bug(vm): per-sandbox Unix socket paths exceed macOS sun_path limit
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Description
User Story
As a developer running the VM compute driver on macOS, I want per-sandbox Unix socket paths to fit within the OS sun_path limit so that sandbox creation does not fail with a socket bind error.
Problem Statement
The VM driver constructs per-sandbox Unix socket paths by joining {state_dir}/sandboxes/{sandbox_id}/{socket_name}. Sandbox IDs are UUID v4 strings (36 chars), and state_dir depends on the user's home directory. On macOS, struct sockaddr_un.sun_path is 104 bytes (103 usable). With the default state_dir (~/.local/state/openshell/vm-driver), the resulting socket path reaches 107 bytes — 3 bytes over the limit — and bind() fails.
/Users/benoitf/.local/state/openshell/vm-driver/sandboxes/3eb2ad45-bead-4c2e-bd10-1a4a7f3a2721/control.sock
└─────────────────────────────────── 107 bytes ──────────────────────────────────────┘
Path length breakdown:
/Users/benoitf/.local/state/openshell/vm-driver (47)
/sandboxes/ (11)
3eb2ad45-bead-4c2e-bd10-1a4a7f3a2721 (36)
/control.sock (13)
total = 107 bytes
macOS limit = 104 bytes
over by 3 bytes
Impact / Why This Matters
When this happens, VM sandbox creation fails at the control socket bind step. The error surfaces as a low-level socket error, not as a clear path-length diagnostic.
The current workaround is to manually configure a short state_dir (e.g. /tmp/os-vm). or rename control.sock for ctl.sock for my case (as I reduced 3 extra chars)
This is non-obvious, fragile, and breaks persistence expectations. Any user whose home directory path is longer than /Users/benoitf (15 chars) would be even further over the limit.
Linux is less affected (108-byte limit) but not immune with deep state directories or longer usernames.
Acceptance Criteria
- Per-sandbox Unix socket paths fit within 103 usable bytes on macOS for any reasonable
state_dir - The fix does not break sandbox state directory layout or persistence/restore
- Existing sandbox directories remain discoverable (sandbox ID must still be recoverable from the filesystem)
- The gateway compute-driver socket path (
run/compute-driver.sock) remains unaffected
Reproduction Steps
- On macOS, start the gateway with
--compute-driver vmusing the defaultstate_dir(~/.local/state/openshell/vm-driver) - Run
openshell sandbox create --name test --from ubuntu:24.04 - Observe the sandbox creation fails at the control socket bind
Environment
- OpenShell: development build (current main branch)
- OS: macOS (Apple Silicon) —
sun_pathis 104 bytes - Runtime: VM compute driver (libkrun)
Logs
Error: bind() failed for /Users/benoitf/.local/state/openshell/vm-driver/sandboxes/3eb2ad45-bead-4c2e-bd10-1a4a7f3a2721/control.sock
Contributor guide
First steps
- Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
- Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
- Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
- Open a pull request that references the issue number.
Research direction
Start with the VM compute driver’s per-sandbox socket path construction and reproduce the macOS bind failure using the default state_dir. Trace how sandbox directories are created and restored, then verify that the revised paths stay within the macOS limit, preserve discovery and persistence, and leave run/compute-driver.sock unchanged.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- macos, rust
- Domain
- backend, operating-systems
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 4/5
- Estimated time
- 3-5 days
- Activity status
- Active
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 55/100