diff --git a/packages/vite/src/node/server/sourcemap.ts b/packages/vite/src/node/server/sourcemap.ts
index 5e11f8491443e4..2f516c5985b9b0 100644
--- a/packages/vite/src/node/server/sourcemap.ts
+++ b/packages/vite/src/node/server/sourcemap.ts
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ export async function injectSourcesContent(
       map.sourcesContent![i] = await fs.readFile(
         path.resolve(sourceRoot, decodeURI(sourcePath)),
         'utf-8'
-      )
+      ).catch(() => '/* Vite fails to read source because it is missing or a virtual module.*/')
     })
   )
 }