uutils/coreutils · error · clap::Error

ValueValidation

ValueValidation

Error message

invalid operand: empty string

What it means

Error "invalid operand: empty string" thrown in uutils/coreutils.

Source

Thrown at src/uu/realpath/src/realpath.rs:54

const OPT_RELATIVE_BASE: &str = "relative-base";

const ARG_FILES: &str = "files";

/// Custom parser that validates `OsString` is not empty
#[derive(Clone, Debug)]
struct NonEmptyOsStringParser;

impl TypedValueParser for NonEmptyOsStringParser {
    type Value = OsString;

    fn parse_ref(
        &self,
        _cmd: &Command,
        _arg: Option<&Arg>,
        value: &OsStr,
    ) -> Result<Self::Value, clap::Error> {
        if value.is_empty() {
            let mut err = clap::Error::new(clap::error::ErrorKind::ValueValidation);
            err.insert(
                clap::error::ContextKind::Custom,
                clap::error::ContextValue::String(translate!("realpath-invalid-empty-operand")),
            );
            return Err(err);
        }
        Ok(value.to_os_string())
    }
}

impl ValueParserFactory for NonEmptyOsStringParser {
    type Parser = Self;

    fn value_parser() -> Self::Parser {
        Self
    }
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 85295bbf78)

Solutions

1. Pass a non-empty path operand to realpath.
2. Quote or escape arguments so an empty string is not produced by shell expansion.

When it happens

Trigger: Occurs when realpath is given an empty string as an operand.

Common situations: Calling `realpath ""` or passing an unset/empty shell variable as the path argument.

AI-assisted analysis of uutils/coreutils@85295bbf78 (2026-08-19). Data as JSON: /api/errors/a9558591484bce5f. Report an issue: GitHub.