Error saving credentials 🐳 Docker

Error saving credentials: error storing credentials - err: exit status 1

docker login authenticated, but the credential helper (keychain, pass, wincred) couldn’t store the password.

Seen on: Docker

Meaning

Common on headless Linux (pass/secretservice not set up), locked macOS keychains over SSH, and WSL.

Common causes

  • Credential helper not initialised (pass without a GPG key)
  • Keychain locked or unavailable (SSH session)
  • Helper mismatch from another Docker install

⚡ Quick fix

  1. Remove credsStore so credentials are stored in config.json (base64, less secure)
  2. Initialise the helper (pass init <gpg-id>)
  3. Unlock the keychain

Detailed fix by platform

Shell

  1. bash
    security unlock-keychain ~/Library/Keychains/login.keychain-db   # macOS over SSH
pass init "<gpg-key-id>"                                     # Linux pass helper

How to diagnose

  1. Helper — credsStore value
  2. State — Is the keychain/pass store usable?

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