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Registry "manifest for ... not found" (tag does not exist) on pull in CI

The pull asked for a tag the registry has no manifest for. The repository exists and you may be authorized, but that specific tag was never pushed, was overwritten/deleted, or is misspelled. List the available tags and pull one that exists, or push the tag first.

What this error means

docker pull <registry>/<repo>:<tag> fails with "manifest for <registry>/<repo>:<tag> not found: manifest unknown" while other tags of the same repo pull fine.

docker
Error response from daemon: manifest for registry.example.com/app:1.4.0 not found:
manifest unknown: manifest unknown

Common causes

The tag was never pushed or was removed

A downstream job pulls a tag an upstream job was supposed to push, but the push did not run or the tag was deleted.

A mistyped or wrong-environment tag

The reference has a typo, or points at a tag that only exists in another registry or environment.

How to fix it

List tags and pull an existing one

  1. Query the registry for available tags of the repository.
  2. Pull a tag that exists, or push the intended tag first.
  3. Order jobs so the push completes before the dependent pull.
Terminal
# list tags (v2 API)
curl -s https://registry.example.com/v2/app/tags/list

Pin by digest to fail loudly

Reference the image by digest so a missing or retagged image is unambiguous rather than silently resolving to a different build.

Terminal
docker pull registry.example.com/app@sha256:<digest>

How to prevent it

  • Ensure the producing job pushes the tag before consumers pull it.
  • Pin digests for reproducible, fail-loud pulls.
  • Validate tag strings to avoid typos in references.

Frequently asked questions

What causes ""manifest for ... not found""?
A downstream job pulls a tag an upstream job was supposed to push, but the push did not run or the tag was deleted.
How do I fix "manifest for ... not found"?
List tags and pull an existing one

Related guides

References

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