[RECAP] Diff view for changed files not working for new untracked files

[acreeger]

"The editor could not be opened because the file was not found"

Error: Unable to read file 'git:/Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-cli/feat-issue-384__recap-markdown/src/utils/recap-formatter.test.ts?{"path":"/Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-cli/feat-issue-384__recap-markdown/src/utils/recap-formatter.test.ts","ref":"0000000000000000000000000000000000000000"}' (Error: Unable to resolve nonexistent file 'git:/Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-cli/feat-issue-384__recap-markdown/src/utils/recap-formatter.test.ts?{"path":"/Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-cli/feat-issue-384__recap-markdown/src/utils/recap-formatter.test.ts","ref":"0000000000000000000000000000000000000000"}')

[acreeger]

Enhancement Analysis - Complete

• Fetch issue details
• Assess existing quality
• Research documentation
• Analyze user experience
• Structure specification

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Bug Report Analysis

Questions for Reporter

Question	Answer
Where exactly were you trying to view this diff? Was this in a VS Code panel, webview, or other interface?	VS Code webview
What action did you take that triggered this error? (e.g., "clicked on a file name in the recap panel")	Clicked file in recap panel
Does this error happen for ALL new/untracked files, or only specific ones?	Assume all untracked files (only observed once)
Do modified (tracked) files work correctly in the diff view?	Yes, tracked files work correctly

Problem Summary
When attempting to view a diff for a newly created/untracked file in the recap diff view, VS Code cannot open the file because it references a non-existent git ref (null SHA: 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000).

User Impact
Users working with the recap feature cannot view diffs for new files they've created, limiting their ability to review changes made during their loom session.

Expected Behavior
When clicking on a new/untracked file in the recap panel, the VS Code webview should display the file contents (either showing the full file as "new" or comparing against an empty state).

Actual Behavior
VS Code displays an error: "The editor could not be opened because the file was not found" when trying to open a git URI with ref 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000.

Next Steps

• Technical analysis to identify where git URIs are generated and how to handle untracked files
• Implementation planning and execution

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📋 Complete Context & Details (click to expand)

Reproduction Steps

1. Working in a loom workspace (e.g., feat-issue-384__recap-markdown)
2. Create a new file that hasn't been committed to git (e.g., src/utils/recap-formatter.test.ts)
3. Click on the new file in the recap panel to view its diff
4. VS Code fails to open the file with the error shown above

Additional Context

• Error Pattern: The git URI uses ref 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000, which is git's null SHA used to represent non-existent/new objects
• Affected Feature: RECAP feature's diff/changed files view
• File Path: /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-cli/feat-issue-384__recap-markdown/src/utils/recap-formatter.test.ts
• VS Code Behavior: VS Code's git extension cannot resolve files that don't exist in git history when referenced via git: URI scheme
• Root Cause (Assumed): The diff view is likely generating git URIs for all changed files without distinguishing between tracked (modified) and untracked (new) files. For new files, a different approach is needed (e.g., opening the working copy directly without a diff, or comparing against empty content).

Technical Note
The recap feature appears to track changed files and provide a way to view diffs in VS Code. For tracked files with history, a git URI comparing current state to a previous ref works fine. For untracked files, there's no previous state to compare against, requiring special handling.

[acreeger]

Complexity Assessment

Classification: SIMPLE

Metrics:

• Estimated files affected: 1-2
• Estimated lines of code: <150
• Breaking changes: No
• Database migrations: No
• Cross-cutting changes: No
• File architecture quality: Good
• Overall risk level: Low

Reasoning: This is a focused bug fix in a VS Code extension's diff view. When untracked files are clicked in the recap panel, the extension generates git URIs with a null SHA reference (0000000000000000000000000000000000000000), which VS Code cannot resolve. The fix requires identifying where the extension builds these URIs and adding special handling for untracked files—either displaying the full file content as "new" or comparing against an empty state. The scope is small (1-2 affected files), low risk (no breaking changes), and isolated to the diff URI generation logic with no impact on core functionality or data structures.

[acreeger]

Combined Analysis & Plan - Issue #386

Executive Summary

When clicking on untracked files in the recap panel, VS Code fails to open a diff because the extension uses a git URI with a null SHA reference that doesn't exist. The fix is to use /dev/null comparison or open the file directly without diff for untracked files.

Questions and Key Decisions (if applicable)

Question	Answer
Is the bug in iloom-cli or iloom-vscode?	iloom-vscode extension (separate repo at /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-vscode)

Implementation Overview

High-Level Execution Phases

1. Modify diff handling for untracked files: Replace null SHA approach with empty file comparison using vscode.Uri.from scheme
2. Test the fix: Verify diff opens correctly for untracked, added, modified, and deleted files

Quick Stats

• 1 file to modify (extension.ts)
• 0 new files to create
• 0 files to delete
• Dependencies: None

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Complete Analysis & Implementation Details (click to expand)

Research Findings

Problem Space

• Problem: Untracked files in recap panel fail to show diff with error about nonexistent git ref
• Architectural context: VS Code extension command iloom.openFileDiff handles diff viewing
• Edge cases: Added files (staged new files) vs untracked files (unstaged new files) - both need same fix

Codebase Research

• Entry point: /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-vscode/src/extension.ts:618-678 - the iloom.openFileDiff command handler
• Bug location: Lines 664-667 - uses git: URI with null SHA for new/untracked files
• Similar patterns: Lines 720-728 show same null SHA approach for commit diff view (also needs fixing)

Affected Files

• /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-vscode/src/extension.ts:664-667 - Main bug location for workspace file diff
• /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-vscode/src/extension.ts:720-728 - Similar issue in commit diff view

Root Cause Analysis

The current code at lines 664-667:

} else if (status === 'added' || status === 'untracked') {
    // New file: show empty on left, current on right
    const emptyUri = vscode.Uri.parse(`git:${fullPath}?${encodeURIComponent(JSON.stringify({ path: fullPath, ref: '0000000000000000000000000000000000000000' }))}`);
    await vscode.commands.executeCommand('vscode.diff', emptyUri, rightUri, `${filePath} (new)`);

VS Code's Git extension cannot resolve files at the null SHA ref because it's not a real commit - it's git's placeholder for "no object".

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Implementation Plan

Automated Test Cases to Create

No automated tests needed - this is in a VS Code extension that requires manual testing with actual VS Code environment.

Files to Modify

1. /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-vscode/src/extension.ts:664-667

Change: Replace null SHA git URI approach with empty untitled file for left side of diff

For untracked/added files, instead of using a git URI with null SHA, use an untitled: scheme with empty content to represent "no previous version exists":

// Pseudocode - create empty content URI for left side
} else if (status === 'added' || status === 'untracked') {
    // New file: show empty on left, current file on right
    // Use untitled scheme with empty content for "no previous version"
    const emptyUri = vscode.Uri.parse(`untitled:${encodeURIComponent(filePath)}-empty`);
    await vscode.commands.executeCommand('vscode.diff', emptyUri, rightUri, `${filePath} (new)`);
}

Alternative approach (recommended): Simply open the file without diff since there's no meaningful comparison:

} else if (status === 'added' || status === 'untracked') {
    // New file: just open it (no previous version to compare against)
    await vscode.commands.executeCommand('vscode.open', rightUri);
}

2. /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-vscode/src/extension.ts:724-728 (optional - commit diff)

Change: Same fix for commit diff view if new files in commits also fail

Currently uses same null SHA pattern:

} else if (file.status === 'A') {
    // Added: show empty on left, commit version on right
    const emptyQuery = JSON.stringify({ path: fullPath, ref: '0000000000000000000000000000000000000000' });
    const emptyUri = vscode.Uri.parse(`git:${fullPath}?${encodeURIComponent(emptyQuery)}`);
    await vscode.commands.executeCommand('vscode.diff', emptyUri, rightUri, `${file.path} (${hash.slice(0, 7)} - added)`);
}

For committed added files, we CAN use the parent commit's non-existence properly. The git: scheme should work here if we use the parent ref's tree which won't have the file - VS Code should show empty. But if it fails, same fix applies.

Detailed Execution Order

Phase 1: Fix workspace file diff for untracked/added files

1. Open /Users/adam/Documents/Projects/iloom-vscode/src/extension.ts
2. Locate lines 664-667 (the untracked/added file handling)
3. Replace the null SHA approach with direct file open for new files
4. Verify: Build extension and test clicking an untracked file in recap panel

Phase 2: Optional - Fix commit diff view (if needed)

1. If commit diff for added files also fails, apply same fix at lines 724-728
2. Verify: Test clicking a commit that added new files

Dependencies and Configuration

None - no new dependencies required.

[acreeger]

Closing as this bug is in the iloom-vscode extension, not iloom-cli. Transferred to https://github.com/iloom-ai/iloom-vscode/issues/70

[acreeger]

iloom Session Summary

Key Themes:

• Bug was misreported in wrong repository - issue filed against iloom-cli but actual bug is in iloom-vscode extension
• Analysis revealed null SHA git URI approach fails because VS Code can't resolve non-existent git references
• Workflow successfully identified root cause, proposed fix, and transferred issue to correct repository

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Session Details (click to expand)

Key Insights

• The recap panel's diff view functionality lives in the VS Code extension (iloom-vscode), not the CLI tool (iloom-cli)
• VS Code's Git extension cannot resolve git: URIs with the null SHA reference (0000000000000000000000000000000000000000) because it's not a real commit object
• For untracked/added files, attempting to show a diff against "nothing" is fundamentally problematic - better UX is to just open the file directly since there's no previous version to compare

Decisions Made

• Repository transfer: Created new issue in iloom-vscode (Add 'hb ignite' command for direct Claude launch with agents #70) and closed original iloom-cli issue ([RECAP] Diff view for changed files not working for new untracked files #386) as "not planned" - this ensures the bug is tracked in the correct codebase
• Recommended fix approach: Use vscode.open to directly open new files instead of vscode.diff with a null SHA URI - simpler and more intuitive than trying to fabricate an "empty" comparison
• Workflow classification: Evaluated as SIMPLE complexity (1-2 files, <150 LOC, low risk) which was correct given the focused scope

Challenges Resolved

• Cross-repository confusion: Initial issue report didn't identify which codebase contained the bug. Analysis phase traced the error back to extension.ts in the VS Code extension repository
• Understanding git URI scheme limitations: Discovered that while git uses null SHA as a placeholder concept, VS Code's git extension doesn't support it in URI resolution - required researching VS Code's diff command behavior

Lessons Learned

• When errors reference specific file paths and line numbers, always verify which repository/codebase actually contains those files before starting implementation
• Issue reports about VS Code features (panels, webviews, commands) are more likely to be extension bugs rather than CLI bugs
• For "new file" scenarios in git-based diff tools, opening the file directly provides better UX than trying to force a diff view against empty content

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