Clarify that all file paths are absolute

Co-authored-by: David <davidsk@zed.dev>
Co-authored-by: Agus <agus@zed.dev>

Author: 3 people

docs/protocol/file-system.mdx

@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ The `fs/read_text_file` method allows Agents to read text file contents from the
   "method": "fs/read_text_file",
   "params": {
     "sessionId": "sess_abc123def456",
-    "path": "src/main.py",
+    "path": "/home/user/project/src/main.py",
     "line": 10,
     "limit": 50
   }
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ The `fs/read_text_file` method allows Agents to read text file contents from the
 </ParamField>
 
 <ParamField path="path" type="string" required>
-  Path to the file to read
+  Absolute path to the file to read
 </ParamField>
 
 <ParamField path="line" type="number">
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ The `fs/write_text_file` method allows Agents to write or update text files in t
   "method": "fs/write_text_file",
   "params": {
     "sessionId": "sess_abc123def456",
-    "path": "config.json",
+    "path": "/home/user/project/config.json",
     "content": "{\n  \"debug\": true,\n  \"version\": \"1.0.0\"\n}"
   }
 }
@@ -95,7 +95,8 @@ The `fs/write_text_file` method allows Agents to write or update text files in t
 </ParamField>
 
 <ParamField path="path" type="string" required>
-  Path to the file to write.
+  Absolute path to the file to write.
+
   The Client **MUST** create the file if it doesn't exist.
 </ParamField>
 

docs/protocol/overview.mdx

@@ -94,6 +94,11 @@ Clients provide the interface between users and agents. They are typically code
   Send progress updates during prompt processing (no response expected).
 </ParamField>
 
+## Argument requirements
+
+- All file paths in the protocol **MUST** be absolute.
+- Line numbers are 1-based
+
 ## Error Handling
 
 All methods follow standard JSON-RPC 2.0 [error handling](https://www.jsonrpc.org/specification#error_object):

docs/protocol/session-setup.mdx

@@ -207,7 +207,7 @@ Each MCP server specification includes:
 </ParamField>
 
 <ParamField path="command" type="string" required>
-  The path to the MCP server executable
+  The absolute path to the MCP server executable
 </ParamField>
 
 <ParamField path="args" type="array" required>

docs/protocol/tool-calls.mdx

@@ -42,10 +42,14 @@ When the language model requests a tool invocation, the Agent **SHOULD** report
   The category of tool being invoked.
 
 <Expandable title="kinds">
-  - `read` - Reading files or data - `edit` - Modifying files or content -
-  `delete` - Removing files or data - `move` - Moving or renaming files -
-  `search` - Searching for information - `execute` - Running commands or code -
-  `think` - Internal reasoning or planning - `fetch` - Retrieving external data
+  - `read` - Reading files or data
+  - `edit` - Modifying files or content
+  - `delete` - Removing files or data
+  - `move` - Moving or renaming files
+  - `search` - Searching for information
+  - `execute` - Running commands or code
+  - `think` - Internal reasoning or planning
+  - `fetch` - Retrieving external data
   - `other` - Other tool types (default)
 </Expandable>
 
@@ -251,14 +255,14 @@ File modifications shown as diffs:
 ```json
 {
   "type": "diff",
-  "path": "src/config.json",
+  "path": "/home/user/project/src/config.json",
   "oldText": "{\n  \"debug\": false\n}",
   "newText": "{\n  \"debug\": true\n}"
 }
 ```
 
 <ParamField path="path" type="string" required>
-  The file path being modified
+  The absolute file path being modified
 </ParamField>
 
 <ParamField path="oldText" type="string">
@@ -275,13 +279,13 @@ Tool calls can report file locations they're working with, enabling Clients to i
 
 ```json
 {
-  "path": "src/main.py",
+  "path": "/home/user/project/src/main.py",
   "line": 42
 }
 ```
 
 <ParamField path="path" type="string" required>
-  The file path being accessed or modified
+  The absolute file path being accessed or modified
 </ParamField>
 
 <ParamField path="line" type="number">

rust/client.rs

@@ -208,10 +208,9 @@ pub enum RequestPermissionOutcome {
 pub struct WriteTextFileRequest {
     /// The session ID for this request.
     pub session_id: SessionId,
-    /// Path to the file to write (relative to the session's working directory).
+    /// Absolute path to the file to write.
     pub path: PathBuf,
     /// The text content to write to the file.
-    /// The text content read from the file.
     pub content: String,
 }
 
@@ -225,7 +224,7 @@ pub struct WriteTextFileRequest {
 pub struct ReadTextFileRequest {
     /// The session ID for this request.
     pub session_id: SessionId,
-    /// Path to the file to read (relative to the session's working directory).
+    /// Absolute path to the file to read.
     pub path: PathBuf,
     /// Optional line number to start reading from (1-based).
     #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]

schema/schema.json

@@ -809,7 +809,7 @@
           "type": ["integer", "null"]
         },
         "path": {
-          "description": "Path to the file to read (relative to the session's working directory).",
+          "description": "Absolute path to the file to read.",
           "type": "string"
         },
         "sessionId": {
@@ -1436,11 +1436,11 @@
       "description": "Request to write content to a text file.\n\nOnly available if the client supports the `fs.writeTextFile` capability.",
       "properties": {
         "content": {
-          "description": "The text content to write to the file.\nThe text content read from the file.",
+          "description": "The text content to write to the file.",
           "type": "string"
         },
         "path": {
-          "description": "Path to the file to write (relative to the session's working directory).",
+          "description": "Absolute path to the file to write.",
           "type": "string"
         },
         "sessionId": {

typescript/schema.ts

@@ -122,11 +122,10 @@ export type AgentClientProtocol = z.infer<typeof agentClientProtocolSchema>;
 export const writeTextFileRequestSchema = z.object({
   /**
    * The text content to write to the file.
-   * The text content read from the file.
    */
   content: z.string(),
   /**
-   * Path to the file to write (relative to the session's working directory).
+   * Absolute path to the file to write.
    */
   path: z.string(),
   /**
@@ -150,7 +149,7 @@ export const readTextFileRequestSchema = z.object({
    */
   line: z.number().optional().nullable(),
   /**
-   * Path to the file to read (relative to the session's working directory).
+   * Absolute path to the file to read.
    */
   path: z.string(),
   /**