Github actions failing when accessing actions/cache@v4

[notbnull]

Select Topic Area

Bug

Body

Github actions failing when accessing actions/cache@v4

Cache service responded with 422

[github-actions[bot]]

💬 Your Product Feedback Has Been Submitted 🎉

Thank you for taking the time to share your insights with us! Your feedback is invaluable as we build a better GitHub experience for all our users.

Here's what you can expect moving forward ⏩

• Your input will be carefully reviewed and cataloged by members of our product teams. 
  • Due to the high volume of submissions, we may not always be able to provide individual responses.
  • Rest assured, your feedback will help chart our course for product improvements.
• Other users may engage with your post, sharing their own perspectives or experiences. 
• GitHub staff may reach out for further clarification or insight. 
  • We may 'Answer' your discussion if there is a current solution, workaround, or roadmap/changelog post related to the feedback.

Where to look to see what's shipping 👀

• Read the Changelog for real-time updates on the latest GitHub features, enhancements, and calls for feedback.
• Explore our Product Roadmap, which details upcoming major releases and initiatives.

What you can do in the meantime 💻

• Upvote and comment on other user feedback Discussions that resonate with you.
• Add more information at any point! Useful details include: use cases, relevant labels, desired outcomes, and any accompanying screenshots.

As a member of the GitHub community, your participation is essential. While we can't promise that every suggestion will be implemented, we want to emphasize that your feedback is instrumental in guiding our decisions and priorities.

Thank you once again for your contribution to making GitHub even better! We're grateful for your ongoing support and collaboration in shaping the future of our platform. ⭐

[leontastic]

Also seeing this when running actions/setup-node@v2 with cache: pnpm

[waterfire-source]

Hey! I’ve hit the same issue before — when the cache action fails with a 422, it’s usually due to one of the following:

Common Causes:

1. Empty cache key or path
   The action needs both a valid key and at least one path. If either is missing or resolves to an empty string, it will throw a 422.

   Double check this block:

   - name: Cache dependencies
     uses: actions/cache@v4
     with:
       path: |
         ~/.npm
       key: ${{ runner.os }}-node-${{ hashFiles('**/package-lock.json') }}

   Make sure:

   • The path exists or will be created before the cache step.
   • hashFiles(...) resolves to a non-empty value.

2. Using restore-keys incorrectly
   If you’re using restore-keys, ensure it’s just for restoring (not saving) and doesn’t overwrite your key.

---

Quick Fix Tips:

• Add a debug step to verify that your hashFiles(...) resolves properly.
• Temporarily hardcode the key to test:

  key: test-cache-key

• Also, GitHub Actions cache doesn't support caching for all runners or events (e.g., pull_request_target sometimes fails).

---

Let me know if you're still stuck and I can help look at your workflow file. Hope this helps!

[moorena]

Is it related to the cache migration/decom ? https://github.blog/changelog/2025-03-20-notification-of-upcoming-breaking-changes-in-github-actions/

[notbnull]

This would make the most sense since it started right at 3 pm UTC essentially, but I thought cache@v4 would be unaffected

[notbnull]

Thanks for the nudge, it was indeed related to this brownout.

[notbnull]

I did a full audit of my ci and even though I am indeed using cache@v4 correctly, other jobs are using actions/setup-node@v2. Upgrading actions/setup-node to v4 solved my issue

[armordog]

This is still broken.
I have changed nothing with my build and I'm getting Cache service responded with 422

[nikmolnar]

Same here. Problems started just this morning. Deleting the caches didn't help.

[armordog]

I did the same thing as @notbnull and it worked.
updated actions/setup-node to v4.

But if the old versions are not supported it would have been nice to be notified.