fix: remove misleading xml2js references

- Updated PR description to clarify fast-xml-parser throws the error, not xml2js
- Removed all xml2js interference references from code and comments
- Updated tests to reflect the actual issue (fast-xml-parser error on complex XML)
- The issue is about fast-xml-parser limitations, not external extension interference

Author: hannesrudolph

src/core/diff/strategies/__tests__/issue-4852-extended.spec.ts

@@ -1,44 +1,24 @@
 import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach, afterEach } from "vitest"
 import { parseXml } from "../../../../utils/xml"
 
-describe("Issue #4852 - addChild error investigation", () => {
+describe("Issue #4852 - fast-xml-parser error on complex XML", () => {
 	let consoleErrorSpy: any
 	let consoleWarnSpy: any
 
 	beforeEach(() => {
 		// Spy on console methods
 		consoleErrorSpy = vi.spyOn(console, "error").mockImplementation(() => {})
 		consoleWarnSpy = vi.spyOn(console, "warn").mockImplementation(() => {})
-
-		// Reset any global state
-		if ((global as any).xml2js) {
-			delete (global as any).xml2js
-		}
 	})
 
 	afterEach(() => {
 		// Restore console methods
 		consoleErrorSpy.mockRestore()
 		consoleWarnSpy.mockRestore()
-
-		// Clean up global state
-		if ((global as any).xml2js) {
-			delete (global as any).xml2js
-		}
 	})
 
-	describe("External xml2js interference detection", () => {
-		it("should detect xml2js presence and handle it silently", () => {
-			// Simulate xml2js being loaded by another extension
-			;(global as any).xml2js = {
-				Parser: function () {
-					this.parseString = function (xml: string, callback: (error: Error | null, result?: any) => void) {
-						// Simulate xml2js behavior
-						callback(new Error("Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'addChild')"))
-					}
-				},
-			}
-
+	describe("Fast-xml-parser error detection", () => {
+		it("should detect parser errors and handle them gracefully", () => {
 			const testXml = `<args>
 				<file>
 					<path>test.txt</path>
@@ -48,16 +28,15 @@ describe("Issue #4852 - addChild error investigation", () => {
 				</file>
 			</args>`
 
-			// Our parseXml should detect xml2js presence and handle it silently
-			// (no console warnings as per code review requirements)
+			// Our parseXml should handle parser errors gracefully
 			let result
 			try {
 				result = parseXml(testXml)
 			} catch (error) {
-				// Expected to potentially fail
+				// Expected to potentially fail on complex structures
 			}
 
-			// Verify that no warnings were logged (as per code review requirements)
+			// Verify that no warnings were logged
 			expect(consoleWarnSpy).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
 
 			// The parser should still work correctly
@@ -76,7 +55,7 @@ describe("Issue #4852 - addChild error investigation", () => {
 				</file>
 			</args>`
 
-			// Test that our code can detect addChild errors
+			// Test that our code can detect addChild errors from fast-xml-parser
 			const mockError = new Error("Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'addChild')")
 
 			// Check that the error message contains addChild
@@ -90,9 +69,9 @@ describe("Issue #4852 - addChild error investigation", () => {
 			if (hasAddChild) {
 				// This is what would be logged
 				const expectedLog =
-					'[XML_PARSER_ERROR] Detected "addChild" error - this is from xml2js, not fast-xml-parser'
-				expect(expectedLog).toContain("xml2js")
+					'[XML_PARSER_ERROR] Detected "addChild" error from fast-xml-parser on complex XML structure'
 				expect(expectedLog).toContain("fast-xml-parser")
+				expect(expectedLog).toContain("complex XML")
 			}
 		})
 	})
@@ -319,7 +298,7 @@ function newFunction() {
 			// Create a mock error with stack trace
 			const mockError = new Error("Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'addChild')")
 			mockError.stack = `Error: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'addChild')
-    at XMLParser.parse (node_modules/xml2js/lib/parser.js:123:45)
+    at XMLParser.parse (node_modules/fast-xml-parser/src/xmlparser/XMLParser.js:123:45)
     at parseXml (src/utils/xml.ts:15:20)
     at multiApplyDiffTool (src/core/tools/multiApplyDiffTool.ts:111:30)`
 

src/core/tools/__tests__/multiApplyDiffTool.test.ts

@@ -135,11 +135,11 @@ describe("multiApplyDiffTool", () => {
 			expect(() => parseXml(malformedXml)).toThrow("XML parsing failed")
 		})
 
-		it("should detect and warn about xml2js addChild errors", async () => {
+		it("should detect and warn about fast-xml-parser addChild errors", async () => {
 			const consoleSpy = vi.spyOn(console, "error")
 			const xml = `<args><file><path>test.txt</path><diff><content>test</content></diff></file></args>`
 
-			// Mock parseXml to throw an addChild error (simulating xml2js interference)
+			// Mock parseXml to throw an addChild error (simulating fast-xml-parser error on complex XML)
 			vi.mocked(parseXml).mockImplementation(() => {
 				const error = new Error("Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'addChild')")
 				throw error

src/core/tools/multiApplyDiffTool.ts

@@ -174,6 +174,7 @@ export async function applyDiffTool(
 1. The XML structure is malformed or incomplete
 2. Missing required <file>, <path>, or <diff> tags
 3. Invalid characters or encoding in the XML
+4. The XML structure is too complex for the parser
 
 Expected structure:
 <args>
@@ -187,7 +188,7 @@ Expected structure:
 </args>
 
 Original error: ${errorMessage}
-${hasAddChild ? "\n⚠️ NOTE: There may be a conflict with another extension. If you have XML-related extensions installed in VSCode, try disabling them and retrying." : ""}`
+${hasAddChild ? "\n⚠️ NOTE: The parser encountered an error with complex XML structure. The fallback parser will be used if available." : ""}`
 
 			cline.consecutiveMistakeCount++
 			cline.recordToolError("apply_diff")

src/utils/xml.ts

@@ -3,10 +3,9 @@ import { XMLParser } from "fast-xml-parser"
 /**
  * Encapsulated XML parser with fallback mechanism
  *
- * This dual-parser system handles interference from external XML parsers (like xml2js)
- * that may be loaded globally by other VSCode extensions. When the primary parser
- * (fast-xml-parser) fails due to external interference, it automatically falls back
- * to a regex-based parser.
+ * This dual-parser system handles parsing errors that may occur when fast-xml-parser
+ * encounters complex or deeply nested XML structures. When the primary parser
+ * (fast-xml-parser) fails, it automatically falls back to a regex-based parser.
  */
 class XmlParserWithFallback {
 	private readonly MAX_XML_SIZE = 10 * 1024 * 1024 // 10MB limit for fallback parser
@@ -128,16 +127,15 @@ class XmlParserWithFallback {
 			}
 
 			// Try fallback parser for any parsing error
-			// This handles both xml2js interference (addChild errors) and other parse failures
+			// This handles parsing failures on complex XML structures
 			try {
 				const result = this.fallbackXmlParse(xmlString)
 				return result
 			} catch (fallbackError) {
 				const fallbackErrorMsg = fallbackError instanceof Error ? fallbackError.message : "Unknown error"
-				// Provide context about which error was from xml2js interference
-				const isXml2jsError = errorMessage.includes("addChild")
-				const errorContext = isXml2jsError
-					? "XML parsing failed due to external parser interference (xml2js)."
+				// Provide context about the parsing failure
+				const errorContext = errorMessage.includes("addChild")
+					? "XML parsing failed due to fast-xml-parser error on complex structure."
 					: "XML parsing failed."
 
 				throw new Error(