---
id: "bug-1574"
status: "open"
status_updated: "2026-09-24"
status_note: "xce_test resupdate string/type crash: set_resval() lacks svalue case, vals[] uninitialized (src/harness/test.c)"
component: "controller"
severity: "crash"
timestamp: "2026-08-17T18:55:00Z"
last_seen: "2026-09-19T09:00:00Z"
occurrences: 1
files: ["src/controller/testsuite/test.c"]
tags: ["resupdate", "cmd_resupdate", "set_resval", "segfault", "uninitialized-stack-memory", "Value_u_svalue", "test.c", "pre-existing", "resource-value-verification"]
related: ["bug-1570", "bug-1573"]
legacy: true
---

# bug-1574: xce_test segfaults (SIGSEGV, exit 139) immediately on 'resupdate -n model -v <val>' (and by the…

## Description
xce_test segfaults (SIGSEGV, exit 139) immediately on 'resupdate -n model -v <val>' (and by the same code path, -n type) run in the worker context against a live controller -- no output printed before the crash

## Environment
_Not recorded (migrated from buglog.json)._

## Reproduction
_Not recorded (migrated from buglog.json)._

## Root cause
Pre-existing, predates the resource-value-verification feature entirely (confirmed via git show on the pre-task-2.1 baseline commit 98b8c34b^: the original set_resval()'s switch(valtype) already had no case for Value_u_svalue, same shape as today). set_resval() only assigns vals[idx].name inside a case block of switch(valtype); Value_u_svalue (type/model) has no case, so for these two names vals[idx].name is never assigned and keeps whatever uninitialized garbage was already on the local stack array `xce_resval_t vals[MAX_N_RES]` (never zero-initialized) in cmd_resupdate(). That garbage pointer is then passed unconditionally into xcecli_update_resvals()'s wire encoder inside &valptrs[0], which (most likely) dereferences it as a C string, causing the segfault. Task 2.1's own comment at test.c (near set_resval, 'the switch falls through with vals[idx].name/.val->which left unset ... intentionally not fixed by this task, see CONCERNS') already flagged this exact gap and deliberately preserved it byte-for-byte per Requirement 1.4, rather than introducing it. Discovered live during resource-value-verification task 4.2's validation (apiserver trace-log addition, live-testing the string-value code path with `resupdate -n model -v CustomModelX`) -- unrelated to task 4.2's own change (src/frontend/apiserver/backend/handler.go), which only touches Go/apiserver code.

## Fix
NOT FIXED -- out of boundary for task 4.2 (scope: src/frontend/apiserver/backend/handler.go only). Belongs to test.c/set_resval()/resval_typeresolve.c territory (tasks 2.1/2.2 of this same spec, or a dedicated follow-up). Worked around during task 4.2 live validation by using a numeric resource (r15m) for the primary trace-log confirmation and avoiding type/model live resupdate calls thereafter. Likely fix: zero-initialize `xce_resval_t vals[MAX_N_RES]` in cmd_resupdate() (e.g. `= {0}`) so an unassigned .name is NULL instead of garbage, PLUS give set_resval() a real Value_u_svalue case that sets vals[idx].name and vals[idx].val->u.svalue (currently the string value passed to resupdate for type/model is silently never stored in the union either -- a second, related but distinct defect covered by the same missing switch case).

## Verification
_Not recorded (migrated from buglog.json)._

## References
- Related: bug-1570, bug-1573