fix(plugins): skip node_modules and other non-plugin directories during discovery by Bartok9 · Pull Request #43859 · openclaw/openclaw

Bartok9 · 2026-03-12T08:34:57Z

Summary

The plugin discovery scanner was recursively scanning into node_modules, .git, .venv, and browser_data directories when workspace skills contained them. This caused file descriptor exhaustion (12,000+ FDs) on macOS, leading to spawn EBADF errors on all subsequent exec tool calls.

Changes

Added IGNORED_SCAN_DIRECTORIES set to shouldIgnoreScannedDirectory() function, aligning with patterns already used by:

DEFAULT_SKILLS_WATCH_IGNORED in refresh.ts
IGNORED_MEMORY_WATCH_DIR_NAMES in manager-sync-ops.ts

Directories now skipped:

node_modules, .pnpm-store (package managers)
.git (version control)
dist, build (build outputs)
.venv, venv, __pycache__, .mypy_cache, .pytest_cache (Python)
.cache (general caches)
browser_data, .browser_data (Playwright/Puppeteer)

The legacy .bak/.backup-/.disabled patterns are preserved.

Testing

Added test case ignores node_modules and other non-plugin directories to prevent FD exhaustion that verifies:

Real plugins in skill directories are discovered
Fake plugins nested inside node_modules, .git, dist, .venv, browser_data, and .cache are NOT discovered

Before/After

Before: ~12,232 open FDs when a workspace skill has node_modules
After: ~1,231 open FDs (normal range)

greptile-apps · 2026-03-12T08:39:23Z

Greptile Summary

This PR adds an IGNORED_SCAN_DIRECTORIES set to the plugin discovery logic to skip well-known non-plugin directories (node_modules, .git, dist, .venv, browser_data, etc.) during extension scanning. The implementation in discovery.ts is correct and well-aligned with similar ignore patterns elsewhere in the codebase.

However, the new test case in discovery.test.ts does not correctly validate the fix: it nests the fake-plugin directories under memory-lancedb-pro/<ignoredDir>/deeply/nested/fake-plugin/, but discoverInDirectory only scans one level deep and does not recurse into skill subdirectories. As a result, fake-plugin would never be discovered regardless of whether the fix is present, and the test passes vacuously. The test should place the ignored directories (and the fake plugins inside them) as direct children of globalExt (alongside memory-lancedb-pro) to reflect the actual bug scenario.

Confidence Score: 3/5

The implementation fix is correct and safe, but the accompanying test does not actually validate the fix and should be revised before merging.
The discovery.ts change is sound and correctly prevents scanning into large non-plugin directories. The score is reduced because the test case in discovery.test.ts is structured in a way that it passes trivially — both with and without the fix — providing false confidence that the behavior is covered. A real regression test is needed to prevent future regressions.
src/plugins/discovery.test.ts — the test structure should be revised so that ignored directories appear as direct children of the extensions folder, not nested inside a skill subdirectory.

Prompt To Fix All With AI

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: src/plugins/discovery.test.ts
Line: 121-140

Comment:
**Test doesn't actually exercise the fix**

The `fake-plugin` directories are placed under `memory-lancedb-pro/<ignoredDir>/deeply/nested/fake-plugin`, but `discoverInDirectory` only scans one level deep — it does **not** recurse into subdirectories of a discovered skill directory. After finding `memory-lancedb-pro/index.ts`, the scanner moves on and never descends into `memory-lancedb-pro/node_modules/...`. This means the `expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin")` assertions would pass trivially **even without the fix**.

The real bug scenario is when an ignored directory (e.g. `node_modules`) appears as a **direct child** of the scanned extensions folder. The test should be structured like:

```ts
// node_modules, .git, etc. as DIRECT siblings of real skills inside globalExt
const ignoredDirs = ["node_modules", ".git", "dist", ".venv", "browser_data", ".cache"];
for (const dirName of ignoredDirs) {
  const nestedDir = path.join(globalExt, dirName, "fake-plugin");
  fs.mkdirSync(nestedDir, { recursive: true });
  fs.writeFileSync(path.join(nestedDir, "index.ts"), "export default function () {}", "utf-8");
}
```

With this structure, `discoverInDirectory(globalExt)` would encounter `node_modules` directly and — without the fix — attempt to process it. The fix causes `shouldIgnoreScannedDirectory("node_modules")` to return `true` and skip it, making the test meaningfully validate the change.

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

---

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: src/plugins/discovery.test.ts
Line: 139-140

Comment:
**Redundant assertion**

`expect(ids.filter((id) => id === "fake-plugin")).toHaveLength(0)` is semantically identical to the `not.toContain` assertion on line 139 and can be removed.

```suggestion
    expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin");
```

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

_{Last reviewed commit: 535052f}

greptile-apps · 2026-03-12T08:39:26Z

src/plugins/discovery.test.ts

+    const skillDir = path.join(globalExt, "memory-lancedb-pro");
+    fs.mkdirSync(skillDir, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(skillDir, "index.ts"), "export default function () {}", "utf-8");
+
+    // These directories should NOT be scanned (would cause FD exhaustion)
+    const ignoredDirs = ["node_modules", ".git", "dist", ".venv", "browser_data", ".cache"];
+    for (const dirName of ignoredDirs) {
+      const nestedDir = path.join(skillDir, dirName, "deeply", "nested", "fake-plugin");
+      fs.mkdirSync(nestedDir, { recursive: true });
+      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(nestedDir, "index.ts"), "export default function () {}", "utf-8");
+    }
+
+    const { candidates } = await discoverWithStateDir(stateDir, {});
+
+    const ids = candidates.map((candidate) => candidate.idHint);
+    // Should find the real skill
+    expect(ids).toContain("memory-lancedb-pro");
+    // Should NOT find any fake plugins inside ignored directories
+    expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin");
+    expect(ids.filter((id) => id === "fake-plugin")).toHaveLength(0);


Test doesn't actually exercise the fix

The fake-plugin directories are placed under memory-lancedb-pro/<ignoredDir>/deeply/nested/fake-plugin, but discoverInDirectory only scans one level deep — it does not recurse into subdirectories of a discovered skill directory. After finding memory-lancedb-pro/index.ts, the scanner moves on and never descends into memory-lancedb-pro/node_modules/.... This means the expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin") assertions would pass trivially even without the fix.

The real bug scenario is when an ignored directory (e.g. node_modules) appears as a direct child of the scanned extensions folder. The test should be structured like:

// node_modules, .git, etc. as DIRECT siblings of real skills inside globalExt const ignoredDirs = ["node_modules", ".git", "dist", ".venv", "browser_data", ".cache"]; for (const dirName of ignoredDirs) { const nestedDir = path.join(globalExt, dirName, "fake-plugin"); fs.mkdirSync(nestedDir, { recursive: true }); fs.writeFileSync(path.join(nestedDir, "index.ts"), "export default function () {}", "utf-8"); }

With this structure, discoverInDirectory(globalExt) would encounter node_modules directly and — without the fix — attempt to process it. The fix causes shouldIgnoreScannedDirectory("node_modules") to return true and skip it, making the test meaningfully validate the change.

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review. Path: src/plugins/discovery.test.ts Line: 121-140 Comment: **Test doesn't actually exercise the fix** The `fake-plugin` directories are placed under `memory-lancedb-pro/<ignoredDir>/deeply/nested/fake-plugin`, but `discoverInDirectory` only scans one level deep — it does **not** recurse into subdirectories of a discovered skill directory. After finding `memory-lancedb-pro/index.ts`, the scanner moves on and never descends into `memory-lancedb-pro/node_modules/...`. This means the `expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin")` assertions would pass trivially **even without the fix**. The real bug scenario is when an ignored directory (e.g. `node_modules`) appears as a **direct child** of the scanned extensions folder. The test should be structured like: ```ts // node_modules, .git, etc. as DIRECT siblings of real skills inside globalExt const ignoredDirs = ["node_modules", ".git", "dist", ".venv", "browser_data", ".cache"]; for (const dirName of ignoredDirs) { const nestedDir = path.join(globalExt, dirName, "fake-plugin"); fs.mkdirSync(nestedDir, { recursive: true }); fs.writeFileSync(path.join(nestedDir, "index.ts"), "export default function () {}", "utf-8"); } ``` With this structure, `discoverInDirectory(globalExt)` would encounter `node_modules` directly and — without the fix — attempt to process it. The fix causes `shouldIgnoreScannedDirectory("node_modules")` to return `true` and skip it, making the test meaningfully validate the change. How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

greptile-apps · 2026-03-12T08:39:27Z

src/plugins/discovery.test.ts

+    expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin");
+    expect(ids.filter((id) => id === "fake-plugin")).toHaveLength(0);


Redundant assertion

expect(ids.filter((id) => id === "fake-plugin")).toHaveLength(0) is semantically identical to the not.toContain assertion on line 139 and can be removed.

Suggested change

expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin");

expect(ids.filter((id) => id === "fake-plugin")).toHaveLength(0);

expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin");

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review. Path: src/plugins/discovery.test.ts Line: 139-140 Comment: **Redundant assertion** `expect(ids.filter((id) => id === "fake-plugin")).toHaveLength(0)` is semantically identical to the `not.toContain` assertion on line 139 and can be removed. ```suggestion expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin"); ``` How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

_{Note: If this suggestion doesn't match your team's coding style, reply to this and let me know. I'll remember it for next time!}

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chatgpt-codex-connector · 2026-03-12T08:39:38Z

src/plugins/discovery.ts

+  "dist",
+  "build",


Do not skip valid plugin roots named dist/build

Adding "dist" and "build" to the hard ignore set causes discoverInDirectory to skip those directories before checking for package.json or index.*, so any plugin placed directly under extensions/dist or extensions/build is now silently undiscoverable. This is a behavior regression from previous discovery logic and can break users who load compiled local plugins from those folder names.

Useful? React with 👍 / 👎.

Bartok9 · 2026-03-17T08:48:13Z

Review feedback was addressed in subsequent commits:

✅ Test restructured to place ignored directories as direct children of extensions folder (commits f3365ea, aa5af6c)
✅ Redundant assertion removed
✅ Test now properly validates the ignore behavior

All 14 tests passing.

…ng discovery Fixes openclaw#43813 The plugin discovery scanner was recursively scanning into node_modules, .git, .venv, and browser_data directories when workspace skills contained them. This caused file descriptor exhaustion (12,000+ FDs) on macOS, leading to 'spawn EBADF' errors on all subsequent exec tool calls. This change adds a set of known non-plugin directories to skip during recursive scans, aligning with the ignore patterns already used by: - DEFAULT_SKILLS_WATCH_IGNORED in refresh.ts - IGNORED_MEMORY_WATCH_DIR_NAMES in manager-sync-ops.ts Directories now skipped: - node_modules, .pnpm-store (package managers) - .git (version control) - dist, build (build outputs) - .venv, venv, __pycache__, .mypy_cache, .pytest_cache (Python) - .cache (general caches) - browser_data, .browser_data (Playwright/Puppeteer) The legacy .bak/.backup-/.disabled patterns are preserved.

Per Greptile's review: the original test placed fake-plugin deeply nested inside a skill's subdirectory, but discoverInDirectory only scans one level deep. The test passed trivially even without the fix. Now places ignored directories (node_modules, .git, etc.) as direct children of the extensions folder, which is the actual bug scenario. This ensures the test actually validates shouldIgnoreScannedDirectory.

Address Greptile review feedback: the previous test nested fake-plugin too deeply (two levels inside ignored dirs) when discoverInDirectory only scans one level. The test now puts index.ts directly inside ignored directories (node_modules/, .git/, etc.) to properly validate that these directories are skipped when shouldIgnoreScannedDirectory returns true.

openclaw-barnacle bot added the size: S label Mar 12, 2026

greptile-apps bot reviewed Mar 12, 2026

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chatgpt-codex-connector bot reviewed Mar 12, 2026

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BradGroux mentioned this pull request Mar 12, 2026

fix(msteams): add @microsoft/agents-hosting to root dependencies #43761

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Bartok Moltbot added 3 commits March 21, 2026 23:45

Bartok9 force-pushed the fix/43813-plugin-discovery-fd-exhaustion branch from aa5af6c to ce285c7 Compare March 22, 2026 03:46

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fix(plugins): skip node_modules and other non-plugin directories during discovery#43859

fix(plugins): skip node_modules and other non-plugin directories during discovery#43859
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		expect(ids).not.toContain("fake-plugin");
		expect(ids.filter((id) => id === "fake-plugin")).toHaveLength(0);

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Bartok9 commented Mar 12, 2026

Summary

Changes

Testing

Before/After

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Greptile Summary

Confidence Score: 3/5

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