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Troubleshooting managed configuration

When implementing managed configuration in an enterprise environment, you may encounter some common issues often caused by file location, permissions, or syntax errors.

Locked configuration not working​

If your locked configuration is not being applied, try the following solutions:

  1. Verify file locations are correct for your operating system.
  2. Check file permissions (files must be owned by root/administrator).
  3. Ensure JSON syntax is valid (use a JSON validator).
  4. Restart Podman Desktop after creating configuration files.

Settings not being enforced​

If settings appear to be locked but values are not being enforced correctly:

  1. Check that the key name in locked.json exactly matches the key in default-settings.json.
  2. Verify the configuration key uses dot notation (e.g., proxy.http, not proxy: { http: ... }).
  3. Check console output for error messages.

Verifying configuration is loaded​

To verify that your managed configuration is being loaded correctly:

  1. Open Podman Desktop.
  2. Go to Help > Troubleshooting, and select the Logs tab to check for messages such as:
  3. Look for messages in the console like: 
    [Managed-by]: Loaded managed ...
  4. If you don't see these messages, the configuration files may not be in the correct location or may have syntax errors.

File permission issues​

On Linux and macOS, managed configuration files must have appropriate permissions:

  • Files must be owned by root/administrator
  • Files should be readable by all users but writable only by root/administrator
  • Use chmod 644 for the configuration files on Linux/macOS

Additional resources​