paperclipai/paperclip · error · Error

Target path already exists: ${targetPath}

Error message

Target path already exists: ${targetPath}

What it means

Thrown at the very start of worktreeMakeCommand before any git operation runs: resolveWorktreeMakeTargetPath(name) produced a directory path that already exists on disk. worktree:make creates a NEW git worktree + Paperclip instance, so a pre-existing target directory is treated as a hard stop to avoid overwriting unrelated content.

Source

Thrown at cli/src/commands/worktree.ts:1823

    }
    p.outro(pc.green("Worktree database seed complete."));
  } catch (error) {
    spinner.stop(pc.red("Failed to seed worktree database."));
    throw error;
  }
}

export async function worktreeMakeCommand(nameArg: string, opts: WorktreeMakeOptions): Promise<void> {
  printPaperclipCliBanner();
  p.intro(pc.bgCyan(pc.black(" paperclipai worktree:make ")));

  const name = resolveWorktreeMakeName(nameArg);
  const startPoint = resolveWorktreeStartPoint(opts.startPoint);
  const sourceCwd = process.cwd();
  const sourceConfigPath = resolveSourceConfigPath(opts);
  const targetPath = resolveWorktreeMakeTargetPath(name);
  if (existsSync(targetPath)) {
    throw new Error(`Target path already exists: ${targetPath}`);
  }

  mkdirSync(path.dirname(targetPath), { recursive: true });
  if (startPoint) {
    const [remote] = startPoint.split("/", 1);
    try {
      execFileSync("git", ["fetch", remote], {
        cwd: sourceCwd,
        stdio: ["ignore", "pipe", "pipe"],
      });
    } catch (error) {
      throw new Error(
        `Failed to fetch from remote "${remote}": ${extractExecSyncErrorMessage(error) ?? String(error)}`,
      );
    }
  }

  const worktreeArgs = resolveGitWorktreeAddArgs({

View on GitHub (pinned to 67001ec6eb)

Solutions

1. Remove or rename the existing directory at the path shown in the error, then re-run.
2. Use a different worktree name to avoid the collision.
3. If the directory is a leftover from a failed make, run `paperclipai worktree:clean <name>` to tear it down properly first.

Example fix

// before
paperclipai worktree:make feat-x   # ./feat-x already exists
// after
rm -rf ./feat-x   # or: paperclipai worktree:clean feat-x
paperclipai worktree:make feat-x

import { existsSync } from "node:fs";
const targetPath = resolveWorktreeMakeTargetPath(name);
if (existsSync(targetPath)) {
  throw new Error(`Refusing to overwrite existing directory ${targetPath}`);
}

function targetPathFree(p: string): boolean { return !existsSync(p); }

try { await worktreeMakeCommand(name, opts); }
catch (err) {
  if (/Target path already exists/.test(String((err as Error).message))) {
    // pick a new name or clean first
  } else throw err;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Running `paperclipai worktree:make <name>` when `<name>` directory already exists in the resolved target location; a previous make crashed after mkdir but before git worktree add; a directory with the same name was created manually.

Common situations: Re-running make after a failed attempt without cleanup; name collision with an existing sibling directory; CI runner not cleaned between runs.

Related errors

• Branch name is required.
• Invalid branch name "${branchName}": ${extractExecSyncErrorM
• Target path already exists but is not a registered git workt
• ${extractExecSyncErrorMessage(error) ?? String(error)}
• Worktree config already exists at ${paths.configPath} or ins

AI-assisted analysis of paperclipai/paperclip@67001ec6eb (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/bec02f84ddb998f1. Report an issue: GitHub.