App Templates regression since 2.22.0

[slym]

Before you start please confirm the following.

• Yes, I've searched similar issues on GitHub.
• Yes, I've checked whether this issue is covered in the Portainer documentation or knowledge base.

Problem Description

Custom App Templates JSON using version 2 format does not work correctly since Portainer 2.22.

List of templates is loaded correctly in UI but I'm unable to open them. It starts to display the template settings but 1 second after the UI goes back to the list. The issue seems related to the new "id" parameters that appeared with App Templates v3.

Another issue is that App Templates V3 is not currently documented anywhere (or I could not find its documentation).

Expected Behavior

App templates v2 and v3 should work correctly in all recent versions of Portainer.

Actual Behavior

List is loading correctly but not the Template details and options page.

Steps to Reproduce

I did some extended testings and it shows some clear regressions since 2.22.0 :

Portainer version	V2	V2 with ID	V3	V3 without ID
2.23	KO	KO	Works	KO
2.22.0	KO	KO	Works	KO
2.21.3	Works	Works	Works	Works
2.20.3	Works	Works	Works	Works

App Templates files used :

• v2 : https://slymsoft.com/testv2.json
• v2 (with ID) : https://slymsoft.com/testv2-withid.json
• v3 : https://slymsoft.com/testv3.json
• v3 (without ID) : https://slymsoft.com/testv3-withoutid.json

You just have to point to these URL to reproduce the behaviour (not loading details page on any Template).

Portainer logs or screenshots

Most of the time there is no error, it just goes back to the list after selecting a template.
Sometimes there is an error in the events :

Portainer version

2.23.0

Portainer Edition

Business Edition (BE/EE) with 5NF / 3NF license

Platform and Version

Any version

OS and Architecture

Any OS

Browser

Chrome 114.0

What command did you use to deploy Portainer?

standard command and tried on multiple setups always with same result.

Additional Information

It would be great to fix the regression because I have dozens of Portainer CE pointing to my templates and they are managed by other users so I can't control their Portainer versions.

App templates JSON v3 must be documented correctly somewhere.

[Xantha123]

I can confirm this. i have the exact same problems with templates. In buisiness and the community version on 2 differt machines setup using Truenas Scale.

[TomChantler]

I have just found this issue because I have exactly the same problem. I'm running TrueNAS Scale 24.10 (ElectricEel-24.10.0.2), running Portainer Business Edition 2.23.0. When I click on an app template to install, the config screen pops up for about a nanosecond and then returns me to the list of templates.

[ralfrupf1976]

Same problem here - using STS - current Version 2.24.0
Templates from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Lissy93/portainer-templates/main/templates.json

[TomChantler]

I actually wrote a simple script to fix those templates and then opened a pull request on that repo with my fixed version: Lissy93/portainer-templates#67. Note that I didn't alter the original file, I created a new one called templates_v3.json. I'm just using the raw file link from my own repo in my Portainer installation: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/TomChantler/portainer-templates/refs/heads/v3/templates_v3.json. It works fine. Try it yourself.

[jon4god]

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/TomChantler/portainer-templates/refs/heads/v3/templates_v3.json

Yeah, that option works! I wonder if there will be an update to the main branch?

[monstreplant]

Same problem here.

Is there a way this regression is gonna be fixed on the portainer app ?

[rmiddle]

I actually wrote a simple script to fix those templates and then opened a pull request on that repo with my fixed version: Lissy93/portainer-templates#67. Note that I didn't alter the original file, I created a new one called templates_v3.json. I'm just using the raw file link from my own repo in my Portainer installation: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/TomChantler/portainer-templates/refs/heads/v3/templates_v3.json. It works fine. Try it yourself.

Is there anyway I can get a copy of said script so I can incorporate it into a project I work on?

[rbability]

I have the same issue now after trying to switch to 2.27. I had to add the id tag in every entry in the template.json and change the image url/tag for every entry also.
After that I realized, that the network tag in the template.json is not working anymore. This is a step backwards and as OP said, not or poorly documented. But updating Portainer is necessary, because of CVE mitigations, so there is no choice other than going forward.

I opened another issue specifically for the network tag: portainer/templates#234

[psy0rz]

why is this still not documented? debugging and testing this took me an hour! (since i wrongly assumed the update of last week did this)

[monstreplant]

I had to rewrite my templates from scratch using the v3 format.

I noticed issues with the new format.

It seems not possible anymore to have "blank" input fields as they are automatically shown as "required" in the portainer interface.

Also the hints for the fields that were previously displayed when hoovering on a question mark are notre visible anymore and replaced with an asterisk...

[psy0rz]

yeah just discovered that as well..horrible, very shoddy of them. i would assume their payed customers also experience these issues. i would be pissed as hell lol

[MISTERNEGATIVE21]

It has affected a lot of people . I did a re-installation of docker and portainer until i came upon this thread

[supra89t]

Found this amazing repo, came to use it... found this page