vercel/next.js · error · Error

Invalid `cacheLife()` option. Either pass a profile name or

Error message

Invalid `cacheLife()` option. Either pass a profile name or object.

What it means

Type guard in cacheLife() for the non-string branch: the argument is neither a string profile name nor a plain object — it is null, an array, or another non-object type. The function only accepts a profile name or a cacheLife options object, so anything else is rejected before any profile resolution happens.

Source

Thrown at packages/next/src/server/use-cache/cache-life.ts:88

            `Did you mean "${profile.trim()}" without the spaces?`
        )
      }
      throw new Error(
        `Unknown \`cacheLife()\` profile "${profile}" is not configured in next.config.js\n` +
          'module.exports = {\n' +
          '  cacheLife: {\n' +
          `    "${profile}": ...\n` +
          '  }\n' +
          '}'
      )
    }
    profile = configuredProfile
  } else if (
    typeof profile !== 'object' ||
    profile === null ||
    Array.isArray(profile)
  ) {
    throw new Error(
      'Invalid `cacheLife()` option. Either pass a profile name or object.'
    )
  } else {
    profile = validateAndNormalizeCacheLifeProfile(profile, { kind: 'inline' })
  }

  if (profile.revalidate !== undefined) {
    // Track the explicit revalidate time.
    if (
      workUnitStore.explicitRevalidate === undefined ||
      workUnitStore.explicitRevalidate > profile.revalidate
    ) {
      workUnitStore.explicitRevalidate = profile.revalidate
    }
  }
  if (profile.expire !== undefined) {
    // Track the explicit expire time.
    if (

View on GitHub (pinned to 258b1c1bc0)

Solutions

1. Pass a profile name string or a config object to cacheLife().

When it happens

Trigger: cacheLife() receives an argument that is neither a profile name nor an object.

Common situations: Passing a number, boolean, or null to cacheLife().

AI-assisted analysis of vercel/next.js@258b1c1bc0 (2026-08-19). Data as JSON: /api/errors/d1d63d5c853880c0. Report an issue: GitHub.