pbakaus/impeccable · error

--target requires a path value

Error message

--target requires a path value (use --target <path> or --target=<path>)

What it means

consumeTargetArg() (skill/scripts/live/roots.mjs) strips '--target <path>' from a live helper's argv (mutating it via splice) and returns the value so the helper operates on an explicit app root. In the separate-token form, it throws — unconditionally, there is no non-strict mode — when '--target' is the last token, or the next token is not a usable string (empty, or itself starting with '--'). The guard is deliberate: these helpers mutate session state, and a valueless --target must not degrade into implicit 'most recent app' root selection.

Solutions

1. Pass the value attached to the flag: --target /path/to/app or --target=/path/to/app
2. Guard optional targeting in scripts: only add the pair when non-empty — [[ -n "$TARGET" ]] && set -- --target "$TARGET" "$@"
3. Drop --target entirely when operating on the implicitly selected root is acceptable

Example fix

# before
node live-commit-manual-edits.mjs --target

# after
node live-commit-manual-edits.mjs --target /path/to/app

function validateTargetArg(argv) {
  const i = argv.indexOf('--target');
  if (i === -1) return true;
  const value = argv[i + 1];
  return typeof value === 'string' && value !== '' && !value.startsWith('--');
}

if (!validateTargetArg(process.argv)) {
  console.error('--target requires a path value (use --target <path> or --target=<path>)');
  process.exit(2);
}

let target;
try {
  target = consumeTargetArg(process.argv);
} catch (err) {
  if (err?.message?.includes('--target requires a path value')) {
    printUsageAndExit(2);
  }
  throw err;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Invoking a live helper (e.g. live-commit-manual-edits.mjs) with '--target' as the final argument; '--target --verbose' where the intended value was forgotten and the next token parses as a flag; '--target ""' from an unset or empty shell variable.

Common situations: Shell scripts appending --target conditionally while the value lands in a different branch; quoting/continuation-line mistakes splitting flag from value; variable empty due to a typo in its name.

Related errors

• {}
• Unsupported live copy-edit AI runner
• Aborted.
• ambiguous snapshot slug; use an explicit ./path or remove…
• requires a glob

AI-assisted analysis of pbakaus/impeccable@f88b2837a7 (2026-08-18). Data as JSON: /api/errors/aeccb7d4c798d70e. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at skill/scripts/live/roots.mjs:451

  if (fresh.selection) return { selection: fresh.selection, source: 'fresh' };
  return { manifest: fresh.manifest, source: 'fresh' };
}

/**
 * Consume a `--target <path>` / `--target=<path>` pair from an argv array,
 * returning the value and removing the tokens so downstream flag parsers
 * (which do not know the option) never see them.
 */
export function consumeTargetArg(argv = process.argv) {
  for (let i = 0; i < argv.length; i++) {
    const arg = argv[i];
    if (arg === '--target') {
      const value = argv[i + 1];
      // A --target with no usable value must not degrade into implicit root
      // selection: these helpers mutate session state, and "the most recent
      // app" is exactly what the caller was trying NOT to get.
      if (typeof value !== 'string' || value === '' || value.startsWith('--')) {
        throw new Error('--target requires a path value (use --target <path> or --target=<path>)');
      }
      argv.splice(i, 2);
      return value;
    }
    if (typeof arg === 'string' && arg.startsWith('--target=')) {
      const value = arg.slice('--target='.length);
      if (value === '') {
        throw new Error('--target requires a path value (use --target <path> or --target=<path>)');
      }
      argv.splice(i, 1);
      return value;
    }
  }
  return null;
}

/**
 * Entry-point guard for live CLI scripts: resolve the governing roots and

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