herdrdev/herdr · error

failed to determine herdr executable path: {err}

Error message

failed to determine herdr executable path: {err}

What it means

spawn_server_daemon could not resolve the path of the currently running herdr executable via std::env::current_exe(). Without the executable path the daemon cannot re-spawn itself as a background server. The underlying OS error kind and message are preserved.

Source

Thrown at src/server/autodetect.rs:191

}

// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
// Server spawning
// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

/// Spawns the herdr server as a background daemon process.
///
/// The server process is fully detached:
/// - Runs in its own session (setsid) so it survives the client exiting
/// - Stdin/stdout/stderr are redirected to /dev/null
/// - Inherits relevant environment variables (`XDG_CONFIG_HOME`, `HERDR_SESSION`,
///   socket overrides, etc.), except inherited socket overrides are cleared when
///   this CLI invocation explicitly selected a session.
///
/// Returns the PID of the spawned server process.
pub fn spawn_server_daemon() -> io::Result<u32> {
    let exe = std::env::current_exe().map_err(|err| {
        io::Error::new(
            err.kind(),
            format!("failed to determine herdr executable path: {err}"),
        )
    })?;

    info!(exe = %exe.display(), "spawning server daemon");

    let mut command = build_server_daemon_command(exe);

    let pid =
        crate::platform::launch_server_daemon_command(&mut command).map_err(|err: io::Error| {
            io::Error::new(err.kind(), format!("failed to spawn herdr server: {err}"))
        })?;
    info!(pid, "server daemon spawned");

    Ok(pid)
}

View on GitHub (pinned to f457cff4f2)

Solutions

1. Restart herdr from a stable, non-replaced binary location
2. If this happens right after an update, exit the old session and launch the new binary
3. Verify /proc is mounted (Linux) and the binary file still exists at its original path
4. Avoid deleting/replacing the herdr binary while sessions are running

let exe = std::env::current_exe().map(|p| p.to_path_buf()).ok();

When it happens

Trigger: std::env::current_exe() failing: the binary was deleted or replaced while running (common after `herdr update` overwriting the running binary on some platforms), /proc not mounted on Linux, or exec-path retrieval unsupported in the environment.

Common situations: Self-update replaced the binary mid-run, running from a deleted temp file, containers with restricted /proc, or unusual exec environments.

Related errors

• failed to start ssh install: {err}
• login shell {shell:?} was not found on PATH
• ssh bootstrap stdin missing
• ssh install stdin missing
• download failed: {err}

AI-assisted analysis of herdrdev/herdr@f457cff4f2 (2026-08-28). Data as JSON: /api/errors/e55972eac7d503ee. Report an issue: GitHub.