Improve OTBR startup/shutdown reliability and diagnostics (#1071) - #348
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otbr_start.sh previously used a fixed 10s sleep after starting the
otbr-chip container, then blindly ran ot-ctl commands. If otbr-agent
failed to start (e.g. RCP dongle not present/enumerated), every
subsequent ot-ctl call failed with an opaque
"connect session failed: No such file or directory" error and no
indication of what actually went wrong.
- Fail fast with a clear message if the RCP device (/dev/ttyACM0) is
missing before starting the container.
- Replace the fixed sleep with a readiness poll ('ot-ctl state') with
a timeout, so the script doesn't race the agent's startup.
- On any ot-ctl failure (readiness or dataset setup), dump
'docker logs otbr-chip' before exiting so failures are diagnosable
from a single log capture.
- otbr_stop.sh: use 'docker stop' (graceful) instead of 'docker kill',
giving otbr-agent a chance to release the RCP serial device cleanly
before the container exits, reducing the chance the next
otbr_start.sh run fails to reattach to the RCP.
This is a reliability/diagnostics hardening change; it does not claim
to be a confirmed root-cause fix for #1071, since we don't yet have
docker logs from a failing run to confirm the underlying mechanism.
otbr_manager.py's ThreadBorderRouter tracks "its" container only via an in-memory reference, and creates containers without an explicit name. If a previous start_device() call fails partway through, or the backend process restarts, that reference is lost, but the container itself can remain running (Docker only checks container.status == "running" during creation, not whether otbr-agent actually came up inside it). Since OTBR runs with --privileged --network host and binds the RCP serial device, a leftover container like this blocks the next start_device() call's container from attaching to the RCP, producing: "Border router does not start properly for nrfconnect/otbr:9185bda" Similarly, a manual otbr_start.sh run only stops/removes a container named 'otbr-chip'; it has no way to know about a TH-managed container left running under a random Docker-assigned name, so switching from TH-managed OTBR to a manual run can hit "connect session failed" on the very first ot-ctl call, because the RCP is still held by the orphan. - container_manager.py: add remove_containers_for_image(), which force- removes any container (running or stopped) built from a given image. - otbr_manager.py: call it in start_device() before creating a new OTBR container, so leftover containers from this image can't block a fresh start. - otbr_start.sh: same idea for the manual path — in addition to removing 'otbr-chip' by name, remove any other container from the OTBR image. This addresses a leading theory for #1071, based on reproducing a matching "Border router does not start properly" failure locally with an orphaned container from a prior run still holding the RCP device. It is not a confirmed fix for the reporter's original failure, since we don't have container logs/state from their box to confirm the exact same mechanism.
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oxesoft
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Review findings inline. Overall the diagnostics additions (RCP-present check, readiness poll, log dumps) look solid; flagging a few things on the orphan-cleanup side before merging.
Fixes issues flagged in PR #348 review by @oxesoft: - container_manager.destroy() gained a `graceful` parameter (default False, preserving existing kill behavior for other callers). When True, it tries `container.stop()` first, falling back to `kill()` only if the stop itself raises. Previously remove_containers_for_image() always hard-killed via force=True, directly contradicting this PR's own rationale for switching otbr_stop.sh to a graceful docker stop. - remove_containers_for_image() now calls destroy(..., graceful=True), and documents that it matches any container for the given image host-wide (acceptable for OTBR's dedicated image, called out explicitly since it's a wide blast radius for a removal). - otbr_manager.py's destroy_device() (the harness's own routine teardown, not just the manual otbr_start.sh path) now also uses graceful=True, so the same "hard kill can wedge the RCP" concern is addressed on both paths, not just the shell script. - otbr_start.sh's stale-container cleanup now does `docker stop` before `docker rm -f`, consistent with the existing otbr-chip cleanup lines right above it. - Added unit tests for destroy() (default kill, graceful stop, and fallback-to-kill-on-stop-failure) and remove_containers_for_image() (stale containers present / none present).
- Black: reformat the with-statement in
test_remove_containers_for_image_removes_stale_containers to match
Black's expected wrapping.
- Backend Tests: the new fake containers only set attrs={"State": ...},
omitting "Id". remove_containers_for_image()'s log line reads
container.short_id, which is self.id[:12] where self.id comes from
attrs.get("Id") — with no "Id" key this is None, and None[:12] raises
TypeError, crashing the test before its assertions ran. Add
"Id": FAKE_ID to all four new fake containers to match the pattern
already used elsewhere in this file.
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📝 WalkthroughWalkthroughThe change adds graceful Docker container shutdown with forced removal and kill fallback. It adds cleanup for containers derived from an image. OTBR startup now removes stale containers, validates the RCP device, polls Suggested reviewers: 🚥 Pre-merge checks | ✅ 5✅ Passed checks (5 passed)
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Inline comments:
In `@test_collections/matter/scripts/OTBR/otbr_start.sh`:
- Around line 59-62: Update the stale-container cleanup and diagnostic Docker
commands in the OTBR startup script to consistently invoke Docker through sudo,
matching the existing sudo docker run usage. Apply this to the ancestor query
and all related stop, remove, and logging commands so cleanup and diagnostics
work for users without direct Docker access.
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📒 Files selected for processing (6)
app/container_manager/container_manager.pyapp/container_manager/docker_shell_commands.pyapp/tests/container_manager/test_container_manager.pytest_collections/matter/scripts/OTBR/otbr_start.shtest_collections/matter/scripts/OTBR/otbr_stop.shtest_collections/matter/sdk_tests/support/otbr_manager/otbr_manager.py
The stale-container cleanup added in this branch used unprivileged docker, while every other Docker command in this script that needs to reliably succeed (docker run --privileged, the readiness poll, log dumps) already uses sudo docker. On a host where the invoking user isn't in the docker group, the ancestor-filtered query would silently fail (output redirected to /dev/null, no exit code check), skip cleanup, and let a stale container keep blocking the next OTBR start — exactly the failure mode this branch is meant to fix. Also quote the ancestor filter value for consistency/safety. (caught by coderabbitai review on PR #348)
oxesoft
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antonio-amjr
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…starts Repro: run a python_testing test that lets TH manage OTBR, pass, then run a second test reusing the previous commissioning (answering YES to "Do you want to reuse the previous commissioning information?"). The second run fails during the test itself with: CASESession timed out while waiting for a response from peer operational discovery failed: AddressResolve_DefaultImpl.cpp:124: CHIP Error 0x00000032: Timeout Root cause: form_thread_topology() runs 'dataset init new' each time a new OTBR container forms the network, then only explicitly pins channel/panid/extpanid/networkkey/networkname. It never sets the Thread mesh-local prefix (ML-Prefix, TLV 0x07), so 'dataset init new' randomizes it on every call. Suite cleanup tears down the OTBR container between test runs, and suite setup for the next run creates a fresh one with a new random mesh-local prefix. But "reuse commissioning" means the DUT itself is NOT recommissioned - it keeps operating on its previous operational IPv6 address, derived from the *old* mesh-local prefix. The new controller then can't resolve the DUT at its new (mismatched) expected address, and operational discovery times out. Fix: derive a stable mesh-local prefix from extpanid (already a fixed, per-network identifier) and explicitly set it via 'dataset meshlocalprefix' before 'dataset commit active', in both: - otbr_manager.py (TH-managed OTBR path) - otbr_start.sh (manual OTBR path), for the same reason This keeps the mesh-local prefix - and therefore the DUT's expected operational address - stable across OTBR container restarts for the same network config, so reused commissioning keeps working. Also fixes a stale comment on otbr_start.sh's BR_IPV6PREFIX, which is actually the off-mesh-routable (OMR) prefix, not the mesh-local prefix as previously (incorrectly) commented. Adds unit tests for the new mesh-local-prefix derivation helper.
… OTBR restarts" This reverts commit 25fd46c.
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…) (#350) * Improve OTBR startup/shutdown diagnostics and reliability (#1071) otbr_start.sh previously used a fixed 10s sleep after starting the otbr-chip container, then blindly ran ot-ctl commands. If otbr-agent failed to start (e.g. RCP dongle not present/enumerated), every subsequent ot-ctl call failed with an opaque "connect session failed: No such file or directory" error and no indication of what actually went wrong. - Fail fast with a clear message if the RCP device (/dev/ttyACM0) is missing before starting the container. - Replace the fixed sleep with a readiness poll ('ot-ctl state') with a timeout, so the script doesn't race the agent's startup. - On any ot-ctl failure (readiness or dataset setup), dump 'docker logs otbr-chip' before exiting so failures are diagnosable from a single log capture. - otbr_stop.sh: use 'docker stop' (graceful) instead of 'docker kill', giving otbr-agent a chance to release the RCP serial device cleanly before the container exits, reducing the chance the next otbr_start.sh run fails to reattach to the RCP. This is a reliability/diagnostics hardening change; it does not claim to be a confirmed root-cause fix for #1071, since we don't yet have docker logs from a failing run to confirm the underlying mechanism. * Clean up orphaned OTBR containers before starting a new one (#1071) otbr_manager.py's ThreadBorderRouter tracks "its" container only via an in-memory reference, and creates containers without an explicit name. If a previous start_device() call fails partway through, or the backend process restarts, that reference is lost, but the container itself can remain running (Docker only checks container.status == "running" during creation, not whether otbr-agent actually came up inside it). Since OTBR runs with --privileged --network host and binds the RCP serial device, a leftover container like this blocks the next start_device() call's container from attaching to the RCP, producing: "Border router does not start properly for nrfconnect/otbr:9185bda" Similarly, a manual otbr_start.sh run only stops/removes a container named 'otbr-chip'; it has no way to know about a TH-managed container left running under a random Docker-assigned name, so switching from TH-managed OTBR to a manual run can hit "connect session failed" on the very first ot-ctl call, because the RCP is still held by the orphan. - container_manager.py: add remove_containers_for_image(), which force- removes any container (running or stopped) built from a given image. - otbr_manager.py: call it in start_device() before creating a new OTBR container, so leftover containers from this image can't block a fresh start. - otbr_start.sh: same idea for the manual path — in addition to removing 'otbr-chip' by name, remove any other container from the OTBR image. This addresses a leading theory for #1071, based on reproducing a matching "Border router does not start properly" failure locally with an orphaned container from a prior run still holding the RCP device. It is not a confirmed fix for the reporter's original failure, since we don't have container logs/state from their box to confirm the exact same mechanism. * Address review: graceful stop for OTBR container cleanup, add tests Fixes issues flagged in PR #348 review by @oxesoft: - container_manager.destroy() gained a `graceful` parameter (default False, preserving existing kill behavior for other callers). When True, it tries `container.stop()` first, falling back to `kill()` only if the stop itself raises. Previously remove_containers_for_image() always hard-killed via force=True, directly contradicting this PR's own rationale for switching otbr_stop.sh to a graceful docker stop. - remove_containers_for_image() now calls destroy(..., graceful=True), and documents that it matches any container for the given image host-wide (acceptable for OTBR's dedicated image, called out explicitly since it's a wide blast radius for a removal). - otbr_manager.py's destroy_device() (the harness's own routine teardown, not just the manual otbr_start.sh path) now also uses graceful=True, so the same "hard kill can wedge the RCP" concern is addressed on both paths, not just the shell script. - otbr_start.sh's stale-container cleanup now does `docker stop` before `docker rm -f`, consistent with the existing otbr-chip cleanup lines right above it. - Added unit tests for destroy() (default kill, graceful stop, and fallback-to-kill-on-stop-failure) and remove_containers_for_image() (stale containers present / none present). * Fix CI failures: Black formatting + missing Id in fake test containers - Black: reformat the with-statement in test_remove_containers_for_image_removes_stale_containers to match Black's expected wrapping. - Backend Tests: the new fake containers only set attrs={"State": ...}, omitting "Id". remove_containers_for_image()'s log line reads container.short_id, which is self.id[:12] where self.id comes from attrs.get("Id") — with no "Id" key this is None, and None[:12] raises TypeError, crashing the test before its assertions ran. Add "Id": FAKE_ID to all four new fake containers to match the pattern already used elsewhere in this file. * Fix: use sudo docker for stale-container cleanup in otbr_start.sh The stale-container cleanup added in this branch used unprivileged docker, while every other Docker command in this script that needs to reliably succeed (docker run --privileged, the readiness poll, log dumps) already uses sudo docker. On a host where the invoking user isn't in the docker group, the ancestor-filtered query would silently fail (output redirected to /dev/null, no exit code check), skip cleanup, and let a stale container keep blocking the next OTBR start — exactly the failure mode this branch is meant to fix. Also quote the ancestor filter value for consistency/safety. (caught by coderabbitai review on PR #348) * Pin Thread mesh-local prefix so reused commissioning survives OTBR restarts Repro: run a python_testing test that lets TH manage OTBR, pass, then run a second test reusing the previous commissioning (answering YES to "Do you want to reuse the previous commissioning information?"). The second run fails during the test itself with: CASESession timed out while waiting for a response from peer operational discovery failed: AddressResolve_DefaultImpl.cpp:124: CHIP Error 0x00000032: Timeout Root cause: form_thread_topology() runs 'dataset init new' each time a new OTBR container forms the network, then only explicitly pins channel/panid/extpanid/networkkey/networkname. It never sets the Thread mesh-local prefix (ML-Prefix, TLV 0x07), so 'dataset init new' randomizes it on every call. Suite cleanup tears down the OTBR container between test runs, and suite setup for the next run creates a fresh one with a new random mesh-local prefix. But "reuse commissioning" means the DUT itself is NOT recommissioned - it keeps operating on its previous operational IPv6 address, derived from the *old* mesh-local prefix. The new controller then can't resolve the DUT at its new (mismatched) expected address, and operational discovery times out. Fix: derive a stable mesh-local prefix from extpanid (already a fixed, per-network identifier) and explicitly set it via 'dataset meshlocalprefix' before 'dataset commit active', in both: - otbr_manager.py (TH-managed OTBR path) - otbr_start.sh (manual OTBR path), for the same reason This keeps the mesh-local prefix - and therefore the DUT's expected operational address - stable across OTBR container restarts for the same network config, so reused commissioning keeps working. Also fixes a stale comment on otbr_start.sh's BR_IPV6PREFIX, which is actually the off-mesh-routable (OMR) prefix, not the mesh-local prefix as previously (incorrectly) commented. Adds unit tests for the new mesh-local-prefix derivation helper. * Revert "Pin Thread mesh-local prefix so reused commissioning survives OTBR restarts" This reverts commit 25fd46c.
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Summary
Related to project-chip/certification-tool#1071 ("Border router does not start properly" / "connect session failed" failures).
This does not claim to be a confirmed root-cause fix for the reporter's exact original failure — we don't yet have
docker logs/container state from their box to confirm the mechanism. It addresses two real, reproducible issues found while investigating:No diagnostics on OTBR startup failure.
otbr_start.shused a fixed 10s sleep after starting the container, then ranot-ctlcommands blind. Ifotbr-agentfailed to come up, every subsequentot-ctlcall failed with an opaqueconnect session failed: No such file or directoryand no indication of why.Orphaned OTBR containers can block the next start.
otbr_manager.py'sThreadBorderRoutertracks its container only via an in-memory reference and creates it without an explicit name. If a previousstart_device()call fails partway, or the backend process restarts, that reference is lost — but the container can still be running and holding the RCP serial device (Docker only checkscontainer.status == "running", not whetherotbr-agentactually attached). This blocks the nextstart_device()call from acquiring the RCP, producingBorder router does not start properly for nrfconnect/otbr:9185bda. Reproduced locally: an orphaned container survived a failedstart_device()call and blocked a subsequent test run with this exact error until manually removed.The same blind spot exists on the manual path:
otbr_start.shonly stops/removes a container literally namedotbr-chip, so a TH-managed container left running under Docker's random name (e.g. from a prior test run) is invisible to it — switching from TH-managed OTBR to a manualotbr_start.shrun can hitconnect session failedon the very firstot-ctlcall because the RCP is still held by the orphan.Changes
otbr_start.sh/dev/ttyACM0) is missing, instead of proceeding into a container that can't attach to anything.ot-ctl state, 30s timeout).docker logs otbr-chipon anyot-ctlfailure (readiness or dataset setup) before exiting, so the actual failure is visible from a single log capture.otbr-chip, also remove any other container running the OTBR image (covers a leftover TH-managed container from a previous run).otbr_stop.shdocker stop(graceful) instead ofdocker kill, givingotbr-agenta chance to release the RCP serial device cleanly before the container exits.app/container_manager/container_manager.pyremove_containers_for_image(): force-removes any container (running or stopped) built from a given image.test_collections/matter/sdk_tests/support/otbr_manager/otbr_manager.pyremove_containers_for_image()instart_device()before creating a new OTBR container, so a leftover/untracked container from this image can't block a fresh start.Testing
otbr_start.sh/otbr_stop.shsyntax (bash -n) and reviewed the full diff.start_device()call blocked a subsequent run withBorder router does not start properly); confirmed manually removing the orphaned container resolved it, which is whatremove_containers_for_image()now automates.connect session failedfailure end-to-end; this is a hardening/diagnostics change plus a fix for a distinct, confirmed failure mode (orphaned containers) found during the investigation.Related
project-chip/certification-tool#1071