renovate fails with "Error: fatal: pathspec 'vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE' is beyond a symbolic link"

[dominikholler]

How are you running Renovate?

Self-hosted Renovate

If you're self-hosting Renovate, tell us which platform (GitHub, GitLab, etc) and which version of Renovate.

GitHub

Please tell us more about your question or problem

On updating vendored golang dependencies, and a dependency is symlinked, renovate fails with "Error: fatal: pathspec 'vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE' is beyond a symbolic link"

Please find a minimal reproducer in https://github.com/dominikholler/symlinkdependency

Logs (if relevant)

Logs

DEBUG: Preparing files for committing to branch renovate/golang.org-x-net-0.x (repository=dominikholler/symlinkdependency, branch=renovate/golang.org-x-net-0.x)
DEBUG: Setting git author name: Dominik Holler (repository=dominikholler/symlinkdependency, branch=renovate/golang.org-x-net-0.x)
DEBUG: Setting git author email: github@hollyhome.ath.cx (repository=dominikholler/symlinkdependency, branch=renovate/golang.org-x-net-0.x)
DEBUG: Unknown error committing files (repository=dominikholler/symlinkdependency, branch=renovate/golang.org-x-net-0.x)
       "err": {
         "task": {
           "commands": ["add", "vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE"],
           "format": "utf-8",
           "parser": "[function]"
         },
         "message": "fatal: pathspec 'vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE' is beyond a symbolic link\n",
         "stack": "Error: fatal: pathspec 'vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE' is beyond a symbolic link\n\n    at Object.action (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/plugins/error-detection.plugin.ts:42:29)\n    at PluginStore.exec (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/plugins/plugin-store.ts:54:29)\n    at /usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/runners/git-executor-chain.ts:124:42\n    at new Promise (<anonymous>)\n    at GitExecutorChain.handleTaskData (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/runners/git-executor-chain.ts:121:14)\n    at GitExecutorChain.<anonymous> (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/runners/git-executor-chain.ts:97:40)\n    at Generator.next (<anonymous>)\n    at fulfilled (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/dist/cjs/index.js:52:24)\n    at processTicksAndRejections (node:internal/process/task_queues:105:5)"
       }
 WARN: Error updating branch (repository=dominikholler/symlinkdependency, branch=renovate/golang.org-x-net-0.x)
       "err": {
         "task": {
           "commands": ["add", "vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE"],
           "format": "utf-8",
           "parser": "[function]"
         },
         "message": "fatal: pathspec 'vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE' is beyond a symbolic link\n",
         "stack": "Error: fatal: pathspec 'vendor/golang.org/x/net/LICENSE' is beyond a symbolic link\n\n    at Object.action (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/plugins/error-detection.plugin.ts:42:29)\n    at PluginStore.exec (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/plugins/plugin-store.ts:54:29)\n    at /usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/runners/git-executor-chain.ts:124:42\n    at new Promise (<anonymous>)\n    at GitExecutorChain.handleTaskData (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/runners/git-executor-chain.ts:121:14)\n    at GitExecutorChain.<anonymous> (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/src/lib/runners/git-executor-chain.ts:97:40)\n    at Generator.next (<anonymous>)\n    at fulfilled (/usr/local/renovate/node_modules/.pnpm/simple-git@3.27.0/node_modules/simple-git/dist/cjs/index.js:52:24)\n    at processTicksAndRejections (node:internal/process/task_queues:105:5)"
       }

Please find the full context in https://gist.github.com/dominikholler/063bb7be5010f2f0c5d0022e6b2b5b1a

[rarkins]

Please install the hosted app into the reproduction repo to confirm it reproduces in the way as for you locally

[dominikholler]

I onboarded the reproduction repo to the mend github app.
Is https://developer.mend.io/github/dominikholler/symlinkdependency/-/job/019492cf-504d-7ae7-87e2-0e2ab76ac80d accessible for you?

[dominikholler]

https://gist.github.com/dominikholler/cdffed81623731e822398757c56e0b6e is log output from https://developer.mend.io/github/dominikholler/symlinkdependency/-/job/019492cf-504d-7ae7-87e2-0e2ab76ac80d

[rarkins]

Do you happen to know what Renovate should do if it detects a file in the vendor directory which is symlinked?

Renovate could skip/ignore it, but that doesn't seem ideal. It apparently can't simply git add it, so then what?

[dominikholler]

Do you happen to know what Renovate should do if it detects a file in the vendor directory which is symlinked?

I investigated deeper, and I found that the current behavior of renovate fits already very well to golang.

Renovate could skip/ignore it, but that doesn't seem ideal. It apparently can't simply git add it, so then what?

I was not able to reproduce the error message by git add on command line. https://github.com/git/git/blob/4e746b1a31f9f0036032b6f94279cf16fb363203/apply.c#L3880 looks like changing the order to remove the symlink before adding the file might solve the error in renovate. .

In my scenario, I investigate if it would work use excludeCommitPaths of the affected paths.

[dominikholler]

closing as it might be only an edge case