Unhelpful error message when creating help if an argument doesn't have a help text
Metadata
Current evaluation
craft-cli raised an unhelpful IndexError when a command argument lacked help text; the crash is now guarded in helptexts.py, and maintainer cmatsuoka is addressing the root cause via open PR #481 (fail early on missing help).
Suggested action: keep open
Reason: Maintainer cmatsuoka commented 2 days ago that '#481 makes applications fail early in case of missing help messages', and PR craft-cli#481 ('feat: error early when help message is missing') is open and directly targets this. The underlying IndexError is already guarded in _build_item_plain (helptexts.py), so the issue is triaged, valid, and being actively addressed — keep open until #481 merges.
Impact:
45
Quick Win:
27.0
Staleness:
10
Complexity:
40
Confidence:
80
Support Request:
10
Issue body
### Bug Description
If a command adds an argument without `help` text, the error raised isn't very useful. It should give a better error.
### To Reproduce
```
import sys
import craft_cli
class ExampleCommand(craft_cli.BaseCommand):
name = "example"
help_msg = overview = "unimportant"
def fill_parser(self, parser):
parser.add_argument("--do-something")
craft_cli.emit.init(craft_cli.EmitterMode.BRIEF, "example-app", "example app")
dispatcher = craft_cli.Dispatcher(
"example-app",
[craft_cli.CommandGroup("Example", [ExampleCommand])],
summary="summary"
)
dispatcher.pre_parse_args(sys.argv[1:])
dispatcher.load_command(None)
dispatcher.run()
```
`python ./example.py help example`
### part yaml
```shell
n/a
```
### Relevant log output
```shell
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "/home/lengau/Work/Code/charmcraft-2/charmcraft/application/commands/example.py", line 22, in <module>
dispatcher.pre_parse_args(sys.argv[1:])
File "/home/lengau/Work/Code/charmcraft-2/.venv/lib/python3.11/site-packages/craft_cli/dispatcher.py", line 469, in pre_parse_args
help_text = self._get_requested_help(cmd_args)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
File "/home/lengau/Work/Code/charmcraft-2/.venv/lib/python3.11/site-packages/craft_cli/dispatcher.py", line 355, in _get_requested_help
return self._help_builder.get_command_help(command, command_options, output_format)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
File "/home/lengau/Work/Code/charmcraft-2/.venv/lib/python3.11/site-packages/craft_cli/helptexts.py", line 425, in get_command_help
textblocks = builder(usage, command.overview, options, other_command_names)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
File "/home/lengau/Work/Code/charmcraft-2/.venv/lib/python3.11/site-packages/craft_cli/helptexts.py", line 312, in _build_plain_command_help
option_lines.extend(_build_item_plain(title, text, max_title_len))
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
File "/home/lengau/Work/Code/charmcraft-2/.venv/lib/python3.11/site-packages/craft_cli/helptexts.py", line 71, in _build_item_plain
first = f" {title:>{title_space}s}: {wrapped_lines[0]}"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~^^^
IndexError: list index out of range
```
Evaluation history
| Date | Model | Scores | Action | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| qwen/qwen3.8-27b |
Impact:
45
Quick Win:
27.0
Staleness:
10
Complexity:
40
Confidence:
80
Support Request:
10
|
keep open | craft-cli raised an unhelpful IndexError when a command argument lacked help text; the crash is now guarded in helptexts.py, and maintainer cmatsuoka is addressing the root cause via open PR #481 (fail early on missing help). | |
| qwen/qwen3.6-35b-a3b |
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
20
Confidence:
85
Support Request:
0
|
close stale | Unhelpful IndexError when creating help for an argument without help text. Issue is 880 days old, inactive, and lacks maintainer engagement. | |
| qwen3.6-35b-a3b-mtp-q6 |
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
20
Confidence:
80
Support Request:
0
|
close stale | Unhelpful IndexError when generating help for arguments missing help text. Issue remains unlabelled and inactive for over two years with no maintainer engagement. | |
| qwen3.6-35b-a3b-mtp-q6 |
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
20
Confidence:
80
Support Request:
0
|
close stale | Generating help for commands with arguments lacking help text triggers an IndexError instead of a clear error. Open, unassigned, and untriaged. Requires investigation and a better validation message. |
Update history
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| updated |
Related work
-
Likely Fixed By:
craft-cli#481
(confidence 85%)
Open PR 'feat: error early when help message is missing' is the maintainer's chosen approach to this issue, per cmatsuoka's comment.
Related issues
No related issues found above the similarity threshold.