siyuan-note/siyuan · error

--file is required

Error message

--file is required

What it means

The CLI `import` command (markdown import) requires --file, the source file to import. The flag is read first and this error is returned immediately when empty, before --notebook validation. Argument guard, no side effects.

Solutions

1. Re-run with --file <source-file-path>, e.g. import --file notes.md --notebook 20240101123456-abcdefg
2. Verify the source file path variable is set and the file exists
3. Use --path for the destination block ID, not --file, when targeting an insertion point

Example fix

// before
import --notebook 20240101123456-abcdefg
// after
import --file ~/notes.md --notebook 20240101123456-abcdefg

if [ -z "$SRC_FILE" ]; then echo "--file is required" >&2; exit 1; fi
if [ ! -f "$SRC_FILE" ]; then echo "file not found: $SRC_FILE" >&2; exit 1; fi
siyuan import --file "$SRC_FILE" --notebook "$NB_ID"

When it happens

Trigger: Running `siyuan import` without --file or with an empty value.

Common situations: Scripted import where the file variable is unset; importing many files and forgetting the flag on the first invocation; confusing --file with --path (the destination).

Understand the failure class

Background: "--flag is required" and "must specify" CLI errors: how missing-required-flag validation works and how to fix it — this error's family across 20 libraries.

Related errors

• --notebook is required
• --av and --ids are required
• --av, --key, --item and --value are required
• --block is required for non-detached rows
• --id and --name are required

AI-assisted analysis of siyuan-note/siyuan@9f775e8a12 (2026-09-19). Data as JSON: /api/errors/981e16662e93ef89. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at kernel/cli/cmd/import.go:42

	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
)

var importCmd = &cobra.Command{
	Use:   "import",
	Short: "Import files",
}

var importMdCmd = &cobra.Command{
	Use:   "md --file <path> --notebook <id>",
	Short: "Import Markdown file or directory",
	RunE: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
		filePath, _ := cmd.Flags().GetString("file")
		notebook, _ := cmd.Flags().GetString("notebook")
		toPath, _ := cmd.Flags().GetString("path")
		hpath, _ := cmd.Flags().GetString("hpath")
		if filePath == "" {
			return fmt.Errorf("--file is required")
		}
		if notebook == "" {
			return fmt.Errorf("--notebook is required")
		}

		absPath, err := filepath.Abs(filePath)
		if err != nil {
			return err
		}
		targetPath, err := resolvePath(notebook, toPath, hpath)
		if err != nil {
			return err
		}

		if dryRun {
			if err := model.ValidateImportFromLocalPath(notebook, absPath, targetPath); err != nil {
				return formatNotebookWriteError(notebook, err)
			}

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