Troubleshooting

Common issues and their solutions

This page covers environment problems: a tool that will not install, authentication, or a workflow that never ran.

If a check itself fails, that is the normal working loop rather than a problem with your setup. The labs repository README explains what each failure tells you and how to work through it with an AI assistant.

Python and uv issues

uv: command not found

  • Restart the terminal after installation so its PATH refreshes.
  • Revisit the official uv installation guide for your operating system.

The environment is missing or out of date

  • From the repository root, run uv sync --locked.
  • Run Python as uv run python ...; no manual activation is required.

ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'labXX'

  • Run the exact command shown in the lab from the repository root.
  • Example: uv run --directory week03 python -m pytest tests/ -v.

Windows issues

I don’t have Git Bash / I can’t find it

  • Git Bash is installed by the Git for Windows installer, so install Git and you have it.
  • Open it from the Start menu by typing “Git Bash”, or right-click in a folder and choose Open Git Bash here.

My terminal doesn’t look like the course examples

  • You are probably in PowerShell or Command Prompt. Confirm the prompt says MINGW64.
  • In VS Code, press Ctrl+Shift+P, run Terminal: Select Default Profile, choose Git Bash, then open a new terminal.

code: command not found

  • VS Code was installed without Add to PATH. Re-run the installer and select it, or open the folder from VS Code with File > Open Folder instead.

uv: command not found right after installing it on Windows

  • The uv installer runs in PowerShell and updates PATH. Close Git Bash and reopen it so it picks up the change.

Git and GitHub issues

Git asks for a username and password when I push

  • GitHub no longer accepts your account password for Git. Retyping it will not help.
  • Create a personal access token at https://github.com/settings/tokens, choose the classic token type, and give it the repo scope. Copy it before you leave the page.
  • Run git push origin main again. Enter your GitHub username, then paste the token when Git asks for your password. Nothing appears on screen while you paste, which is expected.
  • If earlier attempts saved the wrong password, clear the stored credential and push again: Credential Manager on Windows, Keychain Access on macOS, searching for github.com.
  • Never save a token in the repository. Treat it like a password.

Authentication failed or permission was denied

  • Confirm git remote -v points to your fork, not the instructor repository.
  • Confirm your token has not expired and carries the repo scope.
  • For anything else, see GitHub’s authentication documentation.

Changes are not showing on GitHub

  • Run git status and git log -1.
  • A commit remains local until you run git push origin main.
  • “Your branch is ahead of origin/main by 1 commit” means the commit worked and the push has not happened yet. Nothing is lost.

Rust issues

cargo: command not found

GitHub Actions issues

A workflow did not run

  • In a new fork, open Actions and enable the inherited workflows.
  • Confirm you pushed the required files to main.
  • Select the badge or workflow run to read the first failing step.

My badge is grey, or says “no status”

  • That is normal for a week you have not started. The check only runs once you push a file for that week, so grey means “not attempted yet” rather than “broken.”

What should the badges look like?

  • The demonstration repository is a stand-in for a fork partway through the semester: Week 01 passing, Week 02 failing, and the later weeks with no status. Select the failing badge there to see how a failure reads before you hit one of your own.