Diagnose Validation and Trace Output
Use validation errors and trace output to find schema mismatches, missing fields, and render-time problems in a Cuddler workflow.
A practical debugging order
The goal is to classify the failure quickly and then inspect the smallest boundary that explains it.
Start with the exact failure signal instead of broad speculation.
Decide whether the issue belongs to data validation, template validation, or rendering.
Make sure the workflow is not failing because the wrong family is in play.
See where the workflow stopped matching the expected structure.
Update the narrowest boundary that fully explains the failure.
Trace output is for locating the mismatch, not replacing schema review.
When something fails, start with the error path and the schema boundary. That keeps the debugging process focused and prevents you from trying to fix rendering when the real problem is still in the input contract.
A practical order of operations
- Read the error
code,message, andpathfirst. - Decide whether the failure belongs to data validation, template validation, or rendering.
- Check the schema identity and version alignment.
- Use trace output to confirm where traversal stopped.
- Fix the smallest contract that explains the failure.
What trace output is for
Trace output should help you answer a simple question: where did the workflow stop matching the expected structure? It is useful for path-level debugging, but it should not replace the actual schema review.
Common failure patterns
- A required field is missing in the data.
- A schema path points to the wrong version.
- A template references a field that is not present.
- Render-time sanitization strips content that should not have been trusted.
