openai/codex · error · anyhow::Error

refusing to overwrite existing file {}

Error message

refusing to overwrite existing file {}

What it means

Error "refusing to overwrite existing file {}" thrown in openai/codex.

Source

Thrown at codex-rs/network-proxy/src/certs.rs:717

    let tmp_path = parent.join(format!(".{file_name}.tmp.{pid}.{nanos}"));

    let mut file = open_create_new_with_mode(&tmp_path, mode)?;
    file.write_all(contents)
        .with_context(|| format!("failed to write {}", tmp_path.display()))?;
    file.sync_all()
        .with_context(|| format!("failed to fsync {}", tmp_path.display()))?;
    drop(file);

    // Create the final file using "create-new" semantics (no overwrite). `rename` on Unix can
    // overwrite existing files, so prefer a hard-link, which fails if the destination exists.
    match fs::hard_link(&tmp_path, path) {
        Ok(()) => {
            fs::remove_file(&tmp_path)
                .with_context(|| format!("failed to remove {}", tmp_path.display()))?;
        }
        Err(err) if err.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::AlreadyExists => {
            let _ = fs::remove_file(&tmp_path);
            return Err(anyhow!(
                "refusing to overwrite existing file {}",
                path.display()
            ));
        }
        Err(_) => {
            // Best-effort fallback for environments where hard links are not supported.
            // This is still subject to a TOCTOU race, but the typical case is a private per-user
            // config directory, where other users cannot create files anyway.
            if path.exists() {
                let _ = fs::remove_file(&tmp_path);
                return Err(anyhow!(
                    "refusing to overwrite existing file {}",
                    path.display()
                ));
            }
            fs::rename(&tmp_path, path).with_context(|| {
                format!(
                    "failed to rename {} -> {}",

View on GitHub (pinned to 339751715c)

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at codex-rs/network-proxy/src/certs.rs:717 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of openai/codex@339751715c (2026-08-25). Data as JSON: /api/errors/fb1443cfb3f438e7. Report an issue: GitHub.