new error uploading to release

[jeremyd2019]

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I've been using github actions and releases to store pacman repositories for years now. Today I got a new error:

HTTP 422: Validation Failed (https://uploads.github.com/repos/jeremyd2019/msys2-build32/releases/199447018/assets?label=&name=build32.files)
file_count limited to 1000 assets per release.

Unfortunately, this was on a gh release upload --clobber, and it seems to have deleted the old files and now cannot upload their replacements. This has completely broken my project, because the database file that provides metadata is now missing.

I have other releases on this and other repositories with more than 5000 files, so it's clear that something has broken recently.

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[Leorev01]

Hey @jeremyd2019 ,
GitHub now limits releases to 1000 assets each. Your gh release upload --clobber removed old files but failed to upload new ones, breaking your repo. Here’s how to recover and work around this:

1. Split Assets Across Multiple Releases

Instead of one big release, create several (e.g., v1.0.0-part1, v1.0.0-part2). Example Bash script:

CHUNK=1000
FILES=(build32.*)  # Update as needed
REPO="yourusername/yourrepo"
for ((i=0; i<${#FILES[@]}; i+=CHUNK)); do
  PART=$((i/CHUNK+1))
  gh release create "v1.0.0-part$PART" "${FILES[@]:i:CHUNK}" --repo "$REPO"
done

2. Restore Missing Files

If you have local copies or backups, re-upload the missing files using the split-release script above.

3. Keep Metadata/Database Files Safe

Always upload important files like your database or metadata first or separately. This ensures they’re not lost if the upload fails partway.

4. Stay Updated

Monitor the GitHub Changelog for any changes to release asset limits or related features.

5. Contact GitHub Support

If this limit disrupts your workflow, contact GitHub Support and describe your use case and the impact.

[Leorev01]

I see https://web.archive.org/web/20250629152715/https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/releasing-projects-on-github/about-releases says "Each file included in a release must be under 2 GiB. There is no limit on the total size of a release, nor bandwidth usage." but https://web.archive.org/web/20250708081526/https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/releasing-projects-on-github/about-releases says "Up to 1000 release assets may be associated with a single release. Each file included in a release must be under 2 GiB. There is no limit on the total size of a release, nor bandwidth usage.".

I guess they slipped this breaking change in and hoped nobody would notice? Thanks a lot

I'm sorry I couldn't help I can imagine how frustrating it is.

It feels like a breaking change that wasn’t communicated. I’d suggest reaching out to GitHub Support to raise your concerns and ask for clarification.

Best of luck

[Swyter]

He's just pasting LLM-generated garbage. Not an original thought in sight.

[jeremyd2019]

yeah, that was obvious, especially when there was a deleted comment where he said something like "sound more human" 😛

[Leorev01]

yeah, that was obvious, especially when there was a deleted comment where he said something like "sound more human" 😛

hahah ngl yeah I did use it

[Leorev01]

yeah, that was obvious, especially when there was a deleted comment where he said something like "sound more human" 😛

hahah ngl yeah I did use it

yeah, that was obvious, especially when there was a deleted comment where he said something like "sound more human" 😛

hopefully you can get the issue solved though

[jeremyd2019]

For now, I have created a new release with only the most current files, which brings me below the new 1000 limit. But https://github.com/msys2/msys2-archive/releases is something else that is totally broken by this...

[Swyter]

This recent limit also broke my workflow. I had 3000+ historic files conveniently listed in a release. I guess I need to complicate everything by splitting the URLs for no reason at all. Fantastic.

In the documentation it still says that it's a name collision issue:
https://docs.github.com/en/rest/releases/assets?apiVersion=2022-11-28#upload-a-release-asset--status-codes

422
Response if you upload an asset with the same filename as another uploaded asset

[Labeebkhan]

Hey @jeremyd2019 ,

Thanks for bringing this up — that definitely sounds frustrating, especially with your project depending on those release assets.

It looks like GitHub has recently started enforcing a limit of 1000 assets per release, which is now throwing the HTTP 422: Validation Failed error during your gh release upload --clobber. Since --clobber deletes the old files before uploading new ones, it’s extra painful that it removed the existing assets and then failed to upload the replacements — effectively leaving your release broken.

You mentioned having releases with over 5000 files before, which makes it pretty clear this limit wasn't in place earlier (or at least wasn’t enforced). This definitely feels like a new policy or backend change that hasn't been well communicated.

Until GitHub officially responds or updates the documentation, a possible workaround could be:

Splitting assets across multiple releases or tags, or

Hosting larger sets of files elsewhere (like a cloud bucket or GitHub Pages) and linking to them from the release notes.

That said, this situation deserves a better fix or rollback from GitHub’s side, especially since it affects active workflows.

Hope they respond soon — your use case is absolutely valid, and this change has real impact.

[Swyter]

What's with you guys talking through LLMs? It's pretty sad and doesn't really do anything more than rehash info already in the thread. It's not helpful, it's just noise. This is like having spambots with extra steps.

[igorpecovnik]

:( We produce 1500-2000 files for each release https://github.com/armbian/community/releases ... complications.