oraios/serena · error · ValueError

Explicitly requested symbols in '{within_relative_path}' whi

Error message

Explicitly requested symbols in '{within_relative_path}' while the path is ignored

What it means

ValueError raised when a caller explicitly passes within_relative_path to a symbols-request API but that path is matched by the server's ignore rules (gitignore/ignore-path filtering). The library refuses to return ignored content on explicit requests rather than silently honoring or ignoring the request.

Source

Thrown at src/solidlsp/ls.py:2188

                                if path.is_absolute():
                                    try:
                                        path = path.relative_to(self.repository_root_path)
                                        node["location"]["relativePath"] = str(path)
                                    except Exception:
                                        pass
                            if "children" in node:
                                fix_relative_path(node["children"])

                    fix_relative_path(file_root_nodes)

            return result

        if within_relative_path:
            within_abs_path = os.path.join(self.repository_root_path, within_relative_path)
            if not os.path.exists(within_abs_path):
                raise FileNotFoundError(f"File or directory not found: {within_abs_path}")
            if self.is_ignored_path(within_relative_path):
                raise ValueError(f"Explicitly requested symbols in '{within_relative_path}' while the path is ignored")
            if os.path.isfile(within_abs_path):
                root_nodes = self.request_document_symbols(within_relative_path).root_symbols
                return root_nodes
            else:
                self.PathWorkspaceStatus.from_abs_resolved_path(Path(within_abs_path).resolve(), self).check_within_workspace_or_raise()
                return process_directory(within_abs_path)
        else:
            full_result = []
            for root in self.config.get_absolute_workspace_folders(self.repository_root_path):
                full_result.extend(process_directory(root))
            return full_result

    @staticmethod
    def _get_range_from_file_content(file_content: str) -> ls_types.Range:
        """
        Get the range for the given file.
        """
        lines = file_content.split("\n")

View on GitHub (pinned to 7fcbca7e62)

Solutions

1. Request symbols only for non-ignored source files; list non-ignored files instead.
2. If the path must be analyzed, remove the corresponding entry from .gitignore or adjust the ignore patterns passed to SolidLanguageServer.create.
3. Use ls.is_ignored_path(rel_path) to check before calling and handle gracefully.
4. Copy the file to a non-ignored location if you only need one-off analysis.

Example fix

// before
ls.request_directory_symbols("node_modules/pkg/index.js")  # ignored
// after
if not ls.is_ignored_path(rel):
    ls.request_directory_symbols(rel)
else:
    print(f"skipping ignored path {rel}")

if ls.is_ignored_path(rel_path):
    raise ValueError(f"{rel_path} is ignored; pick a tracked source path")

def is_requestable(ls, rel: str) -> bool:
    return os.path.exists(os.path.join(ls.repository_root_path, rel)) and not ls.is_ignored_path(rel)

try:
    syms = ls.request_directory_symbols(rel_path)
except ValueError as e:
    logging.info("ignored path requested: %s", e)
    syms = []

When it happens

Trigger: Calling request_directory_symbols/overview with a path inside .gitignore'd directories (node_modules, build, .venv, dist) or matched by custom ignore patterns configured on the server.

Common situations: Asking for symbols in node_modules or a generated build directory, analyzing vendored/dependency code, or paths ignored by user-custom ignore_config passed at server creation.

Related errors

• The explicitly passed file {within_relative_path} is ignored
• File or directory not found: {within_abs_path}
• File or directory not found: {abs_path}
• Mode file not found: {path.resolve()}
• Error: Path does not exist: {project_root}

AI-assisted analysis of oraios/serena@7fcbca7e62 (2026-08-29). Data as JSON: /api/errors/02708e63b987cf43. Report an issue: GitHub.