tinyhumansai/openhuman · error

Failed to determine user home directory

Error message

Failed to determine user home directory

What it means

`resolve_openclaw_workspace` builds the default source path `~/.openclaw/workspace` from `directories::UserDirs::new()`. When the platform cannot determine a home directory that call returns None and the resolver bails before any migration work starts. An explicit `source` argument short-circuits resolution and never hits this error.

Source

Thrown at src/openhuman/config/migration_helpers/core.rs:271

        entries.push(SourceEntry {
            key: normalize_key(file_stem, idx),
            content: content.trim().to_string(),
            category: MemoryCategory::Core,
        });

        idx += 1;
    }

    Ok(entries)
}

fn resolve_openclaw_workspace(source: Option<PathBuf>) -> Result<PathBuf> {
    if let Some(path) = source {
        return Ok(path);
    }

    let Some(user_dirs) = UserDirs::new() else {
        bail!("Failed to determine user home directory");
    };

    Ok(user_dirs.home_dir().join(".openclaw").join("workspace"))
}

fn resolve_hermes_workspace(source: Option<PathBuf>) -> Result<PathBuf> {
    if let Some(path) = source {
        return Ok(path);
    }

    let Some(user_dirs) = UserDirs::new() else {
        bail!("Failed to determine user home directory");
    };

    #[cfg(windows)]
    {
        if let Some(local_app_data) = std::env::var_os("LOCALAPPDATA") {
            return Ok(PathBuf::from(local_app_data).join("hermes"));

View on GitHub (pinned to 7491200858)

Solutions

1. Pass the OpenClaw source workspace path explicitly to the migration call.
2. Set HOME (or the platform's home env var) for the process and retry.
3. Run the migration from a normal interactive user session.

Example fix

# before — daemon with scrubbed env, default resolution fails
ExecStart=openhuman-core migrate openclaw

# after — explicit source (or set HOME in the unit)
ExecStart=openhuman-core migrate openclaw --source /srv/openclaw/workspace
Environment=HOME=/var/lib/openhuman

let source = match explicit_source {
    Some(p) => p,
    None => match directories::UserDirs::new() {
        Some(u) => u.home_dir().join(".openclaw").join("workspace"),
        None => return Ok(None), // no home resolvable — require an explicit path
    },
};
let report = migrate_openclaw_memory(&config, Some(source), dry_run).await?;

When it happens

Trigger: Calling the OpenClaw migration without an explicit source path from a process whose home directory is not resolvable — HOME unset (scrubbed daemon/container environment), a service account without a profile, or unusual platform configurations.

Common situations: systemd units, docker containers, and CI runners with a minimal environment; running the core under a user with no passwd entry; hardened sandboxes that strip env vars.

Related errors

• OpenClaw workspace not found at {}. Provide a valid source w
• Source workspace matches current OpenHuman workspace; refusi
• OpenClaw memories table found but no content-like column was
• Core returned an empty backend URL
• OpenRouter OAuth requires the desktop app. Use an API key in

AI-assisted analysis of tinyhumansai/openhuman@7491200858 (2026-08-17). Data as JSON: /api/errors/0a7306ffca43aeec. Report an issue: GitHub.