Lambda function not working upon Alexa Skill invocation

Question

I've just created my first (custom) still. I've set the function up in Lambda by uploading a zip file containing my index.js and all the necessary code required, including node_modules and the base Alexa skill that mine is a child of (as per the tutorials). I made sure I zipped up the files and sub-folders, not the folder itself (as I can see this is a common cause of similar errors) but when I create the skill and test in the web harness with a sample utterance I get:

remote endpoint could not be called, or the response it returned was invalid.

I'm not sure how to debug this as there's nothing logged in CloudWatch.

I can see in the Lambda request that my slot value is translated/parsed successfully and the intentname is correct.

In AWS Lambda I can invoke the function successfully both with a LaunchRequest and another named intent. From the developer console though, I get nothing. I've tried copying the JSON from the lambda test (that works) to the developer portal and I get the same error. Here is a sample of the JSON I'm putting in the dev portal (that works in Lambda)

{
  "session": {
    "new": true,
    "sessionId": "session1234",
    "attributes": {},
    "user": {
      "userId": null
    },
    "application": {
      "applicationId": "amzn1.echo-sdk-ams.app.149e75a3-9a64-4224-8bcq-30666e8fd464"
    }
  },
  "version": "1.0",
  "request": {
    "type": "LaunchRequest",
    "requestId": "request5678"
  }
}

Tom Tom · Accepted Answer · 2016-10-07T17:08:32

The first step in pursuing this problem is probably to test your lambda separate from your skill configuration.

When looking at your lambda function in the AWS console, note the 'test' button at the top, and next to it there is a drop down with an option to configure a test event. If you select that option you will find that there are preset test events for Alexa. Choose 'alexa start session' and then choose 'save and test' button.

This will give you more detailed feedback about the execution of your lambda.

If your lambda works fine here then the problem probably lies in your skill configuration, so I would go back through whatever tutorial and documentation you were using to configuration your skill and make sure you did it right.

When you write that the lambda request looks fine I assume you are talking about the service simulator, so that's a good start, but there could still be a problem on the configuration tab.

Lambda function not working upon Alexa Skill invocation

2 Answers