Yeachan-Heo/oh-my-codex · warning · Error

Missing path after --prompt-file

Error message

Missing path after --prompt-file

What it means

Usage error from parseExecInjectArgs when `--prompt-file` appears as the final token and no path follows. The parser expects the next argument to be a file path to read the prompt from and throws when it is absent.

Source

Thrown at src/exec/followup.ts:383

  if (!sessionId) throw new Error("Usage: omx exec inject <session-id> --prompt <text> [--actor <name>] [--json]");

  let prompt = "";
  let actor: string | undefined;
  let json = false;
  for (let i = 0; i < rest.length; i += 1) {
    const arg = rest[i]!;
    if (arg === "--json") {
      json = true;
    } else if (arg === "--prompt") {
      const value = rest[i + 1];
      if (!value) throw new Error("Missing value after --prompt");
      prompt = value;
      i += 1;
    } else if (arg.startsWith("--prompt=")) {
      prompt = arg.slice("--prompt=".length);
    } else if (arg === "--prompt-file") {
      const value = rest[i + 1];
      if (!value) throw new Error("Missing path after --prompt-file");
      prompt = readFileSyncForCli(value);
      i += 1;
    } else if (arg.startsWith("--prompt-file=")) {
      prompt = readFileSyncForCli(arg.slice("--prompt-file=".length));
    } else if (arg === "--actor") {
      const value = rest[i + 1];
      if (!value) throw new Error("Missing value after --actor");
      actor = value;
      i += 1;
    } else if (arg.startsWith("--actor=")) {
      actor = arg.slice("--actor=".length);
    } else if (!arg.startsWith("-") && !prompt) {
      prompt = [arg, ...rest.slice(i + 1)].join(" ");
      break;
    } else {
      throw new Error(`Unknown exec inject argument: ${arg}`);
    }
  }

View on GitHub (pinned to 3ad79a8a6f)

Solutions

1. Provide the path: `--prompt-file ./prompt.txt` or `--prompt-file=./prompt.txt`.
2. Assert the variable/file first: `[ -f "$PROMPT_FILE" ] || { echo "missing prompt file"; exit 1; }`.
3. Use the --prompt-file= form for explicitness.
4. If the file content may be empty, remember the prompt still must be non-empty after read or error missing_prompt applies.

Example fix

# before
omx exec inject "$SESSION_ID" --prompt-file

# after
omx exec inject "$SESSION_ID" --prompt-file ./followup-prompt.txt

if (!promptFile || !existsSync(promptFile)) throw new Error('prompt file path required and must exist');
runCli(['exec', 'inject', sessionId, '--prompt-file', promptFile]);

catch (e) { if (e instanceof Error && e.message === 'Missing path after --prompt-file') { console.error('usage: --prompt-file <path>'); process.exit(2); } throw e; }

When it happens

Trigger: Ending the command with a bare `--prompt-file`; a script passing `--prompt-file "$FILE"` where FILE is unset so no token follows; the path being consumed by an earlier flag leaving --prompt-file valueless.

Common situations: Prompt file path stored in an unset variable; CI step references an artifact path that wasn't produced; typo where the path is on the wrong side of a line continuation.

Related errors

• Usage: omx exec inject <session-id> --prompt <text> [--actor
• Missing value after --prompt
• Missing value after --actor
• Unknown exec inject argument: ${arg}
• Unknown adapt argument: ${arg}

AI-assisted analysis of Yeachan-Heo/oh-my-codex@3ad79a8a6f (2026-08-27). Data as JSON: /api/errors/f3c4393d2288cd3e. Report an issue: GitHub.