macos-latest ARM64 jobs cancelled with zero steps after hosted-runner acquisition failures

[gb-org-2026]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Bug

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Actions Runner

Discussion Details

On 2 November 2026 we repeatedly observed standard macos-latest ARM64 jobs remain queued for about 15 minutes and then be cancelled before any step ran. Job metadata reported runner_id: 0 and an empty steps array. The workflow conclusion was failure, while the job conclusion was cancelled.

Annotations reported:

• "The job was not acquired by Runner of type hosted even after multiple attempts"
• "Due to capacity constraints, jobs targeting macOS arm64 runners may experience longer queue times."

Examples occurred around 16:21–16:36, 18:00–18:15 and 19:00–19:15 UTC. Other jobs did receive a macos-26-arm64/20261026.0455 runner between these failures, so allocation appears intermittent. We have stopped repeated unchanged retries. No checkout or application test ran in the cancelled jobs.

The public status page reports all systems operational. Is there a known incident affecting this specific standard ARM64 pool, and what is the recommended recovery/retry guidance while keeping the same original runner environment? Please also clarify whether any account-level scheduling condition could produce these exact annotations.

The repository is private. This public report intentionally excludes repository names, run links/IDs, source code, credentials and personal project data. We can provide scheduling identifiers through an appropriate private support channel if required.

Thank you.

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[kjxbyz]

Same issue.

[dpmedeiros]

Same issue

[kjxbyz]

I have to say, GitHub’s service is getting worse and worse—workflows are unstable, and customer support is incredibly slow to respond.

[tbeu]

Happens also on public repos.

https://github.com/tbeu/matio/actions/runs/41673532046/job/126047923070

Still, githubstatus.com shows no incidents for GH Actions which obviously is fake data.

[denisstael]

I'm experiencing exactly the same issue.

My GitHub Actions workflow uses macos-latest and has been repeatedly failing before executing any steps.

The annotations are identical:

• Internal server error.
• The job was not acquired by Runner of type hosted even after multiple attempts.
• Due to capacity constraints, jobs targeting macOS arm64 runners may experience longer queue times.

This is affecting our macOS build and release pipeline. Re-running the workflow does not work either.

[Tsaihyun]

Same issue here. I've tried everything to fix it, but I'm completely stuck and on the verge of a breakdown.

[polribas14]

same here

[amir-begic]

Workaround that worked for me: pinning the runner to macos-15 instead of macos-latest (which currently maps to the macos-26 arm64 image). The job got a runner instntly, while macos-latest failed 3 times in a row. Maybe works for you aswell...

[Lithrun]

I also keep running into this issue. Seems impossible to run a macOS arm64 runner in the evening (CET) now. I gave up after retry attempt # 9.

In the morning it works fine, but it does mean I have the schedule my workflow to the mornings

[aaltat]

I have the same issue in https://github.com/MarketSquare/robotframework-browser/actions/runs/41904244509/job/126834528053

Have been same problem at least from yesterday. Problem seems to come and go.