Problem

While running Evolution API v2.3.7 on Windows + WSL2 + Docker Desktop environments, the application randomly crashes during WhatsApp instance initialization with:

TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'state')

The issue happens inside:

this.instance.authState.state.creds

Environment

• Windows 11
• WSL2
• Docker Desktop
• Evolution API 2.3.7
• Baileys

Symptoms

• QR code loop
• disconnected status
• timeout on connect
• reconnect loop
• instance closes immediately after creation

Root Cause

A race condition during socket bootstrap allows the Baileys client to initialize before authState is fully initialized.

Fix

I created a defensive fallback validation before accessing:

this.instance.authState.state

This prevents crashes during early bootstrap on slower/containerized Windows environments.

Repository

Fix implementation and documentation:

https://github.com/LuanValente/evolution-api-wsl2-authstate-fix

Author

Developed and documented by:

Luan Valente

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/luan-valente-87517223a/?locale=en
• GitHub: https://github.com/LuanValente
• Email: Luanvalent23@gmail.com

Credits

This repository is based on the original Evolution API project:

https://github.com/EvolutionAPI/evolution-api

All credits for the original implementation belong to the Evolution API maintainers.