agent failed to parse dbt run_results json after partial write error failed to read artifacts

TL;DR

Read the artifact defensively: run_results.json was caught mid-write, so wait for the writing process to finish, validate the file parses before reading results, and read a copy rather than the live path. A partial JSON artifact is a timing problem, not corrupt data. The agent read the file while dbt was still writing it, or from an interrupted run that never finished the write.

agent failed to parse dbt run_results json after partial write error failed to read artifacts

Use this when

• The check or run fails with this symptom: an agent fails to parse dbt run_results.json after a partial write.
• You are working on an agent workflow that reads dbt artifacts after a run, possibly while the run is still finishing and the failure repeats on the same data or configuration.
• You need the failing rows, rule, or stage isolated before changing thresholds or code.

Not for this skill when

• A run_results file from a crashed run that will never be completed, where the right move is rerunning dbt rather than waiting.
• The error text names a different tool, stage, or root cause. Match the verbatim error first and use that skill.

Steps

1. Check the file modification time and whether the dbt process or job is still active. Verify: the write is in progress, or the run ended without finishing it
2. Validate the file with a JSON parser and note where parsing stops. Verify: a truncated file ends mid-structure, confirming a partial write
3. Wait for the run to complete, or copy the file and parse the copy once the size is stable across two checks. Verify: the copy parses fully
4. Read the results from the validated copy and record the run id. Verify: results match the completed run
5. Add a completion check to the workflow: job status done plus a parse validation before any results are used. Verify: partial artifacts are never consumed again

Variant phrasings

agent failed parse dbt run_results json partial write

The shorter phrasing focused on the named failure.

dbt run_results.json truncated parse error agent

The symptom phrasing a searcher tries next.

run_results partial write agent fix

The variant naming the failing stage or tool directly.

Compatibility: dbt artifacts run_results.json and manifest.json, file based agent workflows

Why it happens

dbt writes run_results.json at the end of a run and the write is not atomic from a reader point of view. Agents that poll the target directory can open the file during the write, and interrupted runs leave a permanently truncated file that looks the same to a parser.

Edge cases / pitfalls

• Parsing with a tolerant reader that returns partial results is worse than failing; downstream steps then act on half a run.
• Distinguish truncated from corrupt: a truncated file is valid up to the cut, a corrupt one fails early.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_eKef5rZuTtMljrf5XiD5ZQ

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_eKef5rZuTtMljrf5XiD5ZQ

Thread query: agent failed to parse dbt run_results json after partial write error failed to read artifacts

TL;DR: Read the artifact defensively: run_results.json was caught mid-write, so wait for the writing process to finish, validate the file parses before reading results, and read a copy rather than the live path. A partial JSON artifact is a timing problem, not corrupt data. The agent read the file while dbt was still writing it, or from an interrupted run that never finished the write.