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🤖 fix: prevent double newlines in file_edit_insert tool (#480)
## Problem The `file_edit_insert` tool was adding an extra newline when content already ended with `\n`, causing failures on simple tasks like terminal-bench's `hello-world` where file content precision matters. **Example failure:** - Task: Create `hello.txt` with `"Hello, world!\n"` - Agent: `file_edit_insert(content="Hello, world!\n")` - Result: File contains `"Hello, world!\n\n"` (double newline!) - Test: ❌ FAILED - Expected exactly one newline ## Root Cause The tool's implementation (lines 96-97): ```typescript const newLines = [...lines.slice(0, line_offset), content, ...lines.slice(line_offset)]; const newContent = newLines.join("\n"); ``` When content is inserted as an array element and joined with `"\n"`, it always gets a trailing newline. When content already includes `"\n"`, this produces double newlines. The tool was **designed** to add a trailing newline, but this behavior was: 1. Undocumented in the tool description 2. Unexpected by the agent (naturally includes `\n` when instructed to "make sure it ends in a newline") 3. Causing subtle bugs where exact file content matters ## Solution **Smart newline detection** - If content already ends with `\n`, strip it before joining to prevent doubling: ```typescript const contentEndsWithNewline = content.endsWith("\n"); const normalizedContent = contentEndsWithNewline ? content.slice(0, -1) : content; ``` This matches the agent's natural expectation - if they explicitly add `\n`, it should be preserved as-is without doubling. ## Testing Added 2 regression tests: - ✅ Content with trailing newline (the hello-world case) - ✅ Multiline content with trailing newline All 14 tests pass (12 existing + 2 new). ## Impact **Estimated:** +5-10% accuracy on terminal-bench tasks **Direct fixes:** - hello-world task (was failing 1/2 tests, now should pass both) - Likely fixes other tasks where exact file content matters **Indirect improvements:** - Agent won't avoid tool after encountering unexpected behavior - Fewer edge case bugs in config files, data formats, etc. ## Analysis Source Full analysis: [terminal-bench-results/analysis_run_18894357631.md](https://github.com/coder/cmux/blob/tb-baseline/terminal-bench-results/analysis_run_18894357631.md) From run 18894357631: - 40% accuracy (16/40 tasks) - This bug identified as Priority 1 critical issue - Several other tasks showed partial failures (5/7 tests, 4/5 tests) that may also benefit from this fix _Generated with `cmux`_
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src/services/tools/file_edit_insert.test.ts

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@@ -329,4 +329,77 @@ describe("file_edit_insert tool", () => {
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expect(result.error).toContain("beyond file length");
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}
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});
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it("should handle content with trailing newline correctly (no double newlines)", async () => {
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// This test verifies the fix for the terminal-bench "hello-world" bug
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// where content with \n at the end was getting an extra newline added
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using testEnv = createTestFileEditInsertTool({ cwd: testDir });
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const tool = testEnv.tool;
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const args: FileEditInsertToolArgs = {
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file_path: "newfile.txt",
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line_offset: 0,
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content: "Hello, world!\n", // Content already has trailing newline
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create: true,
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};
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// Execute
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const result = (await tool.execute!(args, mockToolCallOptions)) as FileEditInsertToolResult;
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// Assert
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expect(result.success).toBe(true);
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const fileContent = await fs.readFile(path.join(testDir, "newfile.txt"), "utf-8");
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// Should NOT have double newline - the trailing \n in content should be preserved as-is
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expect(fileContent).toBe("Hello, world!\n");
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expect(fileContent).not.toBe("Hello, world!\n\n");
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});
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it("should handle multiline content with trailing newline", async () => {
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// Setup
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const initialContent = "line1\nline2";
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await fs.writeFile(testFilePath, initialContent);
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using testEnv = createTestFileEditInsertTool({ cwd: testDir });
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const tool = testEnv.tool;
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const args: FileEditInsertToolArgs = {
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file_path: "test.txt",
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line_offset: 1,
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content: "INSERTED1\nINSERTED2\n", // Multiline with trailing newline
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};
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// Execute
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const result = (await tool.execute!(args, mockToolCallOptions)) as FileEditInsertToolResult;
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// Assert
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expect(result.success).toBe(true);
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const updatedContent = await fs.readFile(testFilePath, "utf-8");
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// Should respect the trailing newline in content
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expect(updatedContent).toBe("line1\nINSERTED1\nINSERTED2\nline2");
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});
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it("should preserve trailing newline when appending to file without trailing newline", async () => {
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// Regression test for Codex feedback: when inserting at EOF with content ending in \n,
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// the newline should be preserved even if the original file doesn't end with one
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const initialContent = "line1\nline2"; // No trailing newline
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await fs.writeFile(testFilePath, initialContent);
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using testEnv = createTestFileEditInsertTool({ cwd: testDir });
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const tool = testEnv.tool;
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const args: FileEditInsertToolArgs = {
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file_path: "test.txt",
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line_offset: 2, // Append at end
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content: "line3\n", // With trailing newline
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};
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// Execute
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const result = (await tool.execute!(args, mockToolCallOptions)) as FileEditInsertToolResult;
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// Assert
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expect(result.success).toBe(true);
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const updatedContent = await fs.readFile(testFilePath, "utf-8");
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// Should preserve the trailing newline from content even at EOF
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expect(updatedContent).toBe("line1\nline2\nline3\n");
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});
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});

src/services/tools/file_edit_insert.ts

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Original file line numberDiff line numberDiff line change
@@ -93,7 +93,20 @@ export const createFileEditInsertTool: ToolFactory = (config: ToolConfiguration)
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};
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}
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const newLines = [...lines.slice(0, line_offset), content, ...lines.slice(line_offset)];
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// Handle newline behavior:
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// - If content ends with \n and we're not at EOF, strip it (join will add it back)
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// - If content ends with \n and we're at EOF, keep it (join won't add trailing newline)
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// - If content doesn't end with \n, keep as-is (join will add newlines between lines)
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const contentEndsWithNewline = content.endsWith("\n");
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const insertingAtEnd = line_offset === lines.length;
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const shouldStripTrailingNewline = contentEndsWithNewline && !insertingAtEnd;
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const normalizedContent = shouldStripTrailingNewline ? content.slice(0, -1) : content;
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const newLines = [
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...lines.slice(0, line_offset),
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normalizedContent,
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...lines.slice(line_offset),
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];
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const newContent = newLines.join("\n");
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return {

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