Debug-action-cache

When console logs are insufficient, you can interact with the GitHub Actions cache management system directly via the command line using the GitHub CLI ( gh ). This allows you to inspect the active state of your repository's storage storage. List All Active Caches

In "write-back" scenarios, there is a delay between the action finishing and the cache being fully uploaded to the storage provider. If a job crashes mid-upload, the next run might pull a partial, corrupted archive. Summary Checklist for Debugging Check the Key: actually change when your dependencies change? Verify the Path:

While step debug logs focus on the actions themselves, runner diagnostic logs provide system-level debugging for the entire job environment. This is useful for diagnosing issues that may be related to the runner itself (e.g., an error when the runner tries to save a cache). debug-action-cache

(Select or describe)

The most common and frustrating issue is when a workflow cannot restore a cache, even though you are certain it was created. The debug logs often show a message like: There exist one or more cache(s) with similar key but they have different version or scope . When console logs are insufficient, you can interact

While GitHub does not feature a single native command named debug-action-cache , debugging cache behavior in GitHub Actions relies on a precise combination of workflow configuration variables, official action steps, and API inspection. This comprehensive guide covers how to enable verbose cache logging, isolate cache misses, and optimize your pipeline storage. 1. Enabling Verbose Cache Logging

Before you can debug a cache problem, you must first understand the engine behind it. The actions/cache action is designed to speed up workflows by storing and reusing dependencies or build outputs. Because GitHub-hosted runners start in a clean virtual environment for each job, caching prevents you from having to download the same packages and tools repeatedly. If a job crashes mid-upload, the next run

Is USER or HOSTNAME being sucked into the action?

- uses: actions/cache@v4 # Ensure your version is >= v4.1.0

You usually start looking into debug-action-cache for two reasons:

You updated a dependency, but your pipeline keeps pulling the outdated version.