What causes "xiaohongshu/follow failed: ${err?.message ?? String(err)}" in jackwener/OpenCLI?

Inspect the embedded err.message after the prefix to find the root cause.

jackwener/OpenCLI · error · CommandExecutionError

xiaohongshu/follow failed: ${err?.message ?? String(err)}

Error message

xiaohongshu/follow failed: ${err?.message ?? String(err)}

What it means

Catch-all wrapper: any non-CliError thrown inside the follow command's try block is rethrown as CommandExecutionError with the prefix 'xiaohongshu/follow failed:' plus the original message. It preserves the underlying cause's message while normalizing the error type for the CLI. CliError instances pass through untouched.

Source

Thrown at clis/xiaohongshu/follow.js:210

            if (currentProfile?.[1] !== userId) {
                throw new CommandExecutionError(
                    `xiaohongshu/follow: expected profile ${userId}, got ${parsedHref.pathname}`,
                );
            }

            const result = requireActionResult(
                await page.evaluate(buildFollowScript()),
                'follow-action',
            );
            if (!result.ok) {
                throw new CommandExecutionError(
                    `xiaohongshu/follow failed: ${result.reason ?? 'unknown reason'}`,
                );
            }
            return [{ status: result.state, user_id: userId, url }];
        } catch (err) {
            if (err instanceof CliError) throw err;
            throw new CommandExecutionError(
                `xiaohongshu/follow failed: ${err?.message ?? String(err)}`,
            );
        }
    },
});

export const __test__ = {
    assertUserId,
    buildFollowScript,
};

View on GitHub (pinned to 49907e53dc)

Solutions

Inspect the embedded err.message after the prefix to find the root cause.
Reopen Chrome and ensure the target tab/page object is alive before rerunning.
Retry the command; transient browser/navigation issues are the usual cause.
If it persists, run with verbose logging to capture the original stack.

Example fix

// before
// page closed before evaluate
await follow(userId);
// after
const page = await ensureBrowserPage(); // keep page alive
await page.goto(profileUrl);
await follow(userId);

Defensive patterns

Strategy: try-catch

Validate before calling

// Ensure the browser/page is alive before the command
if (page.isClosed?.()) throw new Error('target page closed before follow');

Type guard

function isWrappedFollowError(err) {
  return err instanceof Error && err.message.startsWith('xiaohongshu/follow failed:');
}

Try / catch

try {
  await follow(userId);
} catch (err) {
  if (isWrappedFollowError(err)) {
    const cause = err.message.replace('xiaohongshu/follow failed: ', '');
    console.error('underlying cause:', cause);
  } else throw err;
}

Prevention

Keep the Chrome tab open for the duration of the command.
Avoid navigating the page manually while the CLI is running.
Read the message after the prefix to identify the root cause before retrying.
Run with verbose output to capture original stacks.

When it happens

Trigger: Any unexpected exception during the follow flow that is not a CliError — e.g. page.evaluate threw (page closed/navigated away), requireActionResult detected a malformed payload indirectly? no (that throws CommandExecutionError directly, which is a CliError and passes through) — realistically evaluate failures, timeouts, or browser disconnection.

Common situations: Chrome tab closed mid-run; navigation interrupted; evaluate returned an unserializable value; random wait interrupted by page crash.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of jackwener/OpenCLI@49907e53dc (2026-08-29). Data as JSON: /api/errors/92b4c8a46ab48481. Report an issue: GitHub.