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Watch a build and see why it stopped

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Who this is for: Anyone in a workspace whose builders work on a machine: you want to know what a build is doing, or why it stopped.

What this does: Shows you how to read what a running build is doing, and how to read on the card why a build stopped and whether it cost the card a try.

Before you begin

  • A builder is at work on a machine in your workspace. To add one, see Order a workstation.

  • The OPVS command line, signed in to your workspace, for reading a build while it runs.

Steps

  1. Find the card the builder is working on. Its reference is the short code on the card, such as WEB-12.

  2. While the build runs, read it from the command line: opvs builds read WEB-12. It shows the machine the build runs on, the command it is running now and for how long, its last steps, and any messages sent to it. If the card has no running build, it says so.

  3. To give the build a note while it works, send opvs builds tell WEB-12 "Use the v2 client". If the build has already ended, the note is saved on the card for its next build.

  4. When the build has stopped, open the card and read the newest comment. A comment that starts Build failed names the failure cause.

  5. Check who paid for it. A comment that starts Environment hand-back means our machine failed the build, not the code: the card keeps its try, the budget that build used is refunded, and a different machine picks the card up after about 10 minutes. Paused: card budget exhausted means the card's budget is spent: no try is counted, and the card waits in Backlog until the budget is refilled. Any other cause counts as one of the card's tries.

Verify it worked

While the build runs, opvs builds read shows a newer command or step each time you run it. When the build ends, it says no build is running for the card, and the card shows either a pull request or a comment that names why it stopped.

Troubleshoot

  • "No build is running for this card". The build has finished or not started yet. Read the card's newest comment to see which.

  • It says "no command reported". The build has just started, or the machine cannot read its current command. Run the command again in a minute.

  • The build stopped at its time limit. Every build may run for 230 minutes. A build that reaches its limit is paused with its work saved, and the card's next build carries on from that work instead of starting again. A build that is busy working is never stopped as stalled.

  • The same card keeps being handed back. A card gets up to 5 free hand-backs a day. After that, its next failure counts as a try. Send the card's comments to support from the dashboard.

  • opvs builds tell is refused. Sending a note needs a workspace admin, or a token with the builds:tell permission. Reading a build needs only a member's token.

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