hyperledger/fabric · error

no package.json found at the root of the chaincode package

Error message

no package.json found at the root of the chaincode package

What it means

After scanning all tar headers, ValidateCodePackage requires that at least one entry was named exactly 'src/package.json'. If the Node.js chaincode payload never set foundPackageJson, the package is rejected because the platform cannot treat it as a valid Node.js chaincode project.

Source

Thrown at core/chaincode/platforms/node/platform.go:120

		}
		if header.Name == "src/package.json" {
			foundPackageJson = true
		}
		// --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
		// Check that file mode makes sense
		// --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
		// Acceptable flags:
		//      ISREG      == 0100000
		//      -rw-rw-rw- == 0666
		//
		// Anything else is suspect in this context and will be rejected
		// --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
		if header.Mode&^0o100666 != 0 {
			return fmt.Errorf("illegal file mode detected for file %s: %o", header.Name, header.Mode)
		}
	}
	if !foundPackageJson {
		return fmt.Errorf("no package.json found at the root of the chaincode package")
	}

	return nil
}

// Generates a deployment payload by putting source files in src/$file entries in .tar.gz format
func (p *Platform) GetDeploymentPayload(path string) ([]byte, error) {
	var err error

	// --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
	// Write out our tar package
	// --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
	payload := bytes.NewBuffer(nil)
	gw := gzip.NewWriter(payload)
	tw := tar.NewWriter(gw)

	folder := path
	if folder == "" {

View on GitHub (pinned to 2736b63f8f)

Solutions

1. Place package.json under a src/ directory in the project so it is packaged as 'src/package.json'.
2. Re-tar moving the manifest: create a src/ dir containing package.json and the code, then tar that.
3. Use the platform's GetDeploymentPayload with the chaincode path so packaging follows the required layout.
4. Confirm the chaincode type is 'node' — other platforms (Go, Java) have different manifest requirements.

Example fix

// before (wrong layout in tar)
package.json
main.js
// after (correct layout)
src/package.json
src/main.js

// list tar entries and verify manifest presence before submitting
const hasManifest = entries.some(e => e.name === 'src/package.json');

function hasSrcPackageJson(entryNames) {
  return Array.isArray(entryNames) && entryNames.includes('src/package.json');
}

When it happens

Trigger: ValidateCodePackage receives a .tar.gz with no entry at path 'src/package.json' — e.g. the manifest is at the archive root ('package.json'), in a nested folder, or missing entirely.

Common situations: Packaging the project directory instead of its src subfolder, renaming/moving package.json, using a build tool that flattens the layout, or packaging a non-Node project with the node platform type.

Related errors

• did not find a code package inside the package
• illegal file detected in payload: "%s"
• illegal file detected in payload: "%s"
• illegal file mode detected for file %s: %o
• ChaincodeSpec's path cannot be empty

AI-assisted analysis of hyperledger/fabric@2736b63f8f (2026-09-04). Data as JSON: /api/errors/8c1efeedac6047df. Report an issue: GitHub.