resource-manager-invalid-template-errors.md

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Azure invalid template errors | Microsoft Docs	Describes how to resolve invalid template errors.	azure-resource-manager,azure-portal		tfitzmac	timlt		azure-resource-manager	multiple	na	na	support-article	09/13/2017	tomfitz

Resolve errors for invalid template

This article describes how to resolve invalid template errors.

Symptom

When deploying a template, you receive an error indicating:

Code=InvalidTemplate
Message=<varies>

The error message depends on the type of error.

Cause

This error can result from several different types of errors. They usually involve a syntax or structural error in the template.

Solution

Solution 1 - syntax error

If you receive an error message that indicates the template failed validation, you may have a syntax problem in your template.

Code=InvalidTemplate
Message=Deployment template validation failed

This error is easy to make because template expressions can be intricate. For example, the following name assignment for a storage account contains one set of brackets, three functions, three sets of parentheses, one set of single quotes, and one property:

"name": "[concat('storage', uniqueString(resourceGroup().id))]",

If you do not provide the matching syntax, the template produces a value that is different than your intention.

When you receive this type of error, carefully review the expression syntax. Consider using a JSON editor like Visual Studio or Visual Studio Code, which can warn you about syntax errors.

Solution 2 - incorrect segment lengths

Another invalid template error occurs when the resource name is not in the correct format.

Code=InvalidTemplate
Message=Deployment template validation failed: 'The template resource {resource-name}'
for type {resource-type} has incorrect segment lengths.

A root level resource must have one less segment in the name than in the resource type. Each segment is differentiated by a slash. In the following example, the type has two segments and the name has one segment, so it is a valid name.

{
  "type": "Microsoft.Web/serverfarms",
  "name": "myHostingPlanName",
  ...
}

But the next example is not a valid name because it has the same number of segments as the type.

{
  "type": "Microsoft.Web/serverfarms",
  "name": "appPlan/myHostingPlanName",
  ...
}

For child resources, the type and name have the same number of segments. This number of segments makes sense because the full name and type for the child includes the parent name and type. Therefore, the full name still has one less segment than the full type.

"resources": [
    {
        "type": "Microsoft.KeyVault/vaults",
        "name": "contosokeyvault",
        ...
        "resources": [
            {
                "type": "secrets",
                "name": "appPassword",
                ...
            }
        ]
    }
]

Getting the segments right can be tricky with Resource Manager types that are applied across resource providers. For example, applying a resource lock to a web site requires a type with four segments. Therefore, the name is three segments:

{
    "type": "Microsoft.Web/sites/providers/locks",
    "name": "[concat(variables('siteName'),'/Microsoft.Authorization/MySiteLock')]",
    ...
}

Solution 3 - parameter is not valid

If the template specifies permitted values for a parameter, and you provide a value that is not one of those values, you receive a message similar to the following error:

Code=InvalidTemplate;
Message=Deployment template validation failed: 'The provided value {parameter value}
for the template parameter {parameter name} is not valid. The parameter value is not
part of the allowed values

Double check the allowed values in the template, and provide one during deployment.

Solution 4 - circular dependency detected

You receive this error when resources depend on each other in a way that prevents the deployment from starting. A combination of interdependencies makes two or more resource wait for other resources that are also waiting. For example, resource1 depends on resource3, resource2 depends on resource1, and resource3 depends on resource2. You can usually solve this problem by removing unnecessary dependencies.