puppeteer/puppeteer · error

No browser arg provided

Error message

No browser arg provided

What it means

Thrown by `#install` as a defensive guard when `args.browser` is falsy. Under normal yargs flow the browser positional is required (or, in pinned mode, an absent browser triggers the all-pinned install path instead). This error therefore signals an unexpected internal or programmatic invocation of `#install` without a browser.

Source

Thrown at packages/browsers/src/CLI.ts:623

      : this.#pinnedBrowsers
        ? 'pinned'
        : 'latest';
  }

  #resolvePinnedBrowserIfNeeded(buildId: string, browserName: Browser): string {
    if (buildId === 'pinned') {
      const options = this.#pinnedBrowsers?.[browserName];
      if (!options || !options.buildId) {
        throw new Error(`No pinned version found for ${browserName}`);
      }
      return options.buildId;
    }
    return buildId;
  }

  async #install(args: InstallArgs) {
    if (!args.browser) {
      throw new Error(`No browser arg provided`);
    }
    if (!args.platform) {
      throw new Error(`Could not resolve the current platform`);
    }
    args.browser.buildId = this.#resolvePinnedBrowserIfNeeded(
      args.browser.buildId,
      args.browser.name,
    );
    const originalBuildId = args.browser.buildId;
    args.browser.buildId = await resolveBuildId(
      args.browser.name,
      args.platform,
      args.browser.buildId,
    );
    await install({
      browser: args.browser.name,
      buildId: args.browser.buildId,
      platform: args.platform,

View on GitHub (pinned to d484e21c17)

Solutions

1. Always pass a `browser: { name, buildId }` object when invoking the install flow programmatically.
2. If using the CLI, ensure the browser positional argument is supplied (e.g. `install chrome`).
3. In pinned mode, let the all-pinned path run by omitting the browser rather than calling install for a specific one.

function hasBrowserArg(args: { browser?: { name?: string; buildId?: string } }): args is { browser: { name: string; buildId: string } } {
  return !!args.browser && !!args.browser.name && !!args.browser.buildId;
}

function isInstallBrowser(v: unknown): v is { name: string; buildId: string } {
  return typeof v === 'object' && v !== null && typeof (v as any).name === 'string' && typeof (v as any).buildId === 'string';
}

When it happens

Trigger: Direct programmatic reach-through that calls `#install` (private) with an args object missing `browser`, or an edge case where pinned-mode branching fails to route correctly. In standard CLI usage this is effectively unreachable because yargs enforces the positional.

Common situations: Custom wrappers that construct `InstallArgs` manually and forget the `browser` field, or a regression in the CLI routing logic.

Related errors

• Could not resolve the current platform
• Provider is required for installation
• Unsupported browser '${browser.name}'
• Unsupported platform '${platform}'
• Failed to download bisect-builds.py: ${response.statusText}

AI-assisted analysis of puppeteer/puppeteer@d484e21c17 (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/4e1716da6145a358. Report an issue: GitHub.