affaan-m/ECC · error · ValueError

Path is not a valid directory

Error message

Path is not a valid directory: {canonical!r}

What it means

Raised by launch_terminal in scripts/lib/ecc_dashboard_runtime.py when the requested path fails the os.path.isdir check after canonicalization via os.path.realpath. The function refuses to spawn a terminal subprocess pointing at a nonexistent or non-directory target, because the subsequent build_terminal_launch/Popen call assumes a valid working directory. It is a defensive pre-flight validation before process launch.

Solutions

1. Verify the path exists and is a directory before calling launch_terminal (os.path.isdir(os.path.realpath(path))).
2. Fix the dashboard/config value that supplied the wrong path (stale workspace, typo, file instead of directory).
3. Create the missing directory if it is expected to exist (os.makedirs(path, exist_ok=True)).
4. Handle the ValueError in open_terminal and surface a friendly message or fall back to the default working directory.

Example fix

// before
launch_terminal(workspace_path)  # may be stale
// after
if os.path.isdir(os.path.realpath(workspace_path)):
    launch_terminal(workspace_path)
else:
    print(f"workspace not found: {workspace_path}")

import os
if not os.path.isdir(os.path.realpath(path)):
    raise FileNotFoundError(f"not a directory: {path}")

def is_valid_directory(path: str) -> bool:
    return os.path.isdir(os.path.realpath(path))

try:
    launch_terminal(path)
except ValueError as e:
    print(f"cannot open terminal: {e}")

When it happens

Trigger: Calling launch_terminal (directly or via open_terminal) with a path that does not exist, points at a regular file, or is a dangling symlink so realpath resolves to a non-directory.

Common situations: Dashboard passes a stale workspace directory that was deleted or renamed while the dashboard ran; user config points the terminal opener at a file instead of a directory; symlink targets removed on a mounted volume.

Related errors

• output must have a video suffix distinct from…
• Path does not exist
• all overlays must be readable local files
• all takes must be readable local files
• application bundle differs from its bound evidence

AI-assisted analysis of affaan-m/ECC@8321021c54 (2026-09-16). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b2ad29dbae5b1bfd. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at scripts/lib/ecc_dashboard_runtime.py:68

                'cwd': path,
                'creationflags': creationflags,
            },
        )

    if resolved_system_name == 'Darwin':
        return (['open', '-a', 'Terminal', path], {})

    return (
        ['x-terminal-emulator', '-e', 'bash', '-lc', 'cd -- "$1"; exec bash', 'bash', path],
        {},
    )


def launch_terminal(path: str) -> None:
    """Open a terminal at the given path after validating the target directory."""
    canonical = os.path.realpath(path)
    if not os.path.isdir(canonical):
        raise ValueError(f"Path is not a valid directory: {canonical!r}")
    argv, kwargs = build_terminal_launch(canonical)
    subprocess.Popen(argv, **kwargs)  # noqa: S603 - list argv, no shell=True, path validated above

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