Merge origin/main into unify-context-and-centralize

Michael Bonifacio · Michael Bonifacio · commit 3074e7d1c8ec · 2025-12-30T14:07:57.000-08:00
Resolves conflicts in go.mod and go.sum by taking newer versions:
- go.yaml.in/yaml/v4 v4.0.0-rc.3
- golang.org/x/text v0.32.0
- golang.org/x/net v0.48.0
diff --git a/.github/workflows/build.yaml b/.github/workflows/build.yaml
@@ -24,15 +24,15 @@ jobs:
       - name: golangci-lint
         uses: golangci/golangci-lint-action@v8
         with:
-          version: v2.1
+          version: v2.7
   build:
     name: Build
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Set up Go 1.x
         uses: actions/setup-go@v3
         with:
-          go-version: 1.24.7
+          go-version: 1.25
         id: go
 
       - name: Checkout code
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
@@ -31,8 +31,12 @@ go get github.com/pb33f/libopenapi-validator
 ## Validate OpenAPI Document
 
 ```bash
-go run github.com/pb33f/libopenapi-validator/cmd/validate@latest [--regexengine] <file>
+go run github.com/pb33f/libopenapi-validator/cmd/validate@latest [--regexengine] [--yaml2json] <file>
 ```
+
+### Options
+
+#### --regexengine
 🔍 Example: Use a custom regex engine/flag (e.g., ecmascript)
 ```bash
 go run github.com/pb33f/libopenapi-validator/cmd/validate@latest --regexengine=ecmascript <file>
@@ -51,6 +55,26 @@ go run github.com/pb33f/libopenapi-validator/cmd/validate@latest --regexengine=e
 - re2
 - unicode
 
+#### --yaml2json
+🔍 Convert YAML files to JSON before validation (ℹ️ Default: false)
+
+[libopenapi](https://github.com/pb33f/libopenapi/blob/main/datamodel/spec_info.go#L115) passes `map[interface{}]interface{}` structures for deeply nested objects or complex mappings in the OpenAPI specification, which are not allowed in JSON.
+These structures cannot be properly converted to JSON by libopenapi and cannot be validated by jsonschema, resulting in ambiguous errors.
+
+This flag allows pre-converting from YAML to JSON to bypass this limitation of the libopenapi.
+
+**When does this happen?**
+- OpenAPI specs with deeply nested schema definitions
+- Complex `allOf`, `oneOf`, or `anyOf` structures with multiple levels
+- Specifications with intricate object mappings in examples or schema properties
+
+Enabling this flag pre-converts the YAML document from YAML to JSON, ensuring a clean JSON structure before validation.
+
+Example:
+```bash
+go run github.com/pb33f/libopenapi-validator/cmd/validate@latest --yaml2json <file>
+```
+
 ## Documentation
 
 - [The structure of the validator](https://pb33f.io/libopenapi/validation/#the-structure-of-the-validator)
diff --git a/cmd/validate/main.go b/cmd/validate/main.go
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import (
 	"os"
 
 	"github.com/dlclark/regexp2"
+	"github.com/goccy/go-yaml"
 	"github.com/pb33f/libopenapi"
 	"github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6"
 
@@ -64,13 +65,19 @@ var (
                          If not specified, the default libopenapi option is "re2".
 
 If not specified, the default libopenapi regex engine is "re2"".`)
+	convertYAMLToJSON = flag.Bool("yaml2json", false, `Convert YAML files to JSON before validation.
+						libopenapi passes map[interface{}]interface{} structures for deeply nested objects
+						or complex mappings, which are not allowed in JSON and cannot be validated by jsonschema.
+						This flag allows pre-converting from YAML to JSON to bypass this limitation of the libopenapi.
+						Default is false.`)
 )
 
 // main is the entry point for validating an OpenAPI Specification (OAS) document.
 // It uses the libopenapi-validator library to check if the provided OAS document
 // conforms to the OpenAPI specification.
 //
-// This tool accepts a single input file (YAML or JSON) and provides an optional
+// This tool accepts a single input file (YAML or JSON) and provides optional flags:
+//
 // `--regexengine` flag to customize the regex engine used during validation.
 // This is useful for cases where the spec uses regex patterns that require engines
 // like ECMAScript or RE2.
@@ -80,9 +87,16 @@ If not specified, the default libopenapi regex engine is "re2"".`)
 //   - Flags:  ignorecase, multiline, explicitcapture, compiled, singleline,
 //     ignorepatternwhitespace, righttoleft, debug, unicode
 //
+// `--yaml2json` flag to convert YAML files to JSON before validation.
+// libopenapi passes map[interface{}]interface{} structures for deeply nested
+// objects or complex mappings, which are not allowed in JSON and cannot be
+// validated by jsonschema. This flag allows pre-converting from YAML to JSON
+// to bypass this limitation of the libopenapi. Default is false.
+//
 // Example usage:
 //
 //	go run main.go --regexengine=ecmascript ./my-api-spec.yaml
+//	go run main.go --yaml2json ./my-api-spec.yaml
 //
 // If validation passes, the tool logs a success message.
 // If the document is invalid or there is a processing error, it logs details and exits non-zero.
@@ -94,13 +108,21 @@ Validates an OpenAPI document using libopenapi-validator.
 
 Options:
   --regexengine string   Specify the regex parsing option to use.
-                         Supported values are: 
+                         Supported values are:
                            Engines: re2 (default), ecmascript
-                           Flags:  ignorecase, multiline, explicitcapture, compiled, 
-                                   singleline, ignorepatternwhitespace, righttoleft, 
+                           Flags:  ignorecase, multiline, explicitcapture, compiled,
+                                   singleline, ignorepatternwhitespace, righttoleft,
                                    debug, unicode
                          If not specified, the default libopenapi option is "re2".
 
+  --yaml2json            Convert YAML files to JSON before validation.
+						 libopenapi passes map[interface{}]interface{}
+                         structures for deeply nested objects or complex mappings, which
+                         are not allowed in JSON and cannot be validated by jsonschema.
+                         This flag allows pre-converting from YAML to JSON to bypass this
+                         limitation of the libopenapi.
+                         (default: false)
+
   -h, --help             Show this help message and exit.
 `)
 	}
@@ -156,6 +178,17 @@ Options:
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 
+	if *convertYAMLToJSON {
+		var v interface{}
+		if err := yaml.Unmarshal(data, &v); err == nil {
+			data, err = yaml.YAMLToJSON(data)
+			if err != nil {
+				logger.Error("invalid api spec: error converting yaml to json", slog.Any("error", err))
+				os.Exit(1)
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
 	doc, err := libopenapi.NewDocument(data)
 	if err != nil {
 		logger.Error("error creating new libopenapi document", slog.Any("error", err))
diff --git a/go.mod b/go.mod
@@ -1,24 +1,25 @@
 module github.com/pb33f/libopenapi-validator
 
-go 1.24.7
+go 1.25.0
 
 require (
+	github.com/basgys/goxml2json v1.1.1-0.20231018121955-e66ee54ceaad
 	github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.11.5
-	github.com/pb33f/jsonpath v0.1.2
-	github.com/pb33f/libopenapi v0.28.1
+	github.com/goccy/go-yaml v1.19.1
+	github.com/pb33f/jsonpath v0.7.0
+	github.com/pb33f/libopenapi v0.30.2
 	github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.2
 	github.com/stretchr/testify v1.11.1
-	go.yaml.in/yaml/v4 v4.0.0-rc.2
-	golang.org/x/text v0.31.0
+	go.yaml.in/yaml/v4 v4.0.0-rc.3
+	golang.org/x/text v0.32.0
 )
 
 require (
 	github.com/bahlo/generic-list-go v0.2.0 // indirect
-	github.com/basgys/goxml2json v1.1.1-0.20231018121955-e66ee54ceaad // indirect
 	github.com/buger/jsonparser v1.1.1 // indirect
 	github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.1 // indirect
 	github.com/pb33f/ordered-map/v2 v2.3.0 // indirect
 	github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.0 // indirect
-	golang.org/x/net v0.47.0 // indirect
+	golang.org/x/net v0.48.0 // indirect
 	gopkg.in/yaml.v3 v3.0.1 // indirect
 )
diff --git a/go.sum b/go.sum
@@ -1,9 +1,8 @@
 github.com/bahlo/generic-list-go v0.2.0 h1:5sz/EEAK+ls5wF+NeqDpk5+iNdMDXrh3z3nPnH1Wvgk=
 github.com/bahlo/generic-list-go v0.2.0/go.mod h1:2KvAjgMlE5NNynlg/5iLrrCCZ2+5xWbdbCW3pNTGyYg=
-github.com/basgys/goxml2json v1.1.0 h1:4ln5i4rseYfXNd86lGEB+Vi652IsIXIvggKM/BhUKVw=
-github.com/basgys/goxml2json v1.1.0/go.mod h1:wH7a5Np/Q4QoECFIU8zTQlZwZkrilY0itPfecMw41Dw=
 github.com/basgys/goxml2json v1.1.1-0.20231018121955-e66ee54ceaad h1:3swAvbzgfaI6nKuDDU7BiKfZRdF+h2ZwKgMHd8Ha4t8=
 github.com/basgys/goxml2json v1.1.1-0.20231018121955-e66ee54ceaad/go.mod h1:9+nBLYNWkvPcq9ep0owWUsPTLgL9ZXTsZWcCSVGGLJ0=
+github.com/bitly/go-simplejson v0.5.1 h1:xgwPbetQScXt1gh9BmoJ6j9JMr3TElvuIyjR8pgdoow=
 github.com/bitly/go-simplejson v0.5.1/go.mod h1:YOPVLzCfwK14b4Sff3oP1AmGhI9T9Vsg84etUnlyp+Q=
 github.com/buger/jsonparser v1.1.1 h1:2PnMjfWD7wBILjqQbt530v576A/cAbQvEW9gGIpYMUs=
 github.com/buger/jsonparser v1.1.1/go.mod h1:6RYKKt7H4d4+iWqouImQ9R2FZql3VbhNgx27UK13J/0=
@@ -12,14 +11,16 @@ github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.1 h1:vj9j/u1bqnvCEfJOwUhtlOARqs3+rkHYY13jYWTU97c
 github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.1/go.mod h1:J7Y8YcW2NihsgmVo/mv3lAwl/skON4iLHjSsI+c5H38=
 github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.11.5 h1:Q/sSnsKerHeCkc/jSTNq1oCm7KiVgUMZRDUoRu0JQZQ=
 github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.11.5/go.mod h1:DHkYz0B9wPfa6wondMfaivmHpzrQ3v9q8cnmRbL6yW8=
+github.com/goccy/go-yaml v1.19.1 h1:3rG3+v8pkhRqoQ/88NYNMHYVGYztCOCIZ7UQhu7H+NE=
+github.com/goccy/go-yaml v1.19.1/go.mod h1:XBurs7gK8ATbW4ZPGKgcbrY1Br56PdM69F7LkFRi1kA=
 github.com/kr/pretty v0.3.1 h1:flRD4NNwYAUpkphVc1HcthR4KEIFJ65n8Mw5qdRn3LE=
 github.com/kr/pretty v0.3.1/go.mod h1:hoEshYVHaxMs3cyo3Yncou5ZscifuDolrwPKZanG3xk=
 github.com/kr/text v0.2.0 h1:5Nx0Ya0ZqY2ygV366QzturHI13Jq95ApcVaJBhpS+AY=
 github.com/kr/text v0.2.0/go.mod h1:eLer722TekiGuMkidMxC/pM04lWEeraHUUmBw8l2grE=
-github.com/pb33f/jsonpath v0.1.2 h1:PlqXjEyecMqoYJupLxYeClCGWEpAFnh4pmzgspbXDPI=
-github.com/pb33f/jsonpath v0.1.2/go.mod h1:TtKnUnfqZm48q7a56DxB3WtL3ipkVtukMKGKxaR/uXU=
-github.com/pb33f/libopenapi v0.28.1 h1:vqE1Q08F6ohABsyKcK8kX7HYkR/+sILXGwCgFzF+aOg=
-github.com/pb33f/libopenapi v0.28.1/go.mod h1:mHMHA3ZKSZDTInNAuUtqkHlKLIjPm2HN1vgsGR57afc=
+github.com/pb33f/jsonpath v0.7.0 h1:3oG6yu1RqNoMZpqnRjBMqi8fSIXWoDAKDrsB0QGTcoU=
+github.com/pb33f/jsonpath v0.7.0/go.mod h1:/+JlSIjWA2ijMVYGJ3IQPF4Q1nLMYbUTYNdk0exCDPQ=
+github.com/pb33f/libopenapi v0.30.2 h1:xOldKP2h5rnBs3Q1EsJULgcplGz2iEem7FybLX8TySU=
+github.com/pb33f/libopenapi v0.30.2/go.mod h1:4MP76dnaTMY+DM+bRhKBneAIhVISEEZM6G6sd7A9pus=
 github.com/pb33f/ordered-map/v2 v2.3.0 h1:k2OhVEQkhTCQMhAicQ3Z6iInzoZNQ7L9MVomwKBZ5WQ=
 github.com/pb33f/ordered-map/v2 v2.3.0/go.mod h1:oe5ue+6ZNhy7QN9cPZvPA23Hx0vMHnNVeMg4fGdCANw=
 github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.0 h1:4DBwDE0NGyQoBHbLQYPwSUPoCMWR5BEzIk/f1lZbAQM=
@@ -33,8 +34,8 @@ github.com/stretchr/testify v1.7.0/go.mod h1:6Fq8oRcR53rry900zMqJjRRixrwX3KX962/
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.11.1 h1:7s2iGBzp5EwR7/aIZr8ao5+dra3wiQyKjjFuvgVKu7U=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.11.1/go.mod h1:wZwfW3scLgRK+23gO65QZefKpKQRnfz6sD981Nm4B6U=
 github.com/yuin/goldmark v1.4.13/go.mod h1:6yULJ656Px+3vBD8DxQVa3kxgyrAnzto9xy5taEt/CY=
-go.yaml.in/yaml/v4 v4.0.0-rc.2 h1:/FrI8D64VSr4HtGIlUtlFMGsm7H7pWTbj6vOLVZcA6s=
-go.yaml.in/yaml/v4 v4.0.0-rc.2/go.mod h1:aZqd9kCMsGL7AuUv/m/PvWLdg5sjJsZ4oHDEnfPPfY0=
+go.yaml.in/yaml/v4 v4.0.0-rc.3 h1:3h1fjsh1CTAPjW7q/EMe+C8shx5d8ctzZTrLcs/j8Go=
+go.yaml.in/yaml/v4 v4.0.0-rc.3/go.mod h1:aZqd9kCMsGL7AuUv/m/PvWLdg5sjJsZ4oHDEnfPPfY0=
 golang.org/x/crypto v0.0.0-20190308221718-c2843e01d9a2/go.mod h1:djNgcEr1/C05ACkg1iLfiJU5Ep61QUkGW8qpdssI0+w=
 golang.org/x/crypto v0.0.0-20210921155107-089bfa567519/go.mod h1:GvvjBRRGRdwPK5ydBHafDWAxML/pGHZbMvKqRZ5+Abc=
 golang.org/x/crypto v0.11.0/go.mod h1:xgJhtzW8F9jGdVFWZESrid1U1bjeNy4zgy5cRr/CIio=
@@ -46,8 +47,8 @@ golang.org/x/net v0.0.0-20220722155237-a158d28d115b/go.mod h1:XRhObCWvk6IyKnWLug
 golang.org/x/net v0.6.0/go.mod h1:2Tu9+aMcznHK/AK1HMvgo6xiTLG5rD5rZLDS+rp2Bjs=
 golang.org/x/net v0.10.0/go.mod h1:0qNGK6F8kojg2nk9dLZ2mShWaEBan6FAoqfSigmmuDg=
 golang.org/x/net v0.13.0/go.mod h1:zEVYFnQC7m/vmpQFELhcD1EWkZlX69l4oqgmer6hfKA=
-golang.org/x/net v0.47.0 h1:Mx+4dIFzqraBXUugkia1OOvlD6LemFo1ALMHjrXDOhY=
-golang.org/x/net v0.47.0/go.mod h1:/jNxtkgq5yWUGYkaZGqo27cfGZ1c5Nen03aYrrKpVRU=
+golang.org/x/net v0.48.0 h1:zyQRTTrjc33Lhh0fBgT/H3oZq9WuvRR5gPC70xpDiQU=
+golang.org/x/net v0.48.0/go.mod h1:+ndRgGjkh8FGtu1w1FGbEC31if4VrNVMuKTgcAAnQRY=
 golang.org/x/sync v0.0.0-20190423024810-112230192c58/go.mod h1:RxMgew5VJxzue5/jJTE5uejpjVlOe/izrB70Jof72aM=
 golang.org/x/sync v0.0.0-20220722155255-886fb9371eb4/go.mod h1:RxMgew5VJxzue5/jJTE5uejpjVlOe/izrB70Jof72aM=
 golang.org/x/sync v0.1.0/go.mod h1:RxMgew5VJxzue5/jJTE5uejpjVlOe/izrB70Jof72aM=
@@ -70,10 +71,8 @@ golang.org/x/text v0.3.7/go.mod h1:u+2+/6zg+i71rQMx5EYifcz6MCKuco9NR6JIITiCfzQ=
 golang.org/x/text v0.7.0/go.mod h1:mrYo+phRRbMaCq/xk9113O4dZlRixOauAjOtrjsXDZ8=
 golang.org/x/text v0.9.0/go.mod h1:e1OnstbJyHTd6l/uOt8jFFHp6TRDWZR/bV3emEE/zU8=
 golang.org/x/text v0.11.0/go.mod h1:TvPlkZtksWOMsz7fbANvkp4WM8x/WCo/om8BMLbz+aE=
-golang.org/x/text v0.30.0 h1:yznKA/E9zq54KzlzBEAWn1NXSQ8DIp/NYMy88xJjl4k=
-golang.org/x/text v0.30.0/go.mod h1:yDdHFIX9t+tORqspjENWgzaCVXgk0yYnYuSZ8UzzBVM=
-golang.org/x/text v0.31.0 h1:aC8ghyu4JhP8VojJ2lEHBnochRno1sgL6nEi9WGFGMM=
-golang.org/x/text v0.31.0/go.mod h1:tKRAlv61yKIjGGHX/4tP1LTbc13YSec1pxVEWXzfoeM=
+golang.org/x/text v0.32.0 h1:ZD01bjUt1FQ9WJ0ClOL5vxgxOI/sVCNgX1YtKwcY0mU=
+golang.org/x/text v0.32.0/go.mod h1:o/rUWzghvpD5TXrTIBuJU77MTaN0ljMWE47kxGJQ7jY=
 golang.org/x/tools v0.0.0-20180917221912-90fa682c2a6e/go.mod h1:n7NCudcB/nEzxVGmLbDWY5pfWTLqBcC2KZ6jyYvM4mQ=
 golang.org/x/tools v0.0.0-20191119224855-298f0cb1881e/go.mod h1:b+2E5dAYhXwXZwtnZ6UAqBI28+e2cm9otk0dWdXHAEo=
 golang.org/x/tools v0.1.12/go.mod h1:hNGJHUnrk76NpqgfD5Aqm5Crs+Hm0VOH/i9J2+nxYbc=
diff --git a/parameters/validate_parameter.go b/parameters/validate_parameter.go
@@ -97,7 +97,8 @@ func ValidateParameterSchema(
 	var validationErrors []*errors.ValidationError
 
 	// 1. build a JSON render of the schema.
-	renderedSchema, _ := schema.RenderInline()
+	renderCtx := base.NewInlineRenderContext()
+	renderedSchema, _ := schema.RenderInlineWithContext(renderCtx)
 	jsonSchema, _ := utils.ConvertYAMLtoJSON(renderedSchema)
 
 	// 2. decode the object into a json blob.
@@ -238,7 +239,8 @@ func formatJsonSchemaValidationError(schema *base.Schema, scErrs *jsonschema.Val
 			OriginalJsonSchemaError: scErrs,
 		}
 		if schema != nil {
-			rendered, err := schema.RenderInline()
+			renderCtx := base.NewInlineRenderContext()
+			rendered, err := schema.RenderInlineWithContext(renderCtx)
 			if err == nil && rendered != nil {
 				renderedBytes, _ := json.Marshal(rendered)
 				fail.ReferenceSchema = string(renderedBytes)
diff --git a/requests/validate_request.go b/requests/validate_request.go
@@ -75,8 +75,34 @@ func ValidateRequestSchema(input *ValidateRequestSchemaInput) (bool, []*errors.V
 
 	// Cache miss or no cache - render and compile
 	if compiledSchema == nil {
-		renderedSchema, _ = input.Schema.RenderInline()
+		renderCtx := base.NewInlineRenderContext()
+		var renderErr error
+		renderedSchema, renderErr = input.Schema.RenderInlineWithContext(renderCtx)
 		referenceSchema = string(renderedSchema)
+
+		// If rendering failed (e.g., circular reference), return the render error
+		if renderErr != nil {
+			violation := &errors.SchemaValidationFailure{
+				Reason:          renderErr.Error(),
+				Location:        "schema rendering",
+				ReferenceSchema: referenceSchema,
+			}
+			validationErrors = append(validationErrors, &errors.ValidationError{
+				ValidationType:    helpers.RequestBodyValidation,
+				ValidationSubType: helpers.Schema,
+				Message: fmt.Sprintf("%s request body for '%s' failed schema rendering",
+					input.Request.Method, input.Request.URL.Path),
+				Reason: fmt.Sprintf("The request schema failed to render: %s",
+					renderErr.Error()),
+				SpecLine:               1,
+				SpecCol:                0,
+				SchemaValidationErrors: []*errors.SchemaValidationFailure{violation},
+				HowToFix:               "check the request schema for circular references or invalid structures",
+				Context:                referenceSchema,
+			})
+			return false, validationErrors
+		}
+
 		jsonSchema, _ = utils.ConvertYAMLtoJSON(renderedSchema)
 
 		var err error
diff --git a/requests/validate_request_test.go b/requests/validate_request_test.go
@@ -234,3 +234,44 @@ func indentLines(s string, indent string) string {
 	}
 	return strings.Join(lines, "\n")
 }
+
+func TestValidateRequestSchema_CircularReference(t *testing.T) {
+	// Test when schema has a circular reference that causes render failure
+	spec := `openapi: 3.1.0
+info:
+  title: Test
+  version: 1.0.0
+components:
+  schemas:
+    Error:
+      type: object
+      properties:
+        code:
+          type: string
+        details:
+          type: array
+          items:
+            $ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'`
+
+	doc, err := libopenapi.NewDocument([]byte(spec))
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+	model, errs := doc.BuildV3Model()
+	require.Empty(t, errs)
+
+	// Verify circular reference was detected
+	require.Len(t, model.Index.GetCircularReferences(), 1)
+
+	schema := model.Model.Components.Schemas.GetOrZero("Error")
+	require.NotNil(t, schema)
+
+	valid, errors := ValidateRequestSchema(&ValidateRequestSchemaInput{
+		Request: postRequestWithBody(`{"code": "abc", "details": [{"code": "def"}]}`),
+		Schema:  schema.Schema(),
+		Version: 3.1,
+	})
+
+	assert.False(t, valid)
+	require.Len(t, errors, 1)
+	assert.Contains(t, errors[0].Message, "failed schema rendering")
+	assert.Contains(t, errors[0].Reason, "circular reference")
+}
diff --git a/responses/validate_response.go b/responses/validate_response.go
@@ -78,8 +78,34 @@ func ValidateResponseSchema(input *ValidateResponseSchemaInput) (bool, []*errors
 
 	// Cache miss or no cache - render and compile
 	if compiledSchema == nil {
-		renderedSchema, _ = input.Schema.RenderInline()
+		renderCtx := base.NewInlineRenderContext()
+		var renderErr error
+		renderedSchema, renderErr = input.Schema.RenderInlineWithContext(renderCtx)
 		referenceSchema = string(renderedSchema)
+
+		// If rendering failed (e.g., circular reference), return the render error
+		if renderErr != nil {
+			violation := &errors.SchemaValidationFailure{
+				Reason:          renderErr.Error(),
+				Location:        "schema rendering",
+				ReferenceSchema: referenceSchema,
+			}
+			validationErrors = append(validationErrors, &errors.ValidationError{
+				ValidationType:    helpers.ResponseBodyValidation,
+				ValidationSubType: helpers.Schema,
+				Message: fmt.Sprintf("%d response body for '%s' failed schema rendering",
+					input.Response.StatusCode, input.Request.URL.Path),
+				Reason: fmt.Sprintf("The response schema for status code '%d' failed to render: %s",
+					input.Response.StatusCode, renderErr.Error()),
+				SpecLine:               1,
+				SpecCol:                0,
+				SchemaValidationErrors: []*errors.SchemaValidationFailure{violation},
+				HowToFix:               "check the response schema for circular references or invalid structures",
+				Context:                referenceSchema,
+			})
+			return false, validationErrors
+		}
+
 		jsonSchema, _ = utils.ConvertYAMLtoJSON(renderedSchema)
 
 		var err error
diff --git a/responses/validate_response_test.go b/responses/validate_response_test.go
diff --git a/schema_validation/validate_schema.go b/schema_validation/validate_schema.go
diff --git a/validator.go b/validator.go
