Let's approach this clearly, methodically, and comprehensively, as you've hit a very stubborn and persistent issue.
🔴 Your Current Issue (Recap):
The error you're seeing:
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Temporary error: pull secret not updated to disk
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failed to read /var/lib/kubelet/config.json file: ssh command error:
err : Process exited with status 1
: /bin/bash: Input/output error
Means clearly:
CRC VM starts and runs ✅
SSH succeeds initially ✅
CRC repeatedly tries and fails to read or write the pull secret on disk ❌
Eventually fails with a low-level /bin/bash: Input/output error ❌
🧠 Potential Root Causes (What we've learned so far):
Possible Cause Likelihood (Your case) Explanation
Corrupted CRC Disk Image ⚠️ Very Likely Frequent cause after repeated CRC restarts or host interruption
Docker Desktop interference ⚠️ Very Likely vmnetd can corrupt vfkit networking (confirmed earlier)
Corporate VPN/Firewall ⚠️ Likely Blocks 127.0.0.1 or internal traffic silently
Insufficient RAM / CPU ⚠️ Possible Less likely, but can cause silent failures
macOS permissions ⚠️ Possible Disk permissions or macOS system policy issues
🚨 Let's Do Comprehensive, Step-by-Step Troubleshooting:
Run these exact steps to pinpoint the issue.
✅ STEP 1: Fully reset CRC again (with extra steps)
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crc stop
crc delete --force
crc cleanup
rm -rf ~/.crc
rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/crc
rm -rf ~/.kube
rm -rf ~/.config/crc
✅ STEP 2: Check and completely disable Docker Desktop Networking
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ps aux | grep vmnetd
If you see Docker again, remove it completely for now:
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sudo launchctl bootout system /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.docker.vmnetd.plist
sudo rm -f /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.docker.vmnetd.plist
Also quit Docker Desktop fully.
✅ STEP 3: Disconnect VPN or Corporate Network (Critical Test)
Switch temporarily to your personal Wi-Fi hotspot (phone), just for this test.
Confirm no corporate firewall/VPN is active.
✅ STEP 4: Reboot Your Mac (Absolutely critical step)
This ensures a fully clean vfkit/hypervisor environment.
✅ STEP 5: Re-run CRC Setup Completely Fresh
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crc setup
crc start --memory 12288 --cpus 4 --pull-secret ~/Downloads/pull-secret.txt
(12GB RAM, 4 CPUs for stable startup)
✅ STEP 6: If CRC still fails again, immediately do this:
Check the internal status inside CRC VM:
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crc ssh
Inside VM:
Check kubelet service:
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sudo systemctl status kubelet
sudo journalctl -xe -u kubelet
Check kubelet directory and file presence:
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ls -la /var/lib/kubelet/config.json
sudo cat /var/lib/kubelet/config.json
Check disk issues inside VM (Critical):
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dmesg | grep -i error
sudo journalctl -xe | grep -i error
🧪 STEP 7: Network Checks inside CRC VM (critical test):
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ping -c4 google.com
curl https://mirror.openshift.com
cat /etc/resolv.conf
ip route
📌 Interpreting Results (most likely outcomes):
Test If passes If fails
✅ Ping Google (VM network test) Networking fine ✅ VPN/Firewall blocks VM access ❌
✅ curl mirror.openshift.com External DNS fine ✅ DNS broken or network blocked by firewall ❌
✅ kubelet status CRC VM internal services OK ✅ VM internal service failed due to config error ❌
✅ ls /var/lib/kubelet/config.json File present ✅ File missing or corrupted, CRC bootstrap failed ❌
✅ dmesg grep error Clean/no disk errors ✅
✅ Final Diagnosis (Your next action depends on these results):
If disk errors or file missing: CRC VM image corrupted → full reinstall (CRC + reboot)
If ping/curl fail: VPN/firewall → retry on personal hotspot
If kubelet/journalctl show errors: CRC internal issue (likely image or CRC bug)
🛠️ Recommended Final Solutions (pick based on result):
✅ Fully remove CRC and Docker Desktop, reboot, reinstall CRC completely fresh.
✅ Run CRC only when disconnected from any corporate VPN or firewall.
✅ Try CRC with slightly older stable bundle (like 4.13.x if 4.18.x fails repeatedly on your system).