bug: MCP ERROR (task-master-ai): SyntaxError: Unexpected token 'L', "Loaded cac"... is not valid JSON #163

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opened 2025-10-14 15:44:18 -06:00 by navan · 0 comments

navan commented

2025-10-14 15:44:18 -06:00

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Originally created by @Astero81 on 8/18/2025

Description

When attempting to generate tasks from a Product Requirements Document (PRD) using the parse_prd tool within the
Gemini CLI, the process fails with a JSON parsing error. The tool appears to be receiving a non-JSON string
response (likely a log or status message) instead of the expected JSON output, which causes a SyntaxError. This
issue prevents the successful generation of project tasks from the PRD file. The error occurred after a previous
attempt to run the same command with the --research flag also failed, suggesting a potential issue with the
tool's output handling.

Steps to Reproduce

Initialize a new project using the initialize_project tool (task-master init).
Create a valid prd.txt file in the .taskmaster/docs/ directory.
Execute the parse_prd tool, pointing to the created prd.txt file. For example:

1 default_api.parse_prd(input = "D:\Projects\taskmaster\.taskmaster\docs\prd.txt", numTasks = "0"
, projectRoot = "D:\Projects\taskmaster", research = False)
4. Observe the MCP error returned by the tool.

Expected Behavior

The parse_prd tool should successfully execute, parse the contents of the prd.txt file, and generate a
structured list of tasks in the corresponding tasks.json file without any errors.

Actual Behavior

The tool execution is aborted and returns an MCP error. The underlying cause is a SyntaxError because the tool
tries to parse a string that is not valid JSON. The invalid string begins with "Loaded cac...".

Screenshots or Logs

1 MCP ERROR (task-master-ai): SyntaxError: Unexpected token 'L', "Loaded cac"... is not valid JSON

Environment

Task Master version: 0.24.0
Node.js version: 24.3.0
Operating system: win11
IDE (if applicable): Gemini CLI

Additional Context

This error occurred on the second attempt to run the parse_prd command. The first attempt used the research=True
flag and failed with a different, more generic error ([Error: Could not parse tool response]). The subsequent
attempt with research=False produced this specific JSON parsing error. This may indicate an issue with how the
tool handles and returns data or errors across different execution paths.

*Originally created by @Astero81 on 8/18/2025* Description When attempting to generate tasks from a Product Requirements Document (PRD) using the parse_prd tool within the Gemini CLI, the process fails with a JSON parsing error. The tool appears to be receiving a non-JSON string response (likely a log or status message) instead of the expected JSON output, which causes a SyntaxError. This issue prevents the successful generation of project tasks from the PRD file. The error occurred after a previous attempt to run the same command with the --research flag also failed, suggesting a potential issue with the tool's output handling. Steps to Reproduce 1. Initialize a new project using the initialize_project tool (task-master init). 2. Create a valid prd.txt file in the .taskmaster/docs/ directory. 3. Execute the parse_prd tool, pointing to the created prd.txt file. For example: 1 default_api.parse_prd(input = "D:\\Projects\\taskmaster\\.taskmaster\\docs\\prd.txt", numTasks = "0" , projectRoot = "D:\\Projects\\taskmaster", research = False) 4. Observe the MCP error returned by the tool. Expected Behavior The parse_prd tool should successfully execute, parse the contents of the prd.txt file, and generate a structured list of tasks in the corresponding tasks.json file without any errors. Actual Behavior The tool execution is aborted and returns an MCP error. The underlying cause is a SyntaxError because the tool tries to parse a string that is not valid JSON. The invalid string begins with "Loaded cac...". Screenshots or Logs 1 MCP ERROR (task-master-ai): SyntaxError: Unexpected token 'L', "Loaded cac"... is not valid JSON Environment - Task Master version: 0.24.0 - Node.js version: 24.3.0 - Operating system: win11 - IDE (if applicable): Gemini CLI Additional Context This error occurred on the second attempt to run the parse_prd command. The first attempt used the research=True flag and failed with a different, more generic error ([Error: Could not parse tool response]). The subsequent attempt with research=False produced this specific JSON parsing error. This may indicate an issue with how the tool handles and returns data or errors across different execution paths.