aws lambda ai_generated true

Runtime.ImportModuleError: Unable to import module 'handler'

ID: aws/lambda-runtime-error

Also available as: JSON · Markdown
94%Fix Rate
96%Confidence
50Evidence
2023-01-01First Seen

Version Compatibility

VersionStatusIntroducedDeprecatedNotes
any active — — —

Root Cause

Lambda function cannot find the handler module — wrong handler path, missing dependencies, or wrong runtime.

generic

Workarounds

  1. 95% success Verify handler setting matches the file structure: module.function format 
    If handler.py has def main(), set handler to 'handler.main'

    Sources: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/latest/dg/python-handler.html

  2. 92% success Ensure all dependencies are included in the deployment package or Lambda layer 
    pip install -t ./package -r requirements.txt then zip for deployment

Dead Ends

Common approaches that don't work:

  1. Increasing Lambda memory/timeout 85% fail

    Handler import is a packaging issue, not a resource issue

  2. Changing the runtime version 70% fail

    Rarely helps unless using runtime-specific syntax

Error Chain

Frequently confused with: