hashicorp/nomad · error

failed to decode alloc: %v

Error message

failed to decode alloc: %v

What it means

In getAllAllocations, allocBkt.Get fails to decode the serialized allocEntry for one allocation (deserialization/corruption); the error is recorded per alloc ID in the errs map and the loop skips to the next allocation.

Source

Thrown at client/state/db_bolt.go:278

		// No allocs
		return allocs, errs
	}

	// Create a cursor for iteration.
	c := allocationsBkt.BoltBucket().Cursor()

	// Iterate over all the allocation buckets
	for k, _ := c.First(); k != nil; k, _ = c.Next() {
		allocID := string(k)
		allocBkt := allocationsBkt.Bucket(k)
		if allocBkt == nil {
			errs[allocID] = fmt.Errorf("missing alloc bucket")
			continue
		}

		var ae allocEntry
		if err := allocBkt.Get(allocKey, &ae); err != nil {
			errs[allocID] = fmt.Errorf("failed to decode alloc: %v", err)
			continue
		}

		// Handle upgrade path
		ae.Alloc.Canonicalize()
		ae.Alloc.Job.Canonicalize()

		allocs = append(allocs, ae.Alloc)
	}

	return allocs, errs
}

// PutAllocation stores an allocation or returns an error.
func (s *BoltStateDB) PutAllocation(alloc *structs.Allocation, opts ...WriteOption) error {
	return s.updateWithOptions(opts, func(tx *boltdd.Tx) error {
		// Retrieve the root allocations bucket
		allocsBkt, err := tx.CreateBucketIfNotExists(allocationsBucketName)

View on GitHub (pinned to 482b49bf1a)

Solutions

1. Check the state DB for corrupted alloc entries
2. Re-adopt or re-run the affected allocation after repair
3. Log and continue for remaining allocs as the code already does

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at client/state/db_bolt.go:278 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

Understand the failure class

• Parsing and encoding errors: unexpected token, malformed input — why parsers reject input and how to find the real culprit.

AI-assisted analysis of hashicorp/nomad@482b49bf1a (2026-09-04). Data as JSON: /api/errors/8b1088557dea4457. Report an issue: GitHub.