Summary

The article discusses a common error message encountered when using AWS CloudFormation templates and provides a solution to the problem.

Abstract

The article discusses a common error message encountered when using AWS CloudFormation templates, which can be confusing and difficult to understand. The author describes how they encountered this error message while working on a template and provides a solution to the problem. The error message in question is "Mapping values are not allowed here," which is caused by a syntax error in the template. The author explains that the problem can be solved by adding a semicolon after the parameter name and indenting the line with the parameter type.

Opinions

The author suggests that error messages can sometimes be confusing and difficult to understand.
The author recommends writing code in small pieces to make it easier to find and fix errors.
The author emphasizes the importance of proper syntax when working with AWS CloudFormation templates.
The author provides a specific solution to a common error message encountered when using AWS CloudFormation templates.
The author provides links to additional resources on AWS security and application security.
The author provides information about their background and expertise in cybersecurity.
The author promotes their company and services for penetration tests, assessments, and consulting.
The author encourages readers to follow them on social media and sign up for their email list.

Mapping Values are Not Allowed Here — Missing Colon

Indentation error in CloudFormation template

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Sometimes error messages don’t mean much to me. Mapping values are not allowed here. What’s a mapping value? Where is here? Because actually this error message occurs on a line after a syntax problem. This is a common issue with parsers because they have to read past the point of the error and it’s tricky and inefficient to report backwards.

I knew I had a working AWS CloudFormation template and the only change was an AWS Parameter. Always a good idea to write your code a small piece at a time so you can easily find tricky errors with error messages that don’t clearly explain what the problem is.

In this case, I’d written a parameter like this in my template:

Parameters:
  paramnamesuffix
  Type: String

There are two problems with the code above that may have contributed to this error. The first is that I failed to add a semicolon after the parameter name (paramnamesuffix). The second is that the line with the parameter type should be indented.

So my code should look like this:

Parameters:
  paramnamesuffix:
    Type: String

That solved the problem in this case.

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About Teri Radichel:
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⭐️ Author: Cybersecurity Books
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⭐️ Education: BA Business, Master of Software Engineering, Master of Infosec
⭐️ Company: Penetration Tests, Assessments, Phone Consulting ~ 2nd Sight Lab

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