---
title: "Errors"
description: "HTTP status codes and error formats returned by the Dograh API"
---

## Error format

All errors return a JSON body with a `detail` field:

```json
{
  "detail": "Human-readable error message"
}
```

For request validation failures (status `422`), `detail` is an array of field-level errors:

```json
{
  "detail": [
    {
      "loc": ["body", "phone_number"],
      "msg": "field required",
      "type": "value_error.missing"
    }
  ]
}
```

---

## HTTP status codes

| Status | Meaning | Common causes |
|---|---|---|
| `400` | Bad Request | Missing required fields, invalid parameter values, unsupported operation |
| `401` | Unauthorized | Missing auth header, invalid or expired API key or JWT token |
| `403` | Forbidden | Valid credentials but the resource belongs to a different organization |
| `404` | Not Found | Resource ID does not exist or is not accessible to your organization |
| `409` | Conflict | Duplicate resource (e.g., email already registered) |
| `422` | Unprocessable Entity | Request body or query parameter failed schema validation |
| `500` | Internal Server Error | Unexpected server-side failure |
| `501` | Not Implemented | Feature not supported in the current deployment |

---

## Workflow validation errors

When validating a workflow (or creating one with invalid nodes), the API returns structured errors that reference specific nodes, edges, or fields:

```json
{
  "errors": [
    {
      "kind": "node",
      "id": "agent-1",
      "field": "data.prompt",
      "message": "Prompt cannot be empty"
    },
    {
      "kind": "edge",
      "id": "edge-3",
      "field": null,
      "message": "Edge target node does not exist"
    },
    {
      "kind": "workflow",
      "id": null,
      "field": null,
      "message": "Workflow must have exactly one Start Call node"
    }
  ]
}
```

| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| `kind` | `"node" \| "edge" \| "workflow"` | What the error applies to |
| `id` | string or null | Node or edge ID from the workflow definition |
| `field` | string or null | Dot-notation path to the specific field (e.g. `data.prompt`) |
| `message` | string | Human-readable description of the problem |

---

## Telephony errors

Telephony operations may fail with one of these named error types returned in the `detail` field:

| Error | Description |
|---|---|
| `PROVIDER_MISMATCH` | The request was routed to the wrong telephony provider |
| `WORKFLOW_NOT_FOUND` | The workflow ID in the inbound URL does not exist |
| `ACCOUNT_VALIDATION_FAILED` | Your telephony provider credentials are invalid |
| `PHONE_NUMBER_NOT_CONFIGURED` | The phone number is not set up in your telephony account |
| `SIGNATURE_VALIDATION_FAILED` | Webhook signature verification failed (possible spoofed request) |
| `QUOTA_EXCEEDED` | Your organization has exceeded its usage quota |
| `GENERAL_AUTH_FAILED` | Generic authentication failure with the telephony provider |

---

## Tips for handling errors

- **Retry on `500`** with exponential backoff — transient server errors can resolve on retry.
- **Do not retry `4xx`** — these indicate problems with your request that will not self-resolve.
- **Check `detail` carefully on `422`** — the `loc` array pinpoints exactly which field failed validation.
- **Store API keys securely** — a `401` on a previously working key likely means the key was archived.