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Troubleshooting Guide

This guide helps you diagnose and resolve common issues when using the JSON to Variables Setter action. It also provides debugging techniques and best practices for handling edge cases.

Common Issues and Solutions

API Rate Limit Exceeded

Symptom

Actions fail with API rate limit exceeded error in logs.

Solution

Add GitHub authentication token to increase rate limits.

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- name: Set variables with authentication
  id: json2vars
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    update-matrix: 'true'
  env:
    GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

Missing or Empty Outputs

Symptom

Expected outputs are not available or are empty.

Possible Causes and Solutions

  1. Missing id attribute:

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    # Incorrect - missing id
- name: Set variables from JSON
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1

# Correct
- name: Set variables from JSON
  id: json2vars  # This is required to reference outputs
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1

  2. JSON structure issue:

    • Ensure your JSON file has the expected structure:
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    {
  "os": ["ubuntu-latest"],
  "versions": {
    "python": ["3.10", "3.11"]
  }
}
    • Language versions must be under versions.<language> key

  3. Output references:

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    # Incorrect output reference
echo "Python versions: ${{ steps.json2vars.versions_python }}"

# Correct output reference
echo "Python versions: ${{ steps.json2vars.outputs.versions_python }}"

Matrix Strategy Failures

Symptom

Matrix strategy fails with error like The value of 'matrix.python-version' is invalid.

Solutions

  1. Check JSON parsing:

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    # Incorrect - missing fromJson
matrix:
  python-version: ${{ needs.set_variables.outputs.versions_python }}

# Correct
matrix:
  python-version: ${{ fromJson(needs.set_variables.outputs.versions_python) }}

  2. Verify output content:

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    - name: Debug outputs
  run: |
    echo "Raw output: ${{ steps.json2vars.outputs.versions_python }}"
    echo "Type: ${{ typeof(steps.json2vars.outputs.versions_python) }}"

Symptom

Cache is not updating or is generating incorrect templates.

Solutions

  1. Force cache update:

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    - name: Force cache update
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    use-cache: 'true'
    force-cache-update: 'true'

  2. Check cache file location:

    The default cache location is .github/json2vars-setter/cache/version_cache.json. Ensure this directory exists and is writable.

  3. Commit cache files:

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    - name: Commit updated cache
  run: |
    git config --local user.email "actions@github.com"
    git config --local user.name "GitHub Actions"
    git add .github/json2vars-setter/cache/version_cache.json
    git commit -m "Update version cache"
    git push

Conflicting Strategies

Symptom

Unexpected behavior when using multiple strategies.

Solutions

Never use update-matrix: 'true' and use-cache: 'true' together.
They are mutually exclusive strategies.

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# Incorrect - conflicting strategies
- name: Set variables
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    update-matrix: 'true'
    use-cache: 'true'  # Will be ignored when update-matrix is true

# Correct - choose one strategy
- name: Set variables with dynamic update
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    update-matrix: 'true'

Debugging Techniques

Enable Verbose Logging

Add the --verbose flag to see detailed logs:

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- name: Debug cache version info
  run: |
    python ${{ github.action_path }}/json2vars_setter/cache_version_info.py --verbose

Or use the built-in debug output:

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- name: Set variables with debug
  id: json2vars
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    update-matrix: 'true'
    verbose: 'true'  # Enable verbose logging

Test Configurations Locally

You can test the scripts locally before using them in GitHub Actions:

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# Test cache_version_info.py
python path/to/cache_version_info.py --template-only --verbose

# Test update_matrix_dynamic.py
python path/to/update_matrix_dynamic.py --json-file ./matrix.json --all stable --dry-run

Inspect Generated Files

Examine the generated files for debugging:

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- name: Inspect generated files
  run: |
    echo "Matrix JSON content:"
    cat .github/json2vars-setter/matrix.json

    echo "Cache content:"
    cat .github/json2vars-setter/cache/version_cache.json

Check GitHub API Quota

Monitor your GitHub API quota:

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- name: Check API rate limit
  run: |
    curl -s -H "Authorization: token ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}" https://api.github.com/rate_limit

Edge Cases and Advanced Solutions

Handling Large Matrices

If your matrix becomes too large, you can split it into smaller jobs:

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jobs:
  set_variables:
    # ... set variables job ...

  python_tests:
    needs: set_variables
    strategy:
      matrix:
        python-version: ${{ fromJson(needs.set_variables.outputs.versions_python) }}
        group: [1, 2, 3]  # Split tests into groups

    steps:
      # ... setup ...
      - name: Run tests for group ${{ matrix.group }}
        run: |
          pytest tests/group${{ matrix.group }} --verbose

Handling Missing Languages

Create a fallback for languages not defined in your JSON:

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- name: Set fallback versions
  id: fallback
  run: |
    # Default values if not found in matrix.json
    echo "versions_ruby=[\"3.1\",\"3.2\"]" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT

- name: Use actual or fallback versions
  run: |
    if [[ "${{ steps.json2vars.outputs.versions_ruby }}" == "" ]]; then
      echo "Using fallback Ruby versions: ${{ steps.fallback.outputs.versions_ruby }}"
      echo "RUBY_VERSIONS=${{ steps.fallback.outputs.versions_ruby }}" >> $GITHUB_ENV
    else
      echo "Using configured Ruby versions: ${{ steps.json2vars.outputs.versions_ruby }}"
      echo "RUBY_VERSIONS=${{ steps.json2vars.outputs.versions_ruby }}" >> $GITHUB_ENV
    fi

Dynamic File Path Selection

Choose a JSON file dynamically based on context:

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- name: Determine config file
  id: config_file
  run: |
    if [[ "${{ github.ref }}" == "refs/heads/main" ]]; then
      echo "file=.github/json2vars-setter/production_matrix.json" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
    else
      echo "file=.github/json2vars-setter/development_matrix.json" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
    fi

- name: Set variables from dynamic path
  id: json2vars
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: ${{ steps.config_file.outputs.file }}

Conditional Strategy Selection

Select update strategy based on specific conditions:

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- name: Determine strategy
  id: strategy
  run: |
    DAY_OF_WEEK=$(date +%u)
    if [[ $DAY_OF_WEEK -eq 1 ]]; then  # Monday
      echo "update=true" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
      echo "strategy=latest" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
    else
      echo "update=false" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
    fi

- name: Set variables
  id: json2vars
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    update-matrix: ${{ steps.strategy.outputs.update }}
    all: ${{ steps.strategy.outputs.strategy }}

GitHub API Rate Limit Management

Authentication for Higher Limits

Use GitHub authentication to increase API rate limits:

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- name: Set up GitHub token
  run: |
    echo "GITHUB_TOKEN=${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}" >> $GITHUB_ENV

- name: Set variables with authentication
  id: json2vars
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    update-matrix: 'true'
  env:
    GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ env.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

Minimize API Calls

Optimize your workflow to reduce API calls:

  1. Use caching with appropriate max-age

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    - name: Set variables with caching
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    use-cache: 'true'
    cache-max-age: '7'  # Update weekly

  2. Use template-only mode when cache exists

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    - name: Set variables from cache
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    use-cache: 'true'
    template-only: 'true'  # No API calls

  3. Schedule updates during low-traffic periods

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    on:
  schedule:
    - cron: '0 3 * * 0'  # Sunday 3 AM

Using Cache with Incremental Updates

Keep a comprehensive version history while minimizing API usage:

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- name: Update cache incrementally
  uses: 7rikazhexde/json2vars-setter@v1.0.1
  with:
    json-file: .github/json2vars-setter/sample/matrix.json
    use-cache: 'true'
    cache-max-age: '7'
    cache-incremental: 'true'
    cache-count: '30'  # Store up to 30 versions

Next Steps