Orchestration Troubleshooting

Stack stuck in CREATE_FAILED

Symptoms: Stack creation stops and the status shows CREATE_FAILED. One or more resources show CREATE_FAILED in the resource list.Diagnosis:

List stack events

openstack stack event list my-stack --nested-depth 5

Show the specific failed resource

openstack stack resource show my-stack my_instance

Common causes and resolutions:

Cause	Resolution
Invalid image name or ID	Verify the image exists: `openstack image list --status active`
Flavor not found	Verify the flavor: `openstack flavor list`
Network not found	Verify the network: `openstack network list`
Quota exceeded	Check quota: `openstack quota show`
Security group rule conflict	Review security group rules for duplicates or conflicting CIDR ranges
No hosts available in availability zone	Check host capacity with your administrator
Key pair not found	Verify: `openstack keypair list`

Recovery: After fixing the root cause, re-deploy the stack. CREATE_FAILED stacks can be deleted and recreated, but cannot be resumed:

Delete failed stack and redeploy

openstack stack delete --yes my-stack
openstack stack create --template template.yaml --wait my-stack

Stack stuck in CREATE_IN_PROGRESS or UPDATE_IN_PROGRESS

Symptoms: The stack status has not changed from IN_PROGRESS for an extended period (beyond the expected resource creation time).Diagnosis:

Check current resource states

openstack stack resource list my-stack

Stream live events

openstack stack event list my-stack --follow

Common causes and resolutions:

Cause	Resolution
`WaitCondition` waiting for a signal that never arrives	Check the instance console log: `openstack console log show <instance-id>`. Verify the signal URL in user_data is correct.
Instance in BUILD state for too long	Check compute host capacity and scheduler logs via the deployment console
Dependency cycle between resources	Review `depends_on` declarations and `get_resource` references for circular chains
External API timeout	The Orchestration engine retries — wait for the configured timeout before intervening

Force-abort a stuck stack (admin only):

Abandon a stuck stack

openstack stack abandon my-stack

stack abandon releases the stack from Orchestration management but does NOT delete the underlying resources. You must clean up instances, volumes, and networks manually.

Template validation errors

Symptoms: openstack orchestration template validate returns errors, or the Dashboard rejects the template at upload time.Diagnosis:

Validate template

openstack orchestration template validate -t my-template.yaml

Common error messages and resolutions:

Error Message	Resolution
`Unknown type: Polystack::Compute::Serverr`	Check for typos in resource type names — type names are case-sensitive
`Property X is not supported`	Check the property name against the resource type documentation
`Parameter X not found`	A `get_param` references a parameter that is not defined in the `parameters` section
`Circular dependency detected`	A `depends_on` or `get_resource` chain creates a cycle — draw the dependency graph to identify the loop
`Invalid YAML`	Use a YAML linter (e.g., `yamllint`) to find indentation or syntax errors

Use two-space indentation consistently throughout your templates. Tabs are not valid in YAML and will cause parse failures.

Resource dependency failures

Symptoms: A resource fails because a resource it depends on was not yet created, or an attribute reference returns an empty value.Diagnosis:

Show resource detail and status

openstack stack resource show my-stack resource_name

List resource events

openstack stack resource event list my-stack resource_name

Common causes and resolutions:

Cause	Resolution
`get_attr` used on a resource still in `CREATE_IN_PROGRESS`	Add an explicit `depends_on` to ensure the source resource is complete before the dependent resource starts
`get_attr` attribute path is incorrect	Check the resource type’s attribute documentation for the correct path
Resource deleted out-of-band (manually)	The stack’s view of the resource is stale — run `openstack stack update --existing` to reconcile
Volume attachment fails because instance is still building	Add `depends_on: [my_instance]` to the `VolumeAttachment` resource

Nested stack errors

Symptoms: A parent stack fails or stalls because a child (nested) stack encounters an error.Diagnosis:

List events across all nested stacks

openstack stack event list my-parent-stack --nested-depth 5

List nested stacks

openstack stack resource list my-parent-stack
# Find the Polystack::Orchestration::Stack resource, then:
openstack stack show <child-stack-id>

Common causes and resolutions:

Cause	Resolution
Child template file not accessible	Ensure `get_file:` paths are relative to the parent template directory, or use `template_url` with an accessible URL
Parameter mismatch between parent and child	Verify that all parameters passed to the child template via `parameters:` match the parameter names defined in the child
Child stack output referenced before creation completes	Add `depends_on` to resources that consume child stack outputs
`get_attr` on nested stack refers to undefined output	Verify the output name exists in the child template’s `outputs` section

Getting Started

Review stack creation fundamentals and template structure

Template Guide

Correct template syntax, parameter types, and intrinsic functions

Admin Troubleshooting

Engine-level diagnostics and service configuration issues

Resource Types

Verify correct resource type names and property definitions

Core Services

Other Services

Overview

Troubleshooting Reference

Diagnostic Command Reference

Next Steps

Getting Started

Template Guide

Admin Troubleshooting

Resource Types

​Overview

​Troubleshooting Reference

​Diagnostic Command Reference

​Next Steps

Getting Started

Template Guide

Admin Troubleshooting

Resource Types

Overview

Troubleshooting Reference

Diagnostic Command Reference

Next Steps