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azureazure-devopsazure-pipelinesnode-modulesazure-devops-extensions

Azure DevOps extension cache wrong node_modules

General: I develop an Azure DevOps extension with tasks and pipeline decorators. Testing on local Azure DevOps Server instance. Extension loaded through manage extensions from local hard drive. Let's say that I installed the extension first time with version 1.0.0 and a node_modules dependency "3rdPartyDep" with version 2.0.0, which has transitive dependencies with vulnerabilities.

Scenario:

  1. Upgrade "3rdPartyDep" to version 3.0.0 with fixed vulnerabilities. Build new version of my extension, say 1.0.1. Create the .vsix, update the extension in the Azure DevOps Server.
  2. Run a pipeline, which fails because I did not check the "3rdPartyDep" changes and there are breaking changes and the extension fails to run.
  3. Rollback the "3rdPartyDep" library to 2.0.0 because I have no time now to check what is broken in there right now as I have other things to debug and implement, repackage the extension, increase version to 1.0.2, update extension in Azure DevOps Server.
  4. Run the pipeline. It fails with the same exception, as if I didn't rollback. I look into the agent taks folder and I see that the node_modules with the "3rdPartyDep" library is pointing to 3.0.0, which is wrong because I rolled back the version.
  5. I open the generated .vsix archive and check that the node_modules inside contains the correct 2.0.0 version, so no problems of packaging or building from my side.
  6. I make a conclusion that Azure DevOps stores somewhere a cached version of the extension with the node_modules including the wrong version of the "3rdPartyDep". I search that cache folder over internet to find out where it is, and I also search with a search tool all my machine, including words in file. Nowhere to be found. There is no location on my machine with such node_modules containing the 3.0.0 version. It might be stored in some encrypted DB?
  7. I uninstall completely the extension, and install it back. I see that Azure DevOps has a history for the extension, and the cache is not cleared. Any pipeline fails, even if my .vsix does not contain this dependency.

I'm stuck.

Questions:

  1. Where extensions are actually cached inside Azure DevOps Server?
  2. Why updating, uninstalling and installing does not fix the problem?
  3. Is there any way to fix this? What can I do? I do not want to reinstall the server completely. Moreover, this raises concerns about how node_modules are managed and cached and what happens at the clients and the cloud.
Solution

  • You could try the following items:

    1. Try to clean the browser cache, and check whether you have increase the version number in the task.json.

    2. Try to perform Delete task -- Save definition -- add task again process.

    3. Delete Azure DevOps Server cache, which can be followed in this link.

    4. Uninstall the extension from CollectionSettings, remove the extension from local Manage Extensions. Then upload again the extension and install it in the collection.