OTA Update Fails Randomly Due to Missing stream-next File

Hello,

I’m experiencing an issue with Mender OTA updates: roughly one out of three updates fails with the following error in the logs:

2025-11-21 13:20:29.232 +0000 UTC info: Running Mender client 5.0.3
2025-11-21 13:20:29.232 +0000 UTC info: Deployment with ID dba37c41-3b03-4f59-a183-fe58fb5d0170 started.
2025-11-21 13:20:29.233 +0000 UTC info: Sending status update to server
2025-11-21 13:20:29.397 +0000 UTC info: Installing artifact...
[...]
2025-11-21 13:21:02.924 +0000 UTC info: Update Module output (stderr): cat: can't open 'stream-next': No such file or directory
2025-11-21 13:21:02.926 +0000 UTC error: Broken pipe: Update Module started downloading, but did not finish
2025-11-21 13:21:02.927 +0000 UTC error: Operation canceled: GET <...>: HTTP request cancelled
[...]
2025-11-21 13:21:12.529 +0000 UTC error: No such file or directory: Cannot open /var/lib/mender/modules/v3/payloads/0000/tree/stream-next

The error always relates to the stream-next file, which appears to be missing or inaccessible. However, the same update sometimes goes through without any issues.

I don’t understand where this intermittent error is coming from or why the update module loses access to stream-next only occasionally.

If anyone has encountered this behavior before or has any ideas, I would really appreciate your help.

Context:

  • Yocto Scarthgap
  • Verdin iMX8MP
  • Mender client 5.0.3
  • Update Module used for differential updates

Thanks in advance!

Stan