[BUG] grok-code-fast-1 has a suggestion

[jcalfee]

Problem (one or two sentences)

The 1st time grok-code-fast-1 tries to change a file this error comes up:

The apply_diff partially succeeded, but there are TS errors because not all changes were applied? No, it says "unable to apply all diff parts", but then "operation":"modified", and "You do not need to re-read the file, as you have seen all changes Proceed with the task using these changes as the new baseline."

Context (who is affected and when)

New sessions

Reproduction steps

Just use grok-code-fast-1 to do something.

Expected result

should work

Actual result

errors, but it retries and figures it out

Variations tried (optional)

I asked the model to give me text to use in future sessions to avoid the issue. It said to provide this:

To avoid partial apply_diff: Use raw <> && (no HTML escapes), exact indents from read_file, re-read/re-apply failed blocks iteratively, small diffs first, check TS errors before completing.

Then I asked if it recommends a better way for Roo Code to handle this. It said:

Workaround is effective, but for Roo Code plugin devs: 1) Robust parser: Normalize whitespace, accept optional escapes (<>), apply blocks independently (not all-or-nothing). 2) Git-style hunks: Context-aware patches with tolerance. 3) Auto-fix/preview: Linter integration to suggest/apply fixes. 4) Fallback: Sequential single-block apply on multi-fail.

App Version

3.38.3

API Provider (optional)

OpenRouter

Model Used (optional)

grok-code-fast-1

Roo Code Task Links (optional)

No response

Relevant logs or errors (optional)

[roomote]

I've analyzed this issue and here's my proposed implementation plan:

Analysis

The issue occurs when grok-code-fast-1 produces HTML-escaped characters (like < and >) in its diff output. The codebase already has an unescapeHtmlEntities() function that handles this, but it only runs for non-Claude models. However, there are some potential gaps:

1. Double encoding: If content is double-encoded (e.g., < -> < -> <), a single pass won't fully decode it
2. Partial application: The error message mentions "unable to apply all diff parts" which suggests some blocks work while others fail, indicating inconsistent escaping within the same response

Proposed Fix

1. Improve HTML entity unescaping in src/utils/text-normalization.ts:

   • Add support for iterative decoding to handle double-encoded entities
   • Ensure the function handles all common HTML entities that models might produce

2. Update unescapeHtmlEntities usage:

   • Currently used in ApplyDiffTool.ts and MultiApplyDiffTool.ts for non-Claude models
   • Consider applying unescaping more broadly or adding additional normalization

3. Add test coverage:

   • Add tests for double-encoded HTML entities
   • Add integration tests simulating grok model output patterns

This approach will improve robustness without breaking existing functionality for models that don't produce escaped content.

Please mention @roomote in a comment saying that you approve this plan, and I'll proceed with the implementation.

[jcalfee]

More, possibly redundant, feedback from grok-code-fast-1:

Initial apply_diff failed due to escaped characters (< for <, && for &&, => for =>) in SEARCH/REPLACE content not matching file's raw syntax. Fixed by using raw characters, re-reading file iteratively, applying small diffs.