warpdotdev/warp · error · MergeError

config_not_regular_file

config_not_regular_file

Error message

config_not_regular_file

What it means

After the symlink check, _read_regular_file() requires st_mode to be a regular file (S_ISREG); FIFOs, unix sockets, device nodes, and directories all raise config_not_regular_file. The tool reads with a byte cap and preserves/sets the file mode, which only has defined semantics for regular files.

Source

Thrown at resources/bundled/skills/tui-migrate-setup/scripts/merge_mcp_config.py:116

    else:
        document.clear()
        document.update(value)


def _read_regular_file(path: Path, *, missing_ok: bool) -> tuple[bytes, int | None]:
    try:
        metadata = path.lstat()
    except FileNotFoundError:
        if missing_ok:
            return b"", None
        raise MergeError("source_config_unavailable")
    except OSError as error:
        raise MergeError("config_unavailable") from error

    if stat.S_ISLNK(metadata.st_mode):
        raise MergeError("config_symlink_rejected")
    if not stat.S_ISREG(metadata.st_mode):
        raise MergeError("config_not_regular_file")
    if metadata.st_size > MAX_CONFIG_BYTES:
        raise MergeError("config_too_large")

    flags = os.O_RDONLY
    if hasattr(os, "O_NOFOLLOW"):
        flags |= os.O_NOFOLLOW
    try:
        descriptor = os.open(path, flags)
        with os.fdopen(descriptor, "rb") as file:
            raw = file.read(MAX_CONFIG_BYTES + 1)
    except OSError as error:
        raise MergeError("config_unavailable") from error
    if len(raw) > MAX_CONFIG_BYTES:
        raise MergeError("config_too_large")
    return raw, stat.S_IMODE(metadata.st_mode)


def _decode_document(raw: bytes) -> dict[str, Any]:

View on GitHub (pinned to e72fd7aacb)

Solutions

1. Point the argument at the actual file inside the directory — add the filename
2. If the path is a pipe/socket, replace the mechanism with a regular file the tool can atomically rewrite
3. Confirm with stat <path>: the output should say 'regular file'

Example fix

# before
python merge_mcp_config.py --source ~/.config/warp --destination ...
# error: config_not_regular_file  (~/.config/warp is a directory)

# after
python merge_mcp_config.py --source ~/.config/warp/mcp.json --destination ...

import os, stat

for p in (source_path, destination_path):
    if os.path.exists(p):
        mode = os.lstat(p).st_mode
        if not stat.S_ISREG(mode):
            raise SystemExit(f'{p} is not a regular file')

def is_regular_file(path) -> bool:
    import os, stat
    try:
        return stat.S_ISREG(os.lstat(path).st_mode)
    except OSError:
        return False

if result.returncode != 0 and 'config_not_regular_file' in result.stderr:
    # stat <path> — expect 'regular file'; otherwise append the filename or fix the mechanism
    ...

When it happens

Trigger: Passing a directory as --source or --destination (path typo that lands on a folder); a config 'file' that is actually a named pipe created by some sync tool; a device node accidentally referenced.

Common situations: Paths that omit the filename and hit its directory; exotic setups where config is fed through a socket/FIFO; /dev or /proc paths mistakenly used.

Related errors

• source_config_unavailable
• config_unavailable
• config_too_large
• settings_symlink_rejected
• config_symlink_rejected

AI-assisted analysis of warpdotdev/warp@e72fd7aacb (2026-08-16). Data as JSON: /api/errors/25c390963ba64719. Report an issue: GitHub.