slimtoolkit/slim · error

not implemented archiving file type

Error message

not implemented archiving file type %s (%s)

What it means

When tar-ing the layer directory, only regular files and directories are supported; symlinks, devices, sockets, FIFOs etc. hit this error because no tar Typeflag is set for them. The message includes the file mode and relative path so the offending entry can be located.

Solutions

1. Remove or replace unsupported file types (symlinks, sockets, devices) from the layer directory before building.
2. Pre-process the rootfs: dereference or copy symlinks as regular files.
3. Skip or explicitly exclude paths like /dev, /proc, /sys when assembling the layer directory.

Example fix

// before
err := os.Symlink("/usr/bin/real", "/build/rootfs/bin/link") // causes failure
// after
src, _ := os.ReadFile("/usr/bin/real")
os.WriteFile("/build/rootfs/bin/link", src, 0o755) // regular file instead of symlink

var unsupported []string
filepath.Walk(src, func(p string, info os.FileInfo, err error) error {
    if err == nil && !info.Mode().IsDir() && !info.Mode().IsRegular() {
        unsupported = append(unsupported, p)
    }
    return nil
})
if len(unsupported) > 0 {
    return fmt.Errorf("unsupported entries in layer: %v", unsupported)
}

func isTarSupported(info os.FileInfo) bool {
    return info.Mode().IsDir() || info.Mode().IsRegular()
}

if err != nil && strings.Contains(err.Error(), "not implemented archiving file type") {
    // clean symlinks/sockets/devices from the layer dir and rebuild
}

When it happens

Trigger: The layer directory contains a symlink, named pipe, socket, or device file; filepath.Walk reaches it and the mode checks IsDir/IsRegular both fail.

Common situations: Building an image from a rootfs that includes /dev entries or symlinks (common when snapshotting a real filesystem), build tooling leaving socket files in the layer dir, or a symlinked output artifact.

Related errors

• failed to calculate relative path
• failed to read file into the tar
• failed to scan files
• bad output tar
• cannot write file

AI-assisted analysis of slimtoolkit/slim@81940d17fa (2026-08-31). Data as JSON: /api/errors/8db23b3e083ed20e. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at pkg/imagebuilder/internalbuilder/engine.go:304

		if err != nil {
			return fmt.Errorf("failed to calculate relative path: %w", err)
		}

		hdr := &tar.Header{
			Name: path.Join(layerBasePath, filepath.ToSlash(rel)),
			Mode: int64(info.Mode()),
		}

		if !info.IsDir() {
			hdr.Size = info.Size()
		}

		if info.Mode().IsDir() {
			hdr.Typeflag = tar.TypeDir
		} else if info.Mode().IsRegular() {
			hdr.Typeflag = tar.TypeReg
		} else {
			return fmt.Errorf("not implemented archiving file type %s (%s)", info.Mode(), rel)
		}

		if err := tw.WriteHeader(hdr); err != nil {
			return fmt.Errorf("failed to write tar header: %w", err)
		}
		if !info.IsDir() {
			f, err := os.Open(fp)
			if err != nil {
				return err
			}
			if _, err := io.Copy(tw, f); err != nil {
				return fmt.Errorf("failed to read file into the tar: %w", err)
			}
			f.Close()
		}
		return nil
	})

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