Agent skill
error-handling
Use when implementing structured error handling in backend or frontend code. Triggers for: try-catch patterns, custom exception classes, global error handlers, error logging, user-friendly error messages, or API error responses. NOT for: business logic validation (use domain exceptions) or unrelated error types.
Install this agent skill to your Project
npx add-skill https://github.com/aiskillstore/marketplace/tree/main/skills/awais68/error-handling
SKILL.md
Error Handling Skill
Expert structured error handling for FastAPI backends and React/Next.js frontends with consistent error messages and logging.
Quick Reference
| Pattern | Backend | Frontend |
|---|---|---|
| Custom exception | class FeeNotPaidError(AppException) |
N/A |
| Try-catch | try: ... except SpecificError: |
try { } catch (e) { } |
| Global handler | @app.exception_handler |
ErrorBoundary component |
| User message | detail field in response |
Toast/Snackbar |
| Error logging | logger.error(...) |
Console/Sentry |
Custom Exceptions (Backend)
Base Exception Hierarchy
# backend/app/errors/exceptions.py
from fastapi import HTTPException
from typing import Any
class AppException(HTTPException):
"""Base application exception with user-friendly messages."""
def __init__(
self,
status_code: int,
detail: str,
user_message: str,
headers: dict[str, Any] | None = None,
):
self.user_message = user_message
super().__init__(status_code=status_code, detail=detail, headers=headers)
class NotFoundError(AppException):
"""Resource not found (404)."""
def __init__(self, resource: str, identifier: str):
super().__init__(
status_code=404,
detail=f"{resource} with id '{identifier}' not found",
user_message=f"{resource} not found. Please check and try again.",
)
class ValidationError(AppException):
"""Validation failed (400)."""
def __init__(self, field: str, reason: str):
super().__init__(
status_code=400,
detail=f"Validation error for field '{field}': {reason}",
user_message=f"Invalid value for {field}. {reason}",
)
class UnauthorizedError(AppException):
"""Authentication required (401)."""
def __init__(self, reason: str = "Authentication required"):
super().__init__(
status_code=401,
detail=reason,
user_message="Please log in to continue.",
headers={"WWW-Authenticate": "Bearer"},
)
class ForbiddenError(AppException):
"""Permission denied (403)."""
def __init__(self, action: str):
super().__init__(
status_code=403,
detail=f"Permission denied for action: {action}",
user_message=f"You don't have permission to {action}.",
)
class ConflictError(AppException):
"""Resource conflict (409)."""
def __init__(self, resource: str, reason: str):
super().__init__(
status_code=409,
detail=f"Conflict for {resource}: {reason}",
user_message=f"{resource} conflict. {reason}",
)
class RateLimitError(AppException):
"""Too many requests (429)."""
def __init__(self, retry_after: int = 60):
super().__init__(
status_code=429,
detail=f"Rate limit exceeded. Retry after {retry_after} seconds.",
user_message="Too many requests. Please wait a moment and try again.",
headers={"Retry-After": str(retry_after)},
)
Domain-Specific Exceptions
# backend/app/errors/domains.py
from .exceptions import NotFoundError, ValidationError, ConflictError
class StudentNotFoundError(NotFoundError):
def __init__(self, student_id: int):
super().__init__(resource="Student", identifier=str(student_id))
class FeeNotPaidError(ConflictError):
def __init__(self, student_id: int, amount_due: float):
super().__init__(
resource="Fee",
reason=f"Student {student_id} has unpaid fee of ${amount_due:.2f}",
)
class AttendanceAlreadyMarkedError(ConflictError):
def __init__(self, student_id: int, date: str):
super().__init__(
resource="Attendance",
reason=f"Attendance already marked for student {student_id} on {date}",
)
class InvalidGradeError(ValidationError):
def __init__(self, grade: str, valid_grades: list[str]):
super().__init__(
field="grade",
reason=f"'{grade}' is not valid. Must be one of: {', '.join(valid_grades)}",
)
class InsufficientBalanceError(ValidationError):
def __init__(self, required: float, available: float):
super().__init__(
field="amount",
reason=f"Insufficient balance. Required: ${required:.2f}, Available: ${available:.2f}",
)
Try-Catch Patterns
Narrow Try Blocks
# GOOD: Specific exception, narrow scope
try:
student = await get_student_by_id(student_id)
except StudentNotFoundError:
raise StudentNotFoundError(student_id)
# BAD: Too broad, catches everything
try:
student = await get_student_by_id(student_id)
calculate_fees(student)
send_notification(student)
update_records(student)
except Exception:
pass # Swallowed!
Cleanup with Finally
import asyncio
from contextlib import asynccontextmanager
@asynccontextmanager
async def database_connection():
conn = await get_db_connection()
try:
yield conn
except Exception as e:
await conn.rollback()
raise
finally:
await conn.close()
async def transfer_funds(from_account: int, to_account: int, amount: float):
async with database_connection() as conn:
try:
await conn.execute("UPDATE accounts SET balance = balance - ? WHERE id = ?", amount, from_account)
await conn.execute("UPDATE accounts SET balance = balance + ? WHERE id = ?", amount, to_account)
await conn.commit()
except InsufficientBalanceError:
await conn.rollback()
raise
Error Logging (Backend)
Structured JSON Logging
# backend/app/core/logger.py
import logging
import json
from datetime import datetime
from typing import Any
from contextvars import ContextVar
import traceback
# Correlation ID for request tracing
correlation_id_var: ContextVar[str] = ContextVar("correlation_id", default="")
class StructuredLogger:
"""Structured JSON logger with correlation IDs."""
def __init__(self, name: str):
self.logger = logging.getLogger(name)
self.logger.setLevel(logging.INFO)
def _log_record(self, level: str, message: str, extra: dict[str, Any] = None):
record = {
"timestamp": datetime.utcnow().isoformat(),
"level": level,
"message": message,
"correlation_id": correlation_id_var.get(),
**(extra or {}),
}
return json.dumps(record)
def info(self, message: str, **extra):
self.logger.info(self._log_record("INFO", message, extra))
def warning(self, message: str, **extra):
self.logger.warning(self._log_record("WARNING", message, extra))
def error(self, message: str, error: Exception = None, **extra):
log_extra = {**extra}
if error:
log_extra["error_type"] = type(error).__name__
log_extra["error_message"] = str(error)
log_extra["stack_trace"] = traceback.format_exc()
self.logger.error(self._log_record("ERROR", message, log_extra))
logger = StructuredLogger(__name__)
Using the Logger
from app.core.logger import logger, correlation_id_var
async def get_student(student_id: int) -> Student:
logger.info("Fetching student", student_id=student_id)
try:
student = await db.get_student(student_id)
logger.info("Student fetched successfully", student_id=student_id, has_fees=bool(student.fees))
return student
except StudentNotFoundError:
logger.warning("Student not found", student_id=student_id)
raise
except Exception as e:
logger.error("Unexpected error fetching student", error=e, student_id=student_id)
raise # Re-raise for handler
Global Error Handler (Backend)
# backend/app/middleware/error_handler.py
from fastapi import Request, FastAPI
from fastapi.responses import JSONResponse
from app.errors.exceptions import AppException
from app.core.logger import logger
def setup_error_handlers(app: FastAPI):
@app.exception_handler(AppException)
async def app_exception_handler(request: Request, exc: AppException):
logger.error(
"App exception occurred",
error=exc,
status_code=exc.status_code,
path=request.url.path,
)
return JSONResponse(
status_code=exc.status_code,
content={
"error": {
"code": exc.__class__.__name__,
"message": exc.user_message,
"internal": exc.detail, # Only in debug mode
}
},
headers=exc.headers,
)
@app.exception_handler(Exception)
async def general_exception_handler(request: Request, exc: Exception):
logger.error(
"Unhandled exception",
error=exc,
path=request.url.path,
method=request.method,
)
return JSONResponse(
status_code=500,
content={
"error": {
"code": "INTERNAL_ERROR",
"message": "Something went wrong. Please try again later.",
}
},
)
Frontend Error Handling
Error Types
// frontend/lib/errors.ts
export interface ApiError {
error: {
code: string;
message: string;
internal?: string;
};
}
export class ApiResponseError extends Error {
code: string;
userMessage: string;
internalMessage?: string;
statusCode: number;
constructor(error: ApiError["error"], statusCode: number) {
super(error.message);
this.name = "ApiResponseError";
this.code = error.code;
this.userMessage = error.message;
this.internalMessage = error.internal;
this.statusCode = statusCode;
}
}
Error Mapper
// frontend/lib/errorMapper.ts
import { ApiResponseError } from "./errors";
export function getUserMessage(error: unknown): string {
if (error instanceof ApiResponseError) {
return error.userMessage;
}
if (error instanceof Error) {
// Network errors
if (error.name === "TypeError" && error.message.includes("fetch")) {
return "Unable to connect to server. Please check your internet connection.";
}
// Unexpected errors
return "An unexpected error occurred. Please try again.";
}
return "An unknown error occurred.";
}
export function getErrorTitle(error: unknown): string {
if (error instanceof ApiResponseError) {
switch (error.statusCode) {
case 401:
return "Authentication Required";
case 403:
return "Access Denied";
case 404:
return "Not Found";
case 409:
return "Conflict";
case 422:
return "Validation Error";
case 429:
return "Rate Limited";
case 500:
return "Server Error";
default:
return "Error";
}
}
return "Error";
}
API Client with Error Handling
// frontend/lib/api.ts
import { ApiResponseError } from "./errors";
import { getUserMessage } from "./errorMapper";
interface RequestOptions extends RequestInit {
params?: Record<string, string>;
}
class ApiClient {
private baseUrl: string;
constructor(baseUrl: string = "/api/v1") {
this.baseUrl = baseUrl;
}
async request<T>(endpoint: string, options: RequestOptions = {}): Promise<T> {
const url = new URL(`${this.baseUrl}${endpoint}`, window.location.origin);
if (options.params) {
Object.entries(options.params).forEach(([key, value]) => {
url.searchParams.append(key, value);
});
}
const response = await fetch(url.toString(), {
...options,
headers: {
"Content-Type": "application/json",
...options.headers,
},
});
if (!response.ok) {
const errorData = await response.json().catch(() => ({}));
throw new ApiResponseError(
{
code: errorData.error?.code || "HTTP_ERROR",
message: errorData.error?.message || response.statusText,
internal: errorData.error?.internal,
},
response.status
);
}
if (response.status === 204) {
return undefined as T;
}
return response.json() as Promise<T>;
}
get<T>(endpoint: string, params?: Record<string, string>): Promise<T> {
return this.request<T>(endpoint, { method: "GET", params });
}
post<T>(endpoint: string, body: unknown): Promise<T> {
return this.request<T>(endpoint, { method: "POST", body: JSON.stringify(body) });
}
put<T>(endpoint: string, body: unknown): Promise<T> {
return this.request<T>(endpoint, { method: "PUT", body: JSON.stringify(body) });
}
delete<T>(endpoint: string): Promise<T> {
return this.request<T>(endpoint, { method: "DELETE" });
}
}
export const api = new ApiClient();
React Query with Error Handling
// frontend/hooks/useApi.ts
import { useQuery, useMutation, UseQueryOptions } from "@tanstack/react-query";
import { api } from "../lib/api";
import { ApiResponseError } from "../lib/errors";
import { toast } from "sonner";
export function useFetch<T>(
key: string[],
endpoint: string,
options?: Partial<UseQueryOptions<T>>
) {
return useQuery({
queryKey: key,
queryFn: () => api.get<T>(endpoint),
...options,
onError: (error: unknown) => {
if (error instanceof ApiResponseError) {
toast.error(error.userMessage);
} else {
toast.error("Failed to fetch data");
}
},
});
}
export function useMutationWithError<T, V>(
mutationFn: (variables: V) => Promise<T>,
successMessage: string,
onSuccess?: (data: T) => void
) {
return useMutation({
mutationFn,
onSuccess: (data) => {
toast.success(successMessage);
onSuccess?.(data);
},
onError: (error: unknown) => {
if (error instanceof ApiResponseError) {
toast.error(error.userMessage);
} else {
toast.error("An error occurred. Please try again.");
}
},
});
}
Quality Checklist
- No swallowed errors: Every exception is either logged or surfaced to user
- Internal vs user message separation: Technical details in
detail, user-friendly inuser_message - 4xx vs 5xx correctly mapped: Client errors (4xx) vs server errors (5xx)
- No PII in logs: Never log passwords, tokens, personal data
- Correlation IDs: Track errors across services with request IDs
- Consistent error format: Same structure for all API errors
Error Response Format
{
"error": {
"code": "STUDENT_NOT_FOUND",
"message": "Student not found. Please check and try again.",
"internal": "Student with id '12345' not found"
}
}
Integration Points
| Skill | Integration |
|---|---|
@fastapi-app |
Global exception handlers in main.py |
@api-route-design |
Proper status codes in responses |
@jwt-auth |
UnauthorizedError for auth failures |
@db-migration |
Handle migration errors gracefully |
@env-config |
Configuration validation errors |
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