Repository is unavailable

Symptom

Guard cannot load a repository, a run reports access failure, setup no longer lists an expected repository, or provider links and write actions are unavailable.

Quick checks

• Confirm the repository still exists and was not renamed, transferred, archived behind new policy, or removed from the Guard project.
• Confirm the current user still has provider access.
• For GitHub, inspect the GitHub App installation and selected repository access.
• For GitLab, verify the configured host, token expiry, project membership, and required scopes.

Diagnose the provider path

GitHub access follows the installed app. Organization policy or a change from all repositories to selected repositories can remove Guard without changing the repository URL. Restore the repository to the intended installation scope rather than installing an unrelated app.

GitLab access depends on the exact host and credential. The current setup requires api, read_repository, and write_repository for the full published workflow set. A self-hosted URL must be reachable from Guard and use the correct base path and TLS configuration. Do not substitute a token from another user, host, or repository to make the error disappear.

Resolve the problem

Restore the existing provider authorization, reconnect the correct host or installation, then reopen the Guard project. Confirm that the repository identity and default branch are correct before retrying diagnostics or an audit. If the repository moved, reconnect it through the supported project flow so future artifacts do not target the old path.

Write-capable actions may remain unavailable even when reads recover if provider API permissions are narrower than the job needs.

Escalate safely

Record the provider, host without credentials, complete repository path, project, approximate failure time, and visible error or run status. Never send a token, installation secret, private key, unredacted report, or repository secret. Ask the repository or organization owner to confirm access when you do not control the installation or credential.