stablyai/orca · warning · Error

Quick Open scan too large (${reason}). Install ripgrep ${loc

Error message

Quick Open scan too large (${reason}). Install ripgrep ${location} to enable fast, gitignore-aware listing: ${cmd}

What it means

Thrown by listQuickOpenFiles() when ripgrep is unavailable and the no-ripgrep fallback (listFilesWithGit) raised a QuickOpenReaddirBudgetError — i.e. the directory walk exceeded the readdir entry budget because the tree was too large to enumerate safely without ripgrep. buildInstallRgMessage composes the final string with the underlying reason, an install command detected from the OS (apt/dnf/pacman/brew), and whether the scan runs locally or remotely. It is guidance, not a crash: install ripgrep to restore fast, gitignore-aware listing.

Source

Thrown at src/main/ipc/filesystem-list-files.ts:61

  // every worktree instead of just the active one. The shared helper
  // normalizes, validates, and root-relativizes every input.
  const excludePathPrefixes = buildExcludePathPrefixes(authorizedRootPath, excludePaths)
  const wslDistroForOutput = parseWslPath(authorizedRootPath)?.distro ?? localGitOptions.wslDistro

  const listWithoutRipgrep = async (): Promise<string[]> => {
    try {
      return await listFilesWithGit(
        authorizedRootPath,
        excludePathPrefixes,
        localGitOptions,
        signal,
        maxResults
      )
    } catch (err) {
      if (!isQuickOpenReaddirBudgetError(err)) {
        throw err
      }
      throw new Error(await buildInstallRgMessage(err))
    }
  }
  if (
    wslDistroForOutput &&
    !(await checkRgAvailable(authorizedRootPath, localGitOptions.wslDistro))
  ) {
    return listWithoutRipgrep()
  }

  const files = new Set<string>()
  const children: {
    child: ChildProcess
    isDone: () => boolean
    finish: () => void
  }[] = []
  // Why: WSL-routed rg can emit Linux-native absolute paths. UNC repos carry
  // their distro in the path; Windows-path repos carry it in project runtime.
  const { primary, ignoredPass } = buildRgArgsForQuickOpen({

View on GitHub (pinned to 1136503c6a)

Solutions

1. Install ripgrep using the command in the message (e.g. 'sudo apt install ripgrep', 'brew install ripgrep').
2. Ensure the rg binary is on PATH for the process running the scan (and inside the WSL distro for WSL repos).
3. Restart Orca after install so rg availability is re-detected.
4. If installing is impossible, reduce the scanned tree size (narrower workspace) so the no-rg fallback stays under budget.

Example fix

// before: rg missing -> 'Quick Open scan too large (readdir budget exceeded)...'
// after, on Debian/Ubuntu:
//   sudo apt install ripgrep
// then restart Orca

// Verify ripgrep availability before triggering Quick Open scans
import { checkRgAvailable } from './rg-availability'
async function ensureRgForScan(rootPath: string, wslDistro?: string): Promise<boolean> {
  return checkRgAvailable(rootPath, wslDistro)
}

try {
  await listQuickOpenFiles(rootPath, store, excludePaths, signal, maxResults)
} catch (e) {
  if (e instanceof Error && /Install ripgrep/.test(e.message)) {
    // surface install guidance to the user; after install, restart and retry
  } else throw e
}

When it happens

Trigger: listQuickOpenFiles runs in an environment where checkRgAvailable is false (or rg failed to start), so it calls listWithoutRipgrep; that fallback hits the readdir budget for a large tree and throws a budget error, which is converted into this install-rg message.

Common situations: Fresh Linux/WSL machine without ripgrep installed and a very large repo; ripgrep binary removed or not on PATH in the SSH/WSL distro; a remote Quick Open scan where the host lacks rg; CI/packaged build that did not bundle rg.

Related errors

• No user WSL distro found. Install/enable WSL or pass --distr
• Timed out waiting for ${description}
• Could not reserve a guest port: ${result.stdout}
• This benchmark requires a Windows host with WSL
• WSL distro '${distro}' needs Node.js 18 or newer to run Orca

AI-assisted analysis of stablyai/orca@1136503c6a (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/9ef351237a7f207c. Report an issue: GitHub.