fix(prompts): line-number stripping warning missing from search_replace, edit_file, and read_file tool descriptions #716

Problem (one or two sentences)

Models that use read_file output as input to search_replace or edit_file fail with exact-match errors because the line-number prefixes (137 | content) produced by read_file are copied verbatim into old_string. The tool descriptions for these two tools have no warning about this, unlike the recently patched apply_diff (PR #641).

Context (who is affected and when)

Affects any model/provider that copies read_file output directly into search_replace or edit_file — observed with Gemini but likely reproducible with others. Occurs whenever a model reads a file and then attempts an edit using content from that output.

Reproduction steps

1. Use Zoo Code with any model that references read_file output when constructing edit calls.
2. Model calls read_file on a file — output is prefixed with 137 | someCode() etc.
3. Model calls search_replace or edit_file with old_string copied verbatim from that output (including the 137 | prefix).
4. Tool fails with an exact-match / Edit Unsuccessful error because the raw file contains no such prefixes.
5. Repeated failures eventually hit consecutiveMistakeLimit.

Expected result

Tool descriptions warn models that read_file line-number prefixes (e.g. 137 | ) are decorative and must not be included in old_string.

Actual result

search_replace.ts and edit_file.ts parameter descriptions say old_string must match file contents exactly, but give no guidance about stripping read_file prefixes. edit.ts (the native Edit tool) already has this warning at line 7 — making the omission inconsistent across sibling tools.

Variations tried

The root-cause fix would be a single upstream warning in the read_file description itself (read_file.ts:65), protecting all downstream tools without requiring each to repeat it. The actual format from addLineNumbers() in extract-text.ts:155 is ${lineNumber} | ${line} (space-padded integer + | + content).

Suggested per-tool additions:

• read_file.ts: "NOTE: Line-number prefixes (e.g. 137 | ) are for reference only and do NOT exist in the raw file. Do NOT copy them into old_string, SEARCH blocks, or other edit inputs."
• search_replace.ts old_string: "Do NOT include line-number prefixes (e.g. 137 | ) from read_file output — the file itself does not contain them."
• edit_file.ts old_string: same note as above.

App Version

Observed against current main (post PR #641).

API Provider

Google Gemini (originally reported), but affects any model that copies read_file output verbatim.

Model Used

Gemini (and likely others).

Related

• PR fix(prompts): prevent models from hallucinating line numbers in apply_diff #641 fixed apply_diff but not the sibling tools; also contains a format inaccuracy in its examples ('137: ' instead of the correct '137 | ') — separate inline comment posted on that PR.