plandex-ai/plandex · warning

timeout waiting for missing file choice

Error message

timeout waiting for missing file choice

What it means

Raised in handleMissingFile inside processChunk when the model asked the user to choose how to handle a missing file (prompt pushed to active.MissingFileResponseCh) and no answer arrived within 30 minutes. The processor intentionally uses a long timeout because it blocks on human input; on expiry it calls state.onError with storeDesc:true and stops processing (empty processChunkResult, hookOnStop already fired).

Source

Thrown at app/server/model/plan/tell_stream_processor.go:694

	// log.Printf("Current reply content: %s\n", active.CurrentReplyContent)

	// stop stream for now
	active.CancelModelStreamFn()

	log.Printf("Stopped stream for missing file: %s\n", currentFile)

	// wait for user response to come in
	var userChoice shared.RespondMissingFileChoice
	select {
	case <-active.Ctx.Done():
		log.Println("Context cancelled while waiting for missing file response")
		state.execHookOnStop(false)
		return processChunkResult{shouldReturn: true}

	case <-time.After(30 * time.Minute): // long timeout here since we're waiting for user input
		log.Println("Timeout waiting for missing file choice")
		state.onError(onErrorParams{
			streamErr: fmt.Errorf("timeout waiting for missing file choice"),
			storeDesc: true,
		})
		return processChunkResult{}

	case userChoice = <-active.MissingFileResponseCh:
	}

	log.Printf("User choice for missing file: %s\n", userChoice)

	active.ResetModelCtx()

	UpdateActivePlan(planId, branch, func(ap *types.ActivePlan) {
		ap.MissingFilePath = ""
		ap.CurrentReplyContent = replyParser.GetReplyForMissingFile()
	})

	log.Println("Continuing stream")

View on GitHub (pinned to e2d772072e)

Solutions

1. Answer the missing-file prompt (or re-send the user's choice into active.MissingFileResponseCh) within the 30-minute window.
2. Increase the 30*time.After duration if longer human decision time is expected.
3. Make the UI reliably surface the missing-file dialog so the user can respond.
4. Detect client disconnect and cancel the wait early instead of blocking 30 minutes on a dead session.
5. Re-run the request after the timeout — the stored error description marks the session as failed.

Example fix

// before
	case <-time.After(30 * time.Minute):
		log.Println("Timeout waiting for missing file choice")
// after: extend window and support cancellation on client disconnect
	case <-time.After(2 * time.Hour):
		state.onError(onErrorParams{streamErr: fmt.Errorf("timeout waiting for missing file choice"), storeDesc: true})
		return processChunkResult{}
	case <-active.ClientDisconnected:
		state.execHookOnStop(false)
		return processChunkResult{shouldReturn: true}

// before blocking: ensure there is a live client able to answer the prompt
if active.MissingFileResponseCh == nil || !active.HasLiveClient() {
    return processChunkResult{shouldReturn: true} // skip waiting entirely
}

func canAwaitUserChoice(active *StreamState) bool {
    return active != nil && active.MissingFileResponseCh != nil && active.ClientConnected
}

select {
case ch := <-active.MissingFileResponseCh:
    // handle choice
case <-time.After(30 * time.Minute):
    log.Println("Timeout waiting for missing file choice")
    state.onError(onErrorParams{streamErr: fmt.Errorf("timeout waiting for missing file choice"), storeDesc: true})
    return processChunkResult{}
}

When it happens

Trigger: The stream processor hit a missing-file prompt and waited on active.MissingFileResponseCh; the user never answered within 30 minutes (client closed, tab backgrounded, user walked away, or the UI never rendered the prompt).

Common situations: User leaves the session idle overnight after a missing-file prompt appears; client disconnects so the response channel is never written; a frontend bug swallows the missing-file dialog so nothing can send to MissingFileResponseCh; long-running agent session left unattended.

Understand the failure class

• Timeouts: ETIMEDOUT, deadlines, and hung requests — what actually expires when a request times out.

Related errors

• connection to plan stream timed out due to missing heartbeat
• stream timed out due to inactivity. The model is not respond
• stream timeout due to inactivity: The AI model (%s/%s) is no
• context timeout
• refresh failed - http: %w

AI-assisted analysis of plandex-ai/plandex@e2d772072e (2026-09-05). Data as JSON: /api/errors/0cef91b4315222ef. Report an issue: GitHub.