“Warning: ‘post-commit’ hook failed with error output:”

To save someone time in the future:

If you are fixing a hook in a Subversion repository, such as post-commit, and your clients get the message “Warning: ‘post-commit’ hook failed with error output:” and nothing else, it means that the script exited with a nonzero error status but did not print anything to standard error. However, this is also the effect of attempting to execute a non-executable file, and Subversion does not mention to you if your hook is not set executable. The first thing you should check is whether it is.

One Response to ““Warning: ‘post-commit’ hook failed with error output:””

  1. James Henstridge Says:

    It also happens if it is a script that is executable by you but not readable, as I found with one project I worked with.

    The outcome in this situation is that the commit has succeeded but your working tree is still pointing at the old revisiion. A simple “svn update” seems enough to get you going again (although the post-commit won’t have run).


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