What causes "failed to wait for container: %w" in nektos/act?

Check the wrapped Docker error; the daemon connection may have dropped while waiting.

failed to wait for container: %w

Error message

failed to wait for container: %w

What it means

Error "failed to wait for container: %w" thrown in nektos/act.

Source

Thrown at pkg/container/docker_run.go:901

waitResult := cr.cli.ContainerWait(ctx, cr.id, client.ContainerWaitOptions{Condition: container.WaitConditionNotRunning})
statusCh, errCh := waitResult.Result, waitResult.Error
var statusCode int64
select {
case err := <-errCh:
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("failed to wait for container: %w", err)
	}
case status := <-statusCh:
	statusCode = status.StatusCode
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 4f41128141)

Solutions

Check the wrapped Docker error; the daemon connection may have dropped while waiting.
Ensure the container was not removed externally while act waited on it.

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at pkg/container/docker_run.go:901 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of nektos/act@4f41128141 (2026-08-15). Data as JSON: /api/errors/56d8e5466ca17bf2. Report an issue: GitHub.