paperclipai/paperclip · error · Error

Working directory does not exist on remote target: "${cwd}"$

Error message

Working directory does not exist on remote target: "${cwd}"${detail ? ` (${detail})` : ""}

What it means

Thrown by ensureAdapterExecutionTargetDirectory when createIfMissing is false (the default) and the `[ -d <cwd> ]` check fails on a remote target. The directory does not exist and the caller did not ask to create it, so the operation cannot proceed.

Source

Thrown at packages/adapter-utils/src/execution-target.ts:1016

  const result = await runAdapterExecutionTargetShellCommand(runId, target, script, {
    cwd: target.kind === "remote" ? target.remoteCwd : cwd,
    env: options.env,
    timeoutSec: options.timeoutSec ?? 15,
    graceSec: options.graceSec ?? 5,
    onLog: options.onLog,
  });

  if (result.timedOut) {
    throw new Error(`Timed out checking working directory on remote target: "${cwd}"`);
  }
  if ((result.exitCode ?? 1) !== 0) {
    const detail = (result.stderr || result.stdout || "").trim();
    if (createIfMissing) {
      throw new Error(
        `Could not create working directory "${cwd}" on remote target${detail ? `: ${detail}` : "."}`,
      );
    }
    throw new Error(
      `Working directory does not exist on remote target: "${cwd}"${detail ? ` (${detail})` : ""}`,
    );
  }
}

export function adapterExecutionTargetSessionIdentity(
  target: AdapterExecutionTarget | null | undefined,
): Record<string, unknown> | null {
  if (!target || target.kind === "local") return null;
  if (target.transport === "ssh") return buildRemoteExecutionSessionIdentity(target.spec);
  return {
    transport: "sandbox",
    providerKey: target.providerKey ?? null,
    environmentId: target.environmentId ?? null,
    leaseId: target.leaseId ?? null,
    remoteCwd: target.remoteCwd,
  };
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 67001ec6eb)

Solutions

1. Pass createIfMissing: true if the directory should be auto-created.
2. Ensure the workspace clone/checkout step runs before calling ensureAdapterExecutionTargetDirectory.
3. Verify the cwd path matches where the workspace was actually initialized on the remote.
4. Check that a prior workspace restore or git sync step did not fail.

Example fix

// before
await ensureAdapterExecutionTargetDirectory(runId, target, cwd, {});
// after
await ensureAdapterExecutionTargetDirectory(runId, target, cwd, { createIfMissing: true });

// Check directory existence with a probe before calling
async function remoteDirExists(runner: CommandRunner, cwd: string): Promise<boolean> {
  const result = await runner.execute({
    command: "sh",
    args: ["-c", `[ -d ${cwd} ] && echo yes || echo no`],
    cwd: "/",
    timeoutMs: 10_000,
  });
  return result.stdout.trim() === "yes";
}

try {
  await ensureAdapterExecutionTargetDirectory(runId, target, cwd, {});
} catch (err) {
  if (err instanceof Error && err.message.includes("does not exist on remote target")) {
    // Retry with createIfMissing if the workspace should auto-create
    await ensureAdapterExecutionTargetDirectory(runId, target, cwd, { createIfMissing: true });
  } else {
    throw err;
  }
}

When it happens

Trigger: Calling ensureAdapterExecutionTargetDirectory(runId, target, cwd, options) where createIfMissing is false or unset, target.kind === 'remote', and the `[ -d <cwd> ]` shell command exits non-zero.

Common situations: The workspace directory was never cloned/created on the remote; a previous workspace setup step failed silently; the lease points to a fresh filesystem where the expected repo checkout is missing; the path is wrong relative to where the workspace was actually created.

Related errors

• Could not create working directory "${cwd}" on remote target
• Working directory must be an absolute POSIX path on the remo
• Timed out checking working directory on remote target: "${cw
• Timed out checking command "${command}" on sandbox target.
• Command "${command}" is not installed or not on PATH in the

AI-assisted analysis of paperclipai/paperclip@67001ec6eb (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/3a69e2acddef13bc. Report an issue: GitHub.