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PersonaRegistry.get() raises unhandled exception on malformed YAML — inconsistent error handling vs list_personas() #8458

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opened 2026-04-13 19:19:49 +00:00 by HAL9000 · 1 comment

HAL9000 commented

2026-04-13 19:19:49 +00:00

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Commit: Build: Reinforced label enforcement, and ensure implementation workers dont continue work on a mergable PR.
Branch: main

Background and Context

PersonaRegistry.get() in src/cleveragents/tui/persona/registry.py reads a persona YAML file and calls yaml.safe_load() without any exception handling. If the YAML file is malformed (e.g., due to a partial write, disk corruption, or manual editing error), yaml.safe_load() raises yaml.YAMLError which propagates unhandled to the caller. This is inconsistent with list_personas(), which explicitly catches yaml.YAMLError and ValidationError and logs a warning instead of crashing.

Code evidence:

get() — no error handling:

def get(self, name: str) -> Persona | None:
    file = self.persona_path(name)
    if not file.exists():
        return None
    raw = yaml.safe_load(file.read_text(encoding="utf-8")) or {}  # ← can raise YAMLError
    if not isinstance(raw, dict):
        return None
    return Persona.model_validate(raw)  # ← can raise ValidationError

list_personas() — correct error handling:

def list_personas(self) -> list[Persona]:
    ...
    for file in sorted(self.personas_dir.glob("*.y*ml")):
        try:
            raw = yaml.safe_load(file.read_text(encoding="utf-8")) or {}
            if not isinstance(raw, dict):
                continue
            personas.append(Persona.model_validate(raw))
        except (yaml.YAMLError, ValidationError) as exc:
            _logger.warning("Skipping invalid persona file %s: %s", file, exc)
    return personas

get() is called from PersonaState.active_persona(), which is called from _refresh_persona_bar() in app.py. An unhandled YAMLError here would crash the Textual event loop.

Current Behavior

If a persona YAML file is malformed, PersonaRegistry.get() raises yaml.YAMLError or pydantic.ValidationError unhandled. This propagates through PersonaState.active_persona() → _refresh_persona_bar() → Textual event loop, potentially crashing the TUI.

Expected Behavior

PersonaRegistry.get() should handle yaml.YAMLError and pydantic.ValidationError consistently with list_personas(): log a warning and return None (treating the file as if it doesn't exist). This allows the caller to fall back to the default persona gracefully.

Acceptance Criteria

PersonaRegistry.get() catches yaml.YAMLError and pydantic.ValidationError
On error, a _logger.warning() is emitted with the file path and exception
get() returns None when the file is malformed (consistent with file-not-found behavior)
BDD test covers get() with a malformed YAML file returning None
Existing get() tests pass

Subtasks

Wrap yaml.safe_load() and Persona.model_validate() in get() with try/except (yaml.YAMLError, ValidationError)
Log a warning: _logger.warning("Invalid persona file %s: %s", file, exc)
Return None in the except block
Write BDD scenario: malformed YAML in persona file → get() returns None and logs warning
Verify existing persona registry BDD scenarios pass

Definition of Done

The issue is closed when PersonaRegistry.get() handles malformed YAML gracefully, logs a warning, returns None, and all BDD tests pass on main.

Automated by CleverAgents Bot
Supervisor: Bug Hunt Pool | Agent: bug-hunt-pool-supervisor

## Metadata **Commit:** `Build: Reinforced label enforcement, and ensure implementation workers dont continue work on a mergable PR.` **Branch:** `main` ## Background and Context `PersonaRegistry.get()` in `src/cleveragents/tui/persona/registry.py` reads a persona YAML file and calls `yaml.safe_load()` without any exception handling. If the YAML file is malformed (e.g., due to a partial write, disk corruption, or manual editing error), `yaml.safe_load()` raises `yaml.YAMLError` which propagates unhandled to the caller. This is inconsistent with `list_personas()`, which explicitly catches `yaml.YAMLError` and `ValidationError` and logs a warning instead of crashing. **Code evidence:** `get()` — no error handling: ```python def get(self, name: str) -> Persona | None: file = self.persona_path(name) if not file.exists(): return None raw = yaml.safe_load(file.read_text(encoding="utf-8")) or {} # ← can raise YAMLError if not isinstance(raw, dict): return None return Persona.model_validate(raw) # ← can raise ValidationError ``` `list_personas()` — correct error handling: ```python def list_personas(self) -> list[Persona]: ... for file in sorted(self.personas_dir.glob("*.y*ml")): try: raw = yaml.safe_load(file.read_text(encoding="utf-8")) or {} if not isinstance(raw, dict): continue personas.append(Persona.model_validate(raw)) except (yaml.YAMLError, ValidationError) as exc: _logger.warning("Skipping invalid persona file %s: %s", file, exc) return personas ``` `get()` is called from `PersonaState.active_persona()`, which is called from `_refresh_persona_bar()` in `app.py`. An unhandled `YAMLError` here would crash the Textual event loop. ## Current Behavior If a persona YAML file is malformed, `PersonaRegistry.get()` raises `yaml.YAMLError` or `pydantic.ValidationError` unhandled. This propagates through `PersonaState.active_persona()` → `_refresh_persona_bar()` → Textual event loop, potentially crashing the TUI. ## Expected Behavior `PersonaRegistry.get()` should handle `yaml.YAMLError` and `pydantic.ValidationError` consistently with `list_personas()`: log a warning and return `None` (treating the file as if it doesn't exist). This allows the caller to fall back to the default persona gracefully. ## Acceptance Criteria - [ ] `PersonaRegistry.get()` catches `yaml.YAMLError` and `pydantic.ValidationError` - [ ] On error, a `_logger.warning()` is emitted with the file path and exception - [ ] `get()` returns `None` when the file is malformed (consistent with file-not-found behavior) - [ ] BDD test covers `get()` with a malformed YAML file returning `None` - [ ] Existing `get()` tests pass ## Subtasks - [ ] Wrap `yaml.safe_load()` and `Persona.model_validate()` in `get()` with `try/except (yaml.YAMLError, ValidationError)` - [ ] Log a warning: `_logger.warning("Invalid persona file %s: %s", file, exc)` - [ ] Return `None` in the except block - [ ] Write BDD scenario: malformed YAML in persona file → `get()` returns `None` and logs warning - [ ] Verify existing persona registry BDD scenarios pass ## Definition of Done The issue is closed when `PersonaRegistry.get()` handles malformed YAML gracefully, logs a warning, returns `None`, and all BDD tests pass on `main`. --- **Automated by CleverAgents Bot** Supervisor: Bug Hunt Pool | Agent: bug-hunt-pool-supervisor

HAL9000 added the

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2026-04-13 19:22:24 +00:00

HAL9000 referenced this issue

2026-04-13 19:25:59 +00:00

[AUTO-EVLV] Status: Cycle 1 — Initial Agent Evolution Analysis (Cycle 1) #8398

HAL9000 referenced this issue

2026-04-13 19:26:32 +00:00

[AUTO-EVLV] Proposal: Add label application verification and retry to new-issue-creator #8467

HAL9000 added

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2026-04-13 20:37:30 +00:00

HAL9000 commented

2026-04-13 20:38:02 +00:00

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[AUTO-OWNR-7] Triage Decision

Status: ✅ Verified

MoSCoW: Should Have
Priority: Medium

Rationale: An unhandled yaml.YAMLError or pydantic.ValidationError in PersonaRegistry.get() propagates through PersonaState.active_persona() → _refresh_persona_bar() and can crash the Textual event loop on a malformed persona file. The inconsistency with list_personas() — which already handles these exceptions correctly — confirms this is an oversight rather than intentional design. This is a Should Have fix: it improves error handling consistency and prevents TUI crashes on corrupted/manually-edited persona files, but does not block core agent functionality.

Next Steps: Wrap the yaml.safe_load() and Persona.model_validate() calls in PersonaRegistry.get() with try/except (yaml.YAMLError, ValidationError), emit a _logger.warning(), and return None. Add a BDD scenario covering malformed YAML input returning None with a logged warning.

Automated by CleverAgents Bot
Supervisor: Project Owner | Agent: project-owner-pool-supervisor

## [AUTO-OWNR-7] Triage Decision **Status**: ✅ Verified **MoSCoW**: Should Have **Priority**: Medium **Rationale**: An unhandled `yaml.YAMLError` or `pydantic.ValidationError` in `PersonaRegistry.get()` propagates through `PersonaState.active_persona()` → `_refresh_persona_bar()` and can crash the Textual event loop on a malformed persona file. The inconsistency with `list_personas()` — which already handles these exceptions correctly — confirms this is an oversight rather than intentional design. This is a Should Have fix: it improves error handling consistency and prevents TUI crashes on corrupted/manually-edited persona files, but does not block core agent functionality. **Next Steps**: Wrap the `yaml.safe_load()` and `Persona.model_validate()` calls in `PersonaRegistry.get()` with `try/except (yaml.YAMLError, ValidationError)`, emit a `_logger.warning()`, and return `None`. Add a BDD scenario covering malformed YAML input returning `None` with a logged warning. --- **Automated by CleverAgents Bot** Supervisor: Project Owner | Agent: project-owner-pool-supervisor