37 lines
2.9 KiB
Markdown
37 lines
2.9 KiB
Markdown
# Multi-File Read Tool
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This document provides details on the `read_many_files` tool.
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## `read_many_files`
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- **Purpose:** Reads content from multiple text files specified by paths or glob patterns and concatenates them into a single string. This is useful for getting an overview of a codebase, finding where specific functionality is implemented, reviewing documentation, or gathering context from multiple configuration files.
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- **Arguments:**
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- `paths` (list[string], required): An array of glob patterns or paths relative to the tool's target directory (e.g., `["src/**/*.ts"]`, `["README.md", "docs/"]`).
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- `exclude` (list[string], optional): Glob patterns for files/directories to exclude (e.g., `["**/*.log", "temp/"]`). These are added to default excludes if `useDefaultExcludes` is true.
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- `include` (list[string], optional): Additional glob patterns to include. These are merged with `paths` (e.g., `["*.test.ts"]` to specifically add test files if they were broadly excluded).
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- `recursive` (boolean, optional): Whether to search recursively. This is primarily controlled by `**` in glob patterns. Defaults to `true`.
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- `useDefaultExcludes` (boolean, optional): Whether to apply a list of default exclusion patterns (e.g., `node_modules`, `.git`, binary files). Defaults to `true`.
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- **Behavior:**
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- The tool searches for files matching the provided `paths` and `include` patterns, while respecting `exclude` patterns and default excludes (if enabled).
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- It reads the content of each matched text file (attempting to skip binary files).
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- The content of all successfully read files is concatenated into a single string, with a separator `--- {filePath} ---` between the content of each file.
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- Uses UTF-8 encoding by default.
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- **Examples:**
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- Reading all TypeScript files in the `src` directory:
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```
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read_many_files(paths=["src/**/*.ts"])
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```
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- Reading the main README and all Markdown files in the `docs` directory, excluding a specific file:
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```
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read_many_files(paths=["README.md", "docs/**/*.md"], exclude=["docs/OLD_README.md"])
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```
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- Reading all JavaScript files but explicitly including test files that might otherwise be excluded by a global pattern:
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```
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read_many_files(paths=["**/*.js"], include=["**/*.test.js"], useDefaultExcludes=False)
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```
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- **Important Notes:**
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- **Binary Files:** This tool is designed for text files and attempts to skip binary files. Its behavior with binary content is not guaranteed.
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- **Performance:** Reading a very large number of files or very large individual files can be resource-intensive.
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- **Path Specificity:** Ensure paths and glob patterns are correctly specified relative to the tool's target directory.
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- **Default Excludes:** Be aware of the default exclusion patterns (like `node_modules`, `.git`) and use `useDefaultExcludes=False` if you need to override them, but do so cautiously.
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