fix(core): Use atomic writes for session files to prevent data loss on crash
Problem
ChatRecordingService.writeConversation() currently uses fs.writeFileSync() directly:
fs.writeFileSync(this.conversationFile, newContent);
This is vulnerable to data loss if the process crashes or is killed mid-write - the session file could be left truncated or corrupted, losing the user's chat history.
Solution
Replace fs.writeFileSync() with write-file-atomic, which:
- Writes to a temporary file first
- Calls
fsync()to ensure data is flushed to disk - Atomically renames the temp file to the target path
This guarantees that session files are always in a valid state - readers see either the previous complete version or the new complete version, never a partial write.
Changes
- Add
write-file-atomicdependency topackages/core/package.json - Add
@types/write-file-atomicto devDependencies for TypeScript support - Update
ChatRecordingService.writeConversation()to usewriteFileAtomic.sync()
Trade-offs
The performance overhead is minimal for session files (~10-50KB written once per message). write-file-atomic is widely used (40M+ weekly npm downloads) and is the standard solution for safe file writes in Node.js.
Testing
- Built and ran Gemini CLI locally
- Verified session files are created and updated correctly
- Confirmed JSON files remain valid after multiple chat interactions
Summary of Changes
Hello @jflam, I'm Gemini Code Assist[^1]! I'm currently reviewing this pull request and will post my feedback shortly. In the meantime, here's a summary to help you and other reviewers quickly get up to speed!
This pull request addresses a critical vulnerability where session files could become corrupted or truncated if the application crashed during a write operation. By integrating the write-file-atomic library, the system now performs atomic writes, guaranteeing that session files are always in a valid state. This enhancement prevents data loss and ensures a consistent user chat history, improving the overall robustness of the application.
Highlights
- Atomic Writes Implementation: Implemented atomic writes for session files to prevent data loss and corruption during unexpected application crashes or interruptions.
-
New Dependency: write-file-atomic: Introduced the
write-file-atomicpackage and its corresponding TypeScript type definitions (@types/write-file-atomic) as new dependencies to facilitate safe file operations. -
ChatRecordingService Update: Modified the
ChatRecordingService.writeConversation()method to utilizewriteFileAtomic.sync()instead offs.writeFileSync(), ensuring data integrity and consistency for conversation history.
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