home-assistant/core · error · ServiceValidationError

failed_send

failed_send

Error message

Failed to send command {cmd}

What it means

Raised as ServiceValidationError with translation key failed_send when aftv.adb_shell(cmd) throws UnicodeDecodeError while sending a remote command. The ADB shell response bytes could not be decoded, usually because the constructed command string was malformed or the device returned binary/garbage output. Being a ServiceValidationError it surfaces as a user-facing action error, not a crash or retry.

Source

Thrown at homeassistant/components/androidtv/remote.py:74

    @adb_decorator()
    @override
    async def async_send_command(self, command: Iterable[str], **kwargs: Any) -> None:
        """Send a command to a device."""

        num_repeats = kwargs[ATTR_NUM_REPEATS]
        command_list = []
        for cmd in command:
            if key := KEYS.get(cmd):
                command_list.append(f"input keyevent {key}")
            else:
                command_list.append(cmd)

        for _ in range(num_repeats):
            for cmd in command_list:
                try:
                    await self.aftv.adb_shell(cmd)
                except UnicodeDecodeError as ex:
                    raise ServiceValidationError(
                        translation_domain=DOMAIN,
                        translation_key="failed_send",
                        translation_placeholders={"cmd": cmd},
                    ) from ex

View on GitHub (pinned to 58a3fdb3ea)

Solutions

1. Check the exact cmd in the error placeholder; replace it with a known key name from KEYS or a plain ASCII adb shell command.
2. Test the same command via 'adb shell <cmd>' from a computer to confirm it is valid.
3. Update the androidtv integration so new key mappings are available instead of raw strings.
4. Avoid non-ASCII characters in commands; ADB shell transport is not Unicode-safe.

Example fix

// before (automation)
action: androidtv.remote.send_command
data:
  command: "VOLUME_Up "
// after
action: androidtv.remote.send_command
data:
  command: "VOLUME_UP"

from homeassistant.components.androidtv.remote import KEYS
command = 'VOLUME_UP'
assert command in KEYS or command.isascii(), f'unknown command {command}'

def is_sendable_command(cmd: str) -> bool:
    return cmd in KEYS or (cmd.isascii() and '\n' not in cmd)

ServiceValidationError surfaces as a UI error on the action call — validate inputs before invoking instead of catching.

When it happens

Trigger: Calling the androidtv remote send_command action where a command not in KEYS is passed through verbatim; if it contains characters that break ADB shell encoding, adb_shell raises UnicodeDecodeError and the action aborts with 'Failed to send command {cmd}'.

Common situations: Custom/raw shell commands in automations or YAML scripts with non-ASCII or escaping problems, device firmware returning unexpected bytes, or a stale key mapping name that falls through KEYS.

Related errors

• {exc}
• {error_message}
• invalid_channel
• invalid_media_type
• unsupported_source

AI-assisted analysis of home-assistant/core@58a3fdb3ea (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b2ae82673cc5d657. Report an issue: GitHub.