| name | exception-flow-analysis |
| description | Traces how errors and exceptions flow through critical code paths to find swallowed errors and broken propagation. Use when analyzing exception handling on important paths. |
| license | CC0-1.0 |
| metadata | {"category":"code-quality"} |
| allowed-tools | Read Grep Glob Write |
| disable-model-invocation | true |
| argument-hint | [path or scope] |
Target: $ARGUMENTS
If no target path is given above, review the entire codebase.
Trace error flow through the application:
Critical paths to analyze:
- Database connection failure
- Third-party API timeout
- Invalid user input
- Authentication failure
- File system errors
For each path, verify:
- Where is the error caught?
- How is it transformed?
- What gets logged?
- What does the user see?
- Is the system state consistent?
In the audit report, document the error flow as a text diagram or structured list showing:
- Error origin points
- Transformation layers
- Final handling points
- Recovery mechanisms
Anti-patterns to identify:
- Swallowed exceptions (empty catch blocks)
- Generic catch-all handlers hiding specific errors
- Errors used for flow control
- Missing error boundaries
- Inconsistent error formats
Provide a standardized error handling template.
Provide:
A structured finding report
A scale of 1/10 on how important each finding is
Remediation: precise code-level fix or config change (snippets welcome) if possible
Constraints & style:
Be concrete and cite exact code locations and identifiers.
Prefer minimal, drop-in fix snippets over prose.
Do not invent files or functions that aren’t present; if context is missing, mark as Unable to verify and say what code would prove it.
Write this into a markdown file and place it in the audits/ folder.