affaan-m/ECC · error · Error

requires a value.

Error message

${argument} requires a value.

What it means

scripts/memory.js's parseArgs recognizes certain options as value-taking (VALUE_OPTIONS) or repeatable (REPEAT_OPTIONS). For these, the next argv element must exist and must not look like another flag (start with '--'). If the value is missing or is itself a flag, the parser throws '<argument> requires a value.' to prevent silently consuming the wrong token.

Solutions

1. Provide the value directly after the flag: `--content "my note"`.
2. If the value itself starts with '--', quote it or use `--content=--value` style if supported by your wrapper.
3. Check that shell quoting preserved the value (e.g. `--content $EMPTY_VAR` yields nothing if the variable is unset).
4. Run the command with the intended value first in your shell history review to spot dropped tokens.

Example fix

// before
node scripts/memory.js write --content
// after
node scripts/memory.js write --content "project decision: use Redis"

const idx = args.indexOf('--content');
if (idx !== -1 && (args[idx+1] === undefined || args[idx+1].startsWith('--'))) {
  throw new Error('--content requires a value');
}

try { run(args); } catch (e) { if (e.message.includes('requires a value')) { console.error(`${e.message} Pass the value right after the flag.`); process.exitCode = 2; } else throw e; }

When it happens

Trigger: Running `node scripts/memory.js write --content` (nothing after the flag) or `node scripts/memory.js write --content --tags a,b` (next token is a flag).

Common situations: Forgetting the value at the end of a command line, intending a value that starts with '--', or quoting mistakes that split the value into multiple tokens.

Understand the failure class

Background: "missing required argument" and "the following required arguments were not provided": what required-argument errors mean and how to fix them — this error's family across 20 libraries.

Related errors

• requires a value
• requires a value
• requires a value
• Missing value for
• Missing value for

AI-assisted analysis of affaan-m/ECC@8321021c54 (2026-09-16). Data as JSON: /api/errors/294a224a66a6e2ed. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at scripts/memory.js:110

    return { command: 'help', options: {}, positionals: [] };
  }
  const [command, ...args] = argv;
  const parsed = args.reduce((state, argument, index) => {
    if (state.skipNext) {
      return { ...state, skipNext: false };
    }
    if (BOOLEAN_OPTIONS.has(argument)) {
      return {
        ...state,
        options: { ...state.options, [BOOLEAN_OPTIONS.get(argument)]: true },
      };
    }
    const valueKey = VALUE_OPTIONS.get(argument);
    const repeatKey = REPEAT_OPTIONS.get(argument);
    if (valueKey || repeatKey) {
      const value = args[index + 1];
      if (value === undefined || value.startsWith('--')) {
        throw new Error(`${argument} requires a value.`);
      }
      return {
        ...state,
        options: repeatKey
          ? appendOption(state.options, repeatKey, value)
          : { ...state.options, [valueKey]: value },
        skipNext: true,
      };
    }
    if (argument.startsWith('-')) {
      throw new Error(`Unknown option: ${argument}`);
    }
    return { ...state, positionals: [...state.positionals, argument] };
  }, { options: {}, positionals: [], skipNext: false });

  return {
    command,
    options: parsed.options,

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