sync-debug

---

name: sync-debug description: Diagnose a failing or misbehaving sync — fetch run logs, identify errors, cross-reference with code, and suggest fixes user-invocable: true disable-model-invocation: true allowed-tools: ["Read", "Bash", "Glob", "Grep", "Edit", "Write"]

Instructions

Help the user figure out why their sync is failing or producing wrong results. Work through the steps below systematically.

Step 1: Get Current State

Run these commands to understand the situation:

ntn workers sync status

Note which syncs are listed, their status, last run time, and next scheduled run. Look for syncs that are stuck, failing, or haven't run recently.

Step 2: Fetch Recent Runs

ntn workers runs list

Look for runs with non-zero exit codes (shown in red in table output). Note the run IDs for failed runs.

Step 3: Get Logs

For the most recent run (any capability):

ntn workers runs list --plain | head -n1 | cut -f1 | xargs -I{} ntn workers runs logs {}

For the most recent run of a specific sync:

ntn workers runs list --plain | grep <syncKey> | head -n1 | cut -f1 | xargs -I{} ntn workers runs logs {}

Read the full log output. Look for error messages, stack traces, and any console.log output from the sync code.

Step 4: Read the Sync Code

Read src/index.ts (and any imported modules) to understand the sync's logic. Cross-reference the error from the logs with the code.

Step 5: Diagnose

Common failure patterns and their fixes:

API Authentication Errors (401/403)

• Check if OAuth is configured: ntn workers oauth token <oauthKey>
• Check environment variables: ntn workers env list
• If env vars are missing remotely: ntn workers env push
• If OAuth token expired: ntn workers oauth start <key> to re-authenticate

Rate Limiting (429)

• Reduce batch size in the sync code
• Add delays between API calls if needed
• Check if the API has documented rate limits

Timeout / Long Execution

• The execute function is taking too long per call
• Reduce batch size (fewer records per page)
• Simplify per-record processing (defer heavy transforms)

Cursor / State Errors

• TypeError on state access: probably a first-run issue (state is undefined)
• State shape changed after a code update: the persisted state from the previous run has the old shape
• Fix: ntn workers sync state reset <key> to clear state and re-backfill from scratch

Schema Mismatch

• Properties in changes don't match the schema.properties definition
• Check that every key in the properties object of each change matches a key in the schema
• Check that Builder.title() is used for Schema.title() properties, Builder.richText() for Schema.richText(), etc.

Infinite Loop (sync never completes)

• hasMore is always true — the cursor isn't advancing
• Check that nextState changes between iterations
• Check the termination condition: is it reachable?

Empty Results

• API returning no data: test the API call directly (curl or local exec)
• Wrong endpoint or query parameters
• Auth working but insufficient permissions/scopes

Network / Transient Errors

• Single occurrence: may be transient — check if subsequent runs succeeded
• Repeated: check the API endpoint URL, DNS, connectivity
• Force a retry: ntn workers sync trigger <key>

Step 6: Fix and Verify

After identifying the issue:

1. Apply the fix to the code
2. Run npm run check to verify types
3. If the state shape changed, warn the user they may need ntn workers sync state reset <key> (this triggers a full re-backfill)
4. Deploy and preview to verify: suggest /sync-preview or run ntn workers deploy && ntn workers sync trigger <key> --preview
5. When the fix is verified, ntn workers sync trigger <key> to resume