> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.getbasalt.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Error Handling

> Learn how to properly handle errors in the Basalt SDK.

The Basalt SDK uses a consistent error handling pattern across all methods. This guide explains how to properly handle errors when using the SDK.

## Error Pattern

All SDK methods return an object / tuple containing two properties:

* `value`: The result of the operation when successful
* `error`: An error object when the operation fails

This pattern allows you to easily check if an operation succeeded or failed before proceeding.

### General Pattern

<CodeGroup>
  ```typescript TypeScript theme={null}
  const { value, error } = await basalt.someMethod()

  if (error) {
    // Handle the error
    console.error('Operation failed:', error.message)
    throw error // Or handle it in another way
  }

  // If no error, value is guaranteed to be defined
  const result = value
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  error, value = basalt.some_method()

  if error:
      # Handle the error
      print(f"Operation failed: {error.message}")
      raise error  # Or handle it in another way

  # If no error, value is guaranteed to be defined
  result = value
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Error Types

The SDK can return different types of errors:

* `NotFoundError`: When a requested resource doesn't exist
* `ValidationError`: When the provided parameters are invalid
* `AuthenticationError`: When there's an issue with authentication
* `NetworkError`: When there's a problem with the network connection
* `ServerError`: When the server encounters an issue
* `UnknownError`: For unexpected errors

## Examples

### Getting a Prompt

<CodeGroup>
  ```typescript TypeScript theme={null}
  const { value, error } = await basalt.prompt.get({
  slug: 'welcome-message'
  })

  if (error) {
  throw error
  }

  // Use the prompt safely
  console.log(`Retrieved prompt: ${value.text}`)
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  error, prompt, generation = await basalt.prompt.get(slug='welcome-message')

  if error:
  	raise error

  # Use the prompt safely
  print(f"Retrieved prompt: {prompt.text}")
  ```
</CodeGroup>

### Listing Prompts

<CodeGroup>
  ```typescript TypeScript theme={null}
  const { value, error } = await basalt.prompt.list({
  featureSlug: 'onboarding'
  })

  if (error) {
  throw error
  }

  // Use the prompt list safely
  console.log(`Found ${value.length} prompts`)
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  error, value = await basalt.prompt.list(feature_slug='onboarding')

  if error:
  	raise error

  # Use the prompt list safely
  print(f"Found {len(value)} prompts")
  ```
</CodeGroup>

### Describing a Prompt

<CodeGroup>
  ```typescript TypeScript theme={null}
  const { value, error } = await basalt.prompt.describe({
  	slug: 'welcome-message',
  	version: '1.0.0'
  })

  if (error) {
  	throw error
  }

  // Use the prompt details safely
  console.log(`Prompt name: ${value.name}, Version: ${value.version}`)
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  error, value = await basalt.prompt.describe(
      slug='welcome-message',
      version='1.0.0'
  )

  if error:
  	raise error

  # Use the prompt details safely
  print(f"Prompt name: {value.name}, Version: {value.version}")
  ```
</CodeGroup>