ipfs/kubo · error

lifetime must be greater than zero, got %s

Error message

lifetime must be greater than zero, got %s

What it means

Fired by `ipfs name publish` when the --lifetime option is explicitly set to a duration that parses but is zero or negative. IPNS record lifetime must be strictly positive for the record to be meaningful; such a value is rejected after parsing and before the record is published. The default lifetime (ipns.DefaultRecordLifetime) applies when the flag is not set.

Source

Thrown at core/commands/name/publish.go:137

		allowDelegated, _ := req.Options[allowDelegatedOptionName].(bool)
		compatibleWithV1, _ := req.Options[v1compatOptionName].(bool)
		kname, _ := req.Options[keyOptionName].(string)

		// Validate flag combinations
		if allowOffline && allowDelegated {
			return errors.New("cannot use both --allow-offline and --allow-delegated flags")
		}

		// --lifetime and --ttl carry no client-side default, so the server can
		// tell whether the user set them explicitly; defaults are applied here.
		validTime := ipns.DefaultRecordLifetime
		if validTimeOpt, found := req.Options[lifeTimeOptionName].(string); found {
			d, err := time.ParseDuration(validTimeOpt)
			if err != nil {
				return fmt.Errorf("error parsing lifetime option: %s", err)
			}
			if d <= 0 {
				return fmt.Errorf("lifetime must be greater than zero, got %s", validTimeOpt)
			}
			validTime = d
		}

		opts := []options.NamePublishOption{
			options.Name.AllowOffline(allowOffline),
			options.Name.AllowDelegated(allowDelegated),
			options.Name.Key(kname),
			options.Name.ValidTime(validTime),
			options.Name.CompatibleWithV1(compatibleWithV1),
		}

		// A record is not cached past its validity, so the TTL must not exceed the
		// lifetime. An explicit --ttl over the lifetime is an error; the default
		// --ttl is capped to the lifetime instead.
		if ttl, found := req.Options[ttlOptionName].(string); found {
			d, err := time.ParseDuration(ttl)
			if err != nil {

View on GitHub (pinned to 329838acdf)

Solutions

1. Set --lifetime to a positive duration, e.g. 24h or 720h
2. Omit the flag to use ipns.DefaultRecordLifetime

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at core/commands/name/publish.go:137 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of ipfs/kubo@329838acdf (2026-09-03). Data as JSON: /api/errors/82f4c26c1f41ef17. Report an issue: GitHub.