed

// Verify the declared prefix covers the import path before resolving
func prefixCovers(prefix, importPath string) bool {
  return importPath == prefix || strings.HasPrefix(importPath, prefix+"/")
}

When it happens

Trigger: Asking for 'example.com/foo/bar' when the server only declares 'example.com/baz'; or the declared prefix does not cover the requested subpath.

Common situations: Typo in the subpackage path; vanity server configured for a different module root; module moved and meta tags were updated to a new prefix; redirected to a host whose tags don't cover the original path.

Related errors

• parse %s: %v
• %s and %s disagree about go-import for %s
• %s: invalid subdirectory %q: %v
• %s: invalid repo root %q: %v
• %s: unknown vcs %q

AI-assisted analysis of golang/go@b6b368adc5 (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b7240f56a1530d9f. Report an issue: GitHub.