affaan-m/ECC · error · Error

--write requires a path

Error message

--write requires a path

What it means

The --write flag for scripts/ci/supply-chain-advisory-sources.js expects a file path argument immediately after it. The parser uses argv[++i] to consume the next token, and if that token is undefined (i.e., --write is the last argument on the command line) the script throws this error. This is a hard guard before writeReport() is ever called, ensuring fs.writeFileSync always receives a real path.

Source

Thrown at scripts/ci/supply-chain-advisory-sources.js:391

    if (arg === '--help' || arg === '-h') {
      options.help = true;
    } else if (arg === '--json') {
      options.json = true;
    } else if (arg === '--refresh') {
      options.refresh = true;
    } else if (arg === '--strict-refresh') {
      options.strictRefresh = true;
      options.refresh = true;
    } else if (arg === '--generated-at') {
      options.generatedAt = argv[++i];
    } else if (arg === '--timeout-ms') {
      options.timeoutMs = Number(argv[++i]);
      if (!Number.isFinite(options.timeoutMs) || options.timeoutMs <= 0) {
        throw new Error('--timeout-ms must be a positive number');
      }
    } else if (arg === '--write') {
      options.writePath = argv[++i];
      if (!options.writePath) throw new Error('--write requires a path');
    } else {
      throw new Error(`Unknown argument: ${arg}`);
    }
  }
  return options;
}

function printHelp() {
  console.log(`Usage: node scripts/ci/supply-chain-advisory-sources.js [options]

Build the active supply-chain advisory source report used by the scheduled
watch workflow and Linear ITO-57 status updates.

Options:
  --json              Emit JSON instead of text
  --refresh           Check source URLs and record warning status
  --strict-refresh    Fail when a refreshed source URL returns a warning
  --generated-at <ts> Override the report timestamp

View on GitHub (pinned to 01e15490f0)

Solutions

1. Provide a file path immediately after --write, e.g. --write reports/advisory-sources.json
2. If building the command dynamically, ensure the path variable is non-empty before appending --write
3. Run the script with --help to see all expected flag-value pairs

Example fix

// before
node scripts/ci/supply-chain-advisory-sources.js --write
// after
node scripts/ci/supply-chain-advisory-sources.js --write reports/advisory-sources.json

// Before calling parseArgs, validate that --write has a companion path
const argv = process.argv.slice(2);
const writeIdx = argv.indexOf('--write');
if (writeIdx !== -1 && (!argv[writeIdx + 1] || argv[writeIdx + 1].startsWith('--'))) {
  console.error('Error: --write requires a file path argument');
  process.exit(1);
}

// Wrap the script invocation and catch argument errors with user-friendly messages
try {
  const options = parseArgs(process.argv.slice(2));
} catch (error) {
  if (error.message.includes('requires a path')) {
    console.error('Missing file path for --write. Usage: --write <file-path>');
    printHelp();
    process.exit(2);
  }
  throw error;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Running `node scripts/ci/supply-chain-advisory-sources.js --write` with no path after the flag, or placing --write at the end of the command line. Also triggered if --write is followed by nothing because the shell consumed the next token as a separate command.

Common situations: CI YAML or workflow file that appends --write conditionally but forgets the path variable; shell scripts that build the argument list dynamically and skip the path; copy-pasting a partial command from documentation without completing the path.

Related errors

• Unknown argument: ${arg}
• Unknown argument: ${arg}
• --timeout-ms must be a positive number
• Unknown argument: ${arg}
• Invalid ${flag}: expected a single cache path segment

AI-assisted analysis of affaan-m/ECC@01e15490f0 (2026-08-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/9e9b1d0023f901a1. Report an issue: GitHub.