Bug: insert_content fails to create missing files

[KJ7LNW]

Description

The insert_content tool fails when attempting to insert content into files that don't exist yet. This happens both when trying to append (line=0) and when trying to insert at the beginning (line=1).

Version Information

• App Version: v3.17.1
• API Provider: Anthropic
• Model: Claude 3.7 Sonnet

Expected Behavior

The insert_content tool should be able to create missing files when:

• Appending content (line=0)
• Inserting at the beginning (line=1)

Similar to how write_to_file creates missing files and directories.

Actual Behavior

The tool returns an error: "File does not exist at path: [filepath]"

Steps to Reproduce

1. Try to use insert_content on a non-existent file with line=0 (append)
2. Try to use insert_content on a non-existent file with line=1 (insert at beginning)

Error Messages

File does not exist at path: /home/ewheeler/src/roo/Roo2/test_nonexistent_append.txt

The specified file could not be found. Please verify the file path and try again.

Additional Context

This limitation reduces the flexibility of the insert_content tool. Users must first create empty files with write_to_file before they can use insert_content, which adds unnecessary steps to the workflow.

[dosubot]

The insert_content tool currently requires the target file to exist before it can perform any insertion operations. It checks for file existence during the error handling phase and will not proceed if the file is missing. This behavior is by design, as the tool does not support creating new files ^[1][2].

If you need to insert content into a non-existent file, you will first need to create the file using another tool, such as write_to_file, which does support file creation. This is a known limitation of the insert_content tool, and there are no current indications in the documentation or codebase of planned updates to change this behavior.

To continue talking to Dosu, mention @dosu.

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[Ruakij]

I'll be working on this