ipfs/kubo · error

creating datastore config for %s: %w

Error message

creating datastore config for %s: %w

What it means

openDatastoreAt takes the root datastore spec from the repo config, deep-copies it, rewrites its "path" to point at a keystore directory, and asks fsrepo.AnyDatastoreConfig to turn the spec into a datastore config. If the spec is malformed or names an unknown/unsupported datastore type, the error is wrapped as "creating datastore config for %s: %w" with the offending path. This means the datastore Spec in your config could not be interpreted, not that opening the datastore failed (that would come from dsc.Create).

Source

Thrown at core/node/provider.go:499

		closers = append(closers, func() { ds.Close() })
	}

	closer := func() {
		for _, c := range closers {
			c()
		}
	}
	return mounts, closer, nil
}

// openDatastoreAt opens a datastore using the given spec at the specified path.
// It deep-copies the spec to avoid mutating the original.
func openDatastoreAt(rootSpec map[string]any, path string) (datastore.Batching, error) {
	spec := copySpec(rootSpec)
	spec["path"] = path
	dsc, err := fsrepo.AnyDatastoreConfig(spec)
	if err != nil {
		return nil, fmt.Errorf("creating datastore config for %s: %w", path, err)
	}
	return dsc.Create("")
}

// copySpec deep-copies a datastore spec map so modifications (e.g., changing
// the path) don't affect the original.
func copySpec(spec map[string]any) map[string]any {
	if spec == nil {
		return nil
	}
	cp := make(map[string]any, len(spec))
	for k, v := range spec {
		switch val := v.(type) {
		case map[string]any:
			cp[k] = copySpec(val)
		case []any:
			s := make([]any, len(val))
			for i, elem := range val {

View on GitHub (pinned to 329838acdf)

Solutions

1. Read the wrapped cause: it names the exact spec problem (unknown type, missing field, etc.) for the path shown in the message.
2. Compare your Datastore.Spec against a freshly initialized repo's spec (ipfs init in a temp IPFS_PATH, then ipfs config show) and correct the divergent keys.
3. Run `ipfs datastore verify` / upgrade to a kubo version that supports the datastore type named in your spec.
4. Regenerate the spec with `ipfs profile apply` or restore the default spec if it was hand-edited.
5. If you maintain this code, verify findRootDatastoreSpec returned the actual root spec map and that copySpec preserved required fields.

Example fix

// before (spec with unparseable entry)
{
  "type": "mount",
  "mounts": [
    {"mountpoint": "/keys", "type": "levelds", "path": "keys"}
  ]
}
// after (valid flatfs entry)
{
  "type": "mount",
  "mounts": [
    {"mountpoint": "/keys", "type": "flatfs", "path": "keys", "shardFunc": "/repo/flatfs/shard/v1/next-to-last/2"}
  ]
}

func validateSpec(spec map[string]any) error {
    t, ok := spec["type"].(string)
    if !ok || t == "" {
        return fmt.Errorf("datastore spec missing string 'type'")
    }
    if t == "mount" {
        mounts, ok := spec["mounts"].([]any)
        if !ok || len(mounts) == 0 {
            return fmt.Errorf("mount spec has no mounts array")
        }
        for i, m := range mounts {
            if _, ok := m.(map[string]any); !ok {
                return fmt.Errorf("mount[%d] is not an object", i)
            }
        }
    }
    return nil
}
// call before MountKeystoreDatastores: validateSpec(cfg.Datastore.Spec.(map[string]any))

dsCfg, err := fsrepo.AnyDatastoreConfig(spec)
if err != nil {
    if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "unknown datastore type") ||
        errors.Is(err, datastore.ErrUnknownType) {
        return nil, fmt.Errorf("config names an unsupported datastore type; upgrade kubo or fix Datastore.Spec: %w", err)
    }
    return nil, fmt.Errorf("creating datastore config for %s: %w", path, err)
}

When it happens

Trigger: MountKeystoreDatastores (or the anonymous caller) invoking openDatastoreAt with a cfg.Datastore.Spec whose structure fsrepo.AnyDatastoreConfig rejects: unknown "type", missing required fields, wrong nesting, or non-map child specs.

Common situations: Hand-edited or migrated Datastore.Spec in ~/.ipfs/config that is no longer valid; spec written for a newer kubo than the installed binary; typo'd datastore type (e.g. "flatfs" misspelled); spec referencing a mount/disk schema the fsrepo parser does not know.

Related errors

• 'type' field missing or not a string
• unknown datastore type: %s
• 'mounts' field is missing or not an array
• expected map for mountpoint
• no 'mountpoint' on mount

AI-assisted analysis of ipfs/kubo@329838acdf (2026-09-03). Data as JSON: /api/errors/d07ec9c823602003. Report an issue: GitHub.