pulumi/pulumi · error

failed to create directory for SDK: %w

Error message

failed to create directory for SDK: %w

What it means

When `pulumi package add`/`gen-sdk` generates a language SDK, it first creates the destination directory `<project>/sdks` with os.MkdirAll. If the OS cannot create that directory tree, the command wraps the OS error with this message and returns it alongside any diagnostics. It is a filesystem/permission failure, not a schema or codegen problem.

Source

Thrown at pkg/cmd/pulumi/packages/packages.go:129

	diags, err := GenSDK(
		pctx.Request(),
		registry,
		language,
		tempOut,
		pkg,
		"",    /*overlays*/
		local, /*local*/
	)
	if err != nil {
		return nil, nil, diags, fmt.Errorf("failed to generate SDK: %w", err)
	}

	out := filepath.Join(root, "sdks")
	fmt.Fprintf(stdout, "Successfully generated an SDK for the %s package at %s\n", pkg.Name, out)

	err = os.MkdirAll(out, 0o755)
	if err != nil {
		return nil, nil, diags, fmt.Errorf("failed to create directory for SDK: %w", err)
	}

	outName := pkg.Name
	if pkg.Namespace != "" {
		outName = pkg.Namespace + "-" + outName
	}
	out = filepath.Join(out, outName)

	// If directory already exists, remove it completely before copying new files
	if _, err := os.Stat(out); err == nil {
		if err := os.RemoveAll(out); err != nil {
			return nil, nil, diags, fmt.Errorf("failed to clean existing SDK directory: %w", err)
		}
	}

	err = fsutil.CopyFile(out, filepath.Join(tempOut, language), nil)
	if err != nil {
		return nil, nil, diags, fmt.Errorf("failed to move SDK to project: %w", err)

View on GitHub (pinned to 793f7b2e16)

Solutions

1. Check write permissions on the project root: `ls -ld .` and fix with chmod/chown or move the project.
2. Verify no file named `sdks` exists where a directory is needed (`rm` or rename it).
3. Check available disk space with `df -h` and free space if full.
4. If in a container, ensure the volume is mounted read-write (`docker run -v dir:/work` without :ro).

Example fix

// before (shell)
pulumi package add ../my-provider
// error: failed to create directory for SDK: mkdir .: read-only file system
// after (shell)
chmod u+w . && pulumi package add ../my-provider

// shell pre-check before running the CLI
if [ ! -w . ]; then echo "project dir not writable"; exit 1; fi
[ ! -e sdks ] || [ -d sdks ] || { echo "sdks exists but is a file"; exit 1; }

When it happens

Trigger: os.MkdirAll(filepath.Join(root, "sdks"), 0o755) returns an error: e.g. the project root is read-only, a parent path component is missing or is a file, the disk is full, or the process lacks write permission on the project directory.

Common situations: Running the CLI in a project owned by another user, running inside a container with a read-only mounted volume, project path is actually a file, or a read-only network mount; also on Windows when an antivirus briefly locks the path.

Related errors

• Could not locate an executable pulumi-watch, found %v withou
• removing undecryptable credentials: %w
• backing up existing configuration file: %w
• reading log directory %s: %w
• opening log file: %w

AI-assisted analysis of pulumi/pulumi@793f7b2e16 (2026-08-31). Data as JSON: /api/errors/4cae879b442c6d2e. Report an issue: GitHub.