chore(deps): update dependencies

Automated dependency update. All tests passed.

.github/workflows/autoupdate.yaml

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-name: Autoupdate go.mod and go.sum
+name: Update dependencies
 
 on:
   workflow_dispatch:
@@ -6,16 +6,16 @@ on:
     - cron: "0 3 * * *"
 
 permissions:
-  contents: write
   actions: write
+  contents: write
+  issues: write
   pull-requests: write
-  security-events: write
 
 jobs:
-  autoupdate:
-    uses: lukaszraczylo/shared-actions/.github/workflows/go-autoupdate.yaml@main
+  update:
+    uses: lukaszraczylo/shared-actions/.github/workflows/renovate-autoupdate.yaml@main
     with:
       go-version: ">=1.24"
-      release-workflow: "release.yaml"
+      node: false
+      release-workflow: release.yaml
       lfs: true
-    secrets: inherit

.github/workflows/lint.yaml

@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: Set up Go
         uses: actions/setup-go@v5
         with:
-          go-version: '1.25'
+          go-version: '1.26'
           cache: true
 
       - name: Run golangci-lint

.github/workflows/release.yaml

@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ jobs:
   release:
     uses: lukaszraczylo/shared-actions/.github/workflows/go-release-cgo.yaml@main
     with:
-      go-version: "1.25"
+      go-version: "1.26"
       rolling-release-tag: "v1"
       platforms: >-
         [

.github/workflows/security.yaml

@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: Set up Go
         uses: actions/setup-go@v5
         with:
-          go-version: '1.25'
+          go-version: '1.26'
           cache: true
 
       - name: Install govulncheck

.golangci.yml

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ version: "2"
 
 run:
   timeout: 5m
-  go: '1.25'
+  go: '1.26'
 
 linters:
   enable:
@@ -13,23 +13,11 @@ linters:
     - unused        # Check for unused code
     - gocyclo       # Check cyclomatic complexity
     - misspell      # Check for misspelled words
-
-formatters:
-  enable:
-    - gofmt         # Check formatting
-
-linters-settings:
-  gocyclo:
-    min-complexity: 15
-  errcheck:
-    check-blank: true
-  govet:
-    enable-all: true
+  settings:
     staticcheck:
       checks: ["all"]
-
-issues:
-  exclude-rules:
+  exclusions:
+    rules:
       # Exclude some linters from running on tests
       - path: _test\.go
         linters:
@@ -37,8 +25,14 @@ issues:
           - errcheck
           - gosec
 
+formatters:
+  enable:
+    - gofmt         # Check formatting
+
+issues:
   max-issues-per-linter: 0
   max-same-issues: 0
 
 output:
-  sort-results: true
+  sort-order:
+    - file

.goreleaser.yaml

@@ -95,6 +95,24 @@ release:
     ```
 
 
+homebrew_casks:
+  - name: mcp-filepuff
+    repository:
+      owner: lukaszraczylo
+      name: homebrew-taps
+      token: "{{ .Env.HOMEBREW_TAP_TOKEN }}"
+    directory: Casks
+    homepage: https://github.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp
+    description: "AST-aware file operations and LSP integration MCP server for Claude Code"
+    license: MIT
+    hooks:
+      post:
+        install: |
+          if OS.mac?
+            system_command "/usr/bin/xattr",
+                           args: ["-dr", "com.apple.quarantine", "#{staged_path}/mcp-filepuff"]
+          end
+
 dockers:
   - image_templates:
       - "ghcr.io/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp:{{ .Tag }}"

README.md

@@ -283,7 +283,7 @@ Search for text patterns in files using ripgrep.
 - `file_types`: File types to search (e.g., ["go", "ts", "py"])
 - `ignore_case`: Case insensitive search
 - `regex`: Treat pattern as regex (default: true)
-- `context_lines`: Number of context lines around matches (default: 2)
+- `context_lines`: Number of context lines around matches (default: 0)
 - `max_results`: Maximum number of results to return
 
 ---
@@ -352,7 +352,7 @@ Search for AST patterns in code files using structural pattern matching.
 - `name_matches`: Regex pattern to filter by name
 - `name_exact`: Exact name to match
 - `kind_in`: Node types to match (e.g., function_declaration)
-- `max_results`: Maximum number of results (default: 100)
+- `max_results`: Maximum number of results (default: 50)
 
 **Examples**:
 ```json

cmd/docgen/main.go

@@ -211,7 +211,7 @@ func GenerateMarkdown() string {
 	var sb strings.Builder
 
 	sb.WriteString("# MCP Filepuff API Reference\n\n")
-	sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("> Auto-generated on %s\n\n", time.Now().Format("2006-01-02")))
+	fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "> Auto-generated on %s\n\n", time.Now().Format("2006-01-02"))
 	sb.WriteString("This document provides detailed API documentation for all MCP tools available in filepuff.\n\n")
 
 	// Table of Contents
@@ -228,9 +228,9 @@ func GenerateMarkdown() string {
 	}
 
 	for _, cat := range categoryOrder {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("### %s\n", cat))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "### %s\n", cat)
 		for _, tool := range categories[cat] {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("- [`%s`](#%s)\n", tool.Name, tool.Name))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "- [`%s`](#%s)\n", tool.Name, tool.Name)
 		}
 		sb.WriteString("\n")
 	}
@@ -240,11 +240,11 @@ func GenerateMarkdown() string {
 	sb.WriteString("## Tool Reference\n\n")
 
 	for _, cat := range categoryOrder {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("### %s\n\n", cat))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "### %s\n\n", cat)
 
 		for _, tool := range categories[cat] {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("#### `%s`\n\n", tool.Name))
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s\n\n", tool.Description))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "#### `%s`\n\n", tool.Name)
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s\n\n", tool.Description)
 
 			// Read-only indicator
 			if tool.ReadOnly {
@@ -263,8 +263,8 @@ func GenerateMarkdown() string {
 					if param.Required {
 						required = "**Yes**"
 					}
-					sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("| `%s` | `%s` | %s | %s |\n",
-						param.Name, param.Type, required, param.Description))
+					fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "| `%s` | `%s` | %s | %s |\n",
+						param.Name, param.Type, required, param.Description)
 				}
 				sb.WriteString("\n")
 			} else {
@@ -285,7 +285,7 @@ func GenerateMarkdown() string {
 			if len(tool.Notes) > 0 {
 				sb.WriteString("**Notes:**\n\n")
 				for _, note := range tool.Notes {
-					sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("- %s\n", note))
+					fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "- %s\n", note)
 				}
 				sb.WriteString("\n")
 			}

docs/API.md

@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ Search for text patterns in files using ripgrep. Supports regex patterns, file t
 | `file_types` | `array[string]` | No | File types to search (e.g., ['go', 'ts', 'py']) |
 | `ignore_case` | `boolean` | No | Case insensitive search |
 | `regex` | `boolean` | No | Treat pattern as regex (default: true) |
-| `context_lines` | `number` | No | Number of context lines around matches (default: 2) |
+| `context_lines` | `number` | No | Number of context lines around matches (default: 0) |
 | `max_results` | `number` | No | Maximum number of results to return |
 
 **Examples:**
@@ -153,7 +153,7 @@ Search for AST patterns in code files. Use code patterns with $VAR placeholders
 | `name_matches` | `string` | No | Regex pattern to filter by name |
 | `name_exact` | `string` | No | Exact name to match |
 | `kind_in` | `array[string]` | No | Node types to match (e.g., function_declaration, class_declaration) |
-| `max_results` | `number` | No | Maximum number of results to return (default: 100) |
+| `max_results` | `number` | No | Maximum number of results to return (default: 50) |
 
 **Examples:**
 

go.mod

@@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
 module github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff
 
-go 1.25.5
+go 1.26.0
 
 require (
 	github.com/cespare/xxhash/v2 v2.3.0
-	github.com/goccy/go-json v0.10.6
+	github.com/goccy/go-json v0.11.2
 	github.com/hashicorp/golang-lru/v2 v2.0.7
-	github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go v0.54.1
+	github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go v1.2.1
 	github.com/sergi/go-diff v1.4.0
 	github.com/smacker/go-tree-sitter v0.0.0-20240827094217-dd81d9e9be82
 	gopkg.in/yaml.v3 v3.0.1
@@ -15,8 +15,8 @@ require (
 require (
 	github.com/google/jsonschema-go v0.4.3 // indirect
 	github.com/google/uuid v1.6.0 // indirect
-	github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.2 // indirect
+	github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.3 // indirect
 	github.com/spf13/cast v1.10.0 // indirect
 	github.com/yosida95/uritemplate/v3 v3.0.2 // indirect
-	golang.org/x/text v0.37.0 // indirect
+	golang.org/x/text v0.43.0 // indirect
 )

go.sum

@@ -7,8 +7,8 @@ github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.11.0 h1:G/nrcoOa7ZXlpoa/91N3X7mM3r8eIlMBBJZvsz/mxK
 github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.11.0/go.mod h1:DHkYz0B9wPfa6wondMfaivmHpzrQ3v9q8cnmRbL6yW8=
 github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.6 h1:7Xjx+VpznH+oBnejlPUj8oUpdxnVs4f8XU8WnHkI4W8=
 github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.6/go.mod h1:4ptaffx2x8+WTWXmUCuVU6aPUX1/Mz7zb5vbUoiM6w0=
-github.com/goccy/go-json v0.10.6 h1:p8HrPJzOakx/mn/bQtjgNjdTcN+/S6FcG2CTtQOrHVU=
-github.com/goccy/go-json v0.10.6/go.mod h1:oq7eo15ShAhp70Anwd5lgX2pLfOS3QCiwU/PULtXL6M=
+github.com/goccy/go-json v0.11.2 h1:jdZv93Tt4ioR8yW1CoNsvSxrcZlCXAUU1aZXN7gpXUA=
+github.com/goccy/go-json v0.11.2/go.mod h1:3NdmfEkZlB7YI5UFw/qdFKq8XN1aiWR0YyRPWZNQltY=
 github.com/google/go-cmp v0.7.0 h1:wk8382ETsv4JYUZwIsn6YpYiWiBsYLSJiTsyBybVuN8=
 github.com/google/go-cmp v0.7.0/go.mod h1:pXiqmnSA92OHEEa9HXL2W4E7lf9JzCmGVUdgjX3N/iU=
 github.com/google/jsonschema-go v0.4.3 h1:/DBOLZTfDow7pe2GmaJNhltueGTtDKICi8V8p+DQPd0=
@@ -24,14 +24,14 @@ github.com/kr/pty v1.1.1/go.mod h1:pFQYn66WHrOpPYNljwOMqo10TkYh1fy3cYio2l3bCsQ=
 github.com/kr/text v0.1.0/go.mod h1:4Jbv+DJW3UT/LiOwJeYQe1efqtUx/iVham/4vfdArNI=
 github.com/kr/text v0.2.0 h1:5Nx0Ya0ZqY2ygV366QzturHI13Jq95ApcVaJBhpS+AY=
 github.com/kr/text v0.2.0/go.mod h1:eLer722TekiGuMkidMxC/pM04lWEeraHUUmBw8l2grE=
-github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go v0.54.1 h1:Ap/ptEB9FtWzFKM8NDsTA7QDxerQOC06eZigrTldVj0=
-github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go v0.54.1/go.mod h1:+8WclSK1ZUweCP3hvktSji8n8ABG/95QaEkeVE/Uwas=
+github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go v1.2.1 h1:gd8VD3feMAVycwAM0x1nhv42Q1oLLjfOyowoUzHULB8=
+github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go v1.2.1/go.mod h1:r2fW4o3wsoJ7IMsx1Wuq5xeP8PRGXPDfNveoGAYbb/s=
 github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.0 h1:4DBwDE0NGyQoBHbLQYPwSUPoCMWR5BEzIk/f1lZbAQM=
 github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.0/go.mod h1:iKH77koFhYxTK1pcRnkKkqfTogsbg7gZNVY4sRDYZ/4=
 github.com/rogpeppe/go-internal v1.14.1 h1:UQB4HGPB6osV0SQTLymcB4TgvyWu6ZyliaW0tI/otEQ=
 github.com/rogpeppe/go-internal v1.14.1/go.mod h1:MaRKkUm5W0goXpeCfT7UZI6fk/L7L7so1lCWt35ZSgc=
-github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.2 h1:KRzFb2m7YtdldCEkzs6KqmJw4nqEVZGK7IN2kJkjTuQ=
-github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.2/go.mod h1:JXeL+ps8p7/KNMjDQk3TCwPpBy0wYklyWTfbkIzdIFU=
+github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.3 h1:1EYB5IzjZawrrnELUi78f9fPu57HuXjmddZPjrls/28=
+github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.3/go.mod h1:JXeL+ps8p7/KNMjDQk3TCwPpBy0wYklyWTfbkIzdIFU=
 github.com/sergi/go-diff v1.4.0 h1:n/SP9D5ad1fORl+llWyN+D6qoUETXNZARKjyY2/KVCw=
 github.com/sergi/go-diff v1.4.0/go.mod h1:A0bzQcvG0E7Rwjx0REVgAGH58e96+X0MeOfepqsbeW4=
 github.com/smacker/go-tree-sitter v0.0.0-20240827094217-dd81d9e9be82 h1:6C8qej6f1bStuePVkLSFxoU22XBS165D3klxlzRg8F4=
@@ -44,8 +44,10 @@ github.com/stretchr/testify v1.11.1 h1:7s2iGBzp5EwR7/aIZr8ao5+dra3wiQyKjjFuvgVKu
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.11.1/go.mod h1:wZwfW3scLgRK+23gO65QZefKpKQRnfz6sD981Nm4B6U=
 github.com/yosida95/uritemplate/v3 v3.0.2 h1:Ed3Oyj9yrmi9087+NczuL5BwkIc4wvTb5zIM+UJPGz4=
 github.com/yosida95/uritemplate/v3 v3.0.2/go.mod h1:ILOh0sOhIJR3+L/8afwt/kE++YT040gmv5BQTMR2HP4=
-golang.org/x/text v0.37.0 h1:Cqjiwd9eSg8e0QAkyCaQTNHFIIzWtidPahFWR83rTrc=
-golang.org/x/text v0.37.0/go.mod h1:a5sjxXGs9hsn/AJVwuElvCAo9v8QYLzvavO5z2PiM38=
+golang.org/x/text v0.43.0 h1:1QivrlhwAsnMOcqgOdl9my7s9OyZl8O5/UGUTJVXoWc=
+golang.org/x/text v0.43.0/go.mod h1:hbSIYA/amXcRXTFSZqh8tWHEoqRvvbKPJ2uz/KU+a+s=
+golang.org/x/tools v0.51.0 h1:k4Xc/1Om9jwkBJBo4NVLMSARBoWtK10mx+W5BnXCeAI=
+golang.org/x/tools v0.51.0/go.mod h1:9eEncMayCV6zRMGhR5eZEC2iBx98qWcF1HZ9Z7wJOoA=
 gopkg.in/check.v1 v0.0.0-20161208181325-20d25e280405/go.mod h1:Co6ibVJAznAaIkqp8huTwlJQCZ016jof/cbN4VW5Yz0=
 gopkg.in/check.v1 v1.0.0-20190902080502-41f04d3bba15/go.mod h1:Co6ibVJAznAaIkqp8huTwlJQCZ016jof/cbN4VW5Yz0=
 gopkg.in/check.v1 v1.0.0-20201130134442-10cb98267c6c h1:Hei/4ADfdWqJk1ZMxUNpqntNwaWcugrBjAiHlqqRiVk=

internal/config/config.go

@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ const (
 	DefaultSearchTimeout              = 30 * time.Second
 	DefaultMaxFileSize                = 10 * 1024 * 1024 // 10 MB
 	DefaultMaxParseSize               = 10 * 1024 * 1024 // 10 MB
-	DefaultMaxSearchResults           = 1000
+	DefaultMaxSearchResults           = 50
 	DefaultMaxEditSize                = 100 * 1024 // 100 KB
 	DefaultResourceLinkThresholdBytes = 64 * 1024  // 64 KiB
 )
@@ -84,14 +84,24 @@ func Load(workspaceRoot string) (*Config, error) {
 	// Restore WorkspaceRoot — config file must not override path guards.
 	cfg.WorkspaceRoot = savedRoot
 
-	// Clamp size limits to prevent config file from requesting excessive memory.
+	// Clamp size/count limits so the config file cannot request excessive memory.
 	const maxAllowedSize int64 = 100 * 1024 * 1024 // 100 MB
+	const maxAllowedSearchResults = 100000
 	if cfg.MaxFileSize > maxAllowedSize {
 		cfg.MaxFileSize = maxAllowedSize
 	}
 	if cfg.MaxParseSize > maxAllowedSize {
 		cfg.MaxParseSize = maxAllowedSize
 	}
+	if cfg.MaxEditSize > maxAllowedSize {
+		cfg.MaxEditSize = maxAllowedSize
+	}
+	if cfg.MaxSearchResults > maxAllowedSearchResults {
+		cfg.MaxSearchResults = maxAllowedSearchResults
+	}
+	if cfg.MaxSearchResults < 0 {
+		cfg.MaxSearchResults = 0 // negative would re-enable unbounded search
+	}
 
 	// Override from environment variables
 	cfg.loadFromEnv()

internal/config/config_test.go

@@ -183,6 +183,35 @@ func TestLoadWithConfigFile(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// A config file requesting excessive size/count limits must be clamped so it
+// cannot force the server into unbounded memory use.
+func TestLoadClampsExcessiveLimits(t *testing.T) {
+	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+	configPath := filepath.Join(tmpDir, ".mcp-filepuff.json")
+	configContent := `{
+		"max_file_size": 999999999999,
+		"max_parse_size": 999999999999,
+		"max_edit_size": 999999999999,
+		"max_search_results": 999999999
+	}`
+	if err := os.WriteFile(configPath, []byte(configContent), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write config: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	cfg, err := Load(tmpDir)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	const maxSize int64 = 100 * 1024 * 1024
+	if cfg.MaxFileSize > maxSize || cfg.MaxParseSize > maxSize || cfg.MaxEditSize > maxSize {
+		t.Errorf("size limits not clamped: file=%d parse=%d edit=%d", cfg.MaxFileSize, cfg.MaxParseSize, cfg.MaxEditSize)
+	}
+	if cfg.MaxSearchResults > 100000 {
+		t.Errorf("MaxSearchResults not clamped: %d", cfg.MaxSearchResults)
+	}
+}
+
 // TestValidate tests the Validate method with various inputs.
 func TestValidate(t *testing.T) {
 	tests := []struct {

internal/cursor/cursor.go

@@ -26,6 +26,8 @@ type payload struct {
 // Encode creates an opaque cursor string from an offset and query hash.
 func Encode(offset int, queryHash string) string {
 	p := payload{Offset: offset, QueryHash: queryHash}
+	// Marshalling a struct of two scalar fields (int, string) cannot fail, so the
+	// error is intentionally ignored.
 	b, _ := json.Marshal(p)
 	return base64.RawURLEncoding.EncodeToString(b)
 }

internal/edit/edit.go

@@ -63,17 +63,46 @@ type Engine struct {
 	registry  *parser.Registry
 	dmp       *diffmatchpatch.DiffMatchPatch
 	fileLocks sync.Map // map[string]*sync.Mutex for per-file locking
+	// pathAllowed re-checks that a target path is admissible (within the
+	// workspace root) immediately before a write. Injected to avoid coupling
+	// edit to config; nil disables the check (used in unit tests).
+	pathAllowed func(string) bool
 }
 
-// NewEngine creates a new edit engine.
+// NewEngine creates a new edit engine with no write-time path validation.
 func NewEngine(registry *parser.Registry) *Engine {
+	return NewEngineWithValidator(registry, nil)
+}
+
+// NewEngineWithValidator creates an edit engine that re-validates each target
+// path with pathAllowed immediately before writing it, closing most of the
+// time-of-check/time-of-use window between the handler's admission check and the
+// actual write (a symlink swapped in afterward is rejected).
+func NewEngineWithValidator(registry *parser.Registry, pathAllowed func(string) bool) *Engine {
 	return &Engine{
 		registry:    registry,
 		dmp:         diffmatchpatch.New(),
 		fileLocks:   sync.Map{},
+		pathAllowed: pathAllowed,
 	}
 }
 
+// writeValidatedFile writes content to path, preserving the file's existing
+// permission bits, after re-checking that path is still admissible. The re-check
+// resolves symlinks at write time, so a symlink swapped in after the caller's
+// original validation cannot redirect the write outside the workspace root.
+func (e *Engine) writeValidatedFile(path string, content []byte) error {
+	if e.pathAllowed != nil && !e.pathAllowed(path) {
+		return errors.New(errors.ErrPathNotAllowed, "path is outside the workspace root").
+			WithContext("path", path)
+	}
+	perm := os.FileMode(0o600) // default fallback when the file can't be stat'd
+	if info, err := os.Stat(path); err == nil {
+		perm = info.Mode().Perm()
+	}
+	return os.WriteFile(path, content, perm)
+}
+
 // lockFile acquires a lock for the specified file and returns an unlock function.
 // This prevents concurrent edits to the same file which could cause corruption.
 func (e *Engine) lockFile(filePath string) func() {
@@ -179,14 +208,7 @@ func (e *Engine) performASTEdit(ctx context.Context, edit *ASTEdit, apply bool)
 
 	// Apply changes if requested
 	if apply {
-		// Preserve original file permissions
-		fileInfo, err := os.Stat(edit.File)
-		perm := os.FileMode(0o600) // default fallback
-		if err == nil {
-			perm = fileInfo.Mode().Perm()
-		}
-
-		if err := os.WriteFile(edit.File, newContent, perm); err != nil {
+		if err := e.writeValidatedFile(edit.File, newContent); err != nil {
 			structuredErr := errors.NewFileNotWritableError(edit.File, err)
 			return &EditResult{
 				Success: false,
@@ -236,14 +258,7 @@ func (e *Engine) performTextEdit(_ context.Context, edit *ASTEdit, apply bool) (
 
 	// Apply changes if requested
 	if apply {
-		// Preserve original file permissions
-		fileInfo, err := os.Stat(edit.File)
-		perm := os.FileMode(0o600) // default fallback
-		if err == nil {
-			perm = fileInfo.Mode().Perm()
-		}
-
-		if err := os.WriteFile(edit.File, newContent, perm); err != nil {
+		if err := e.writeValidatedFile(edit.File, newContent); err != nil {
 			structuredErr := errors.NewFileNotWritableError(edit.File, err)
 			return &EditResult{
 				Success: false,
@@ -270,7 +285,11 @@ func (e *Engine) validateBaseEdit(edit *ASTEdit) error {
 	switch edit.Operation {
 	case EditReplace, EditInsertBefore, EditInsertAfter:
 		if edit.NewContent == "" {
-			return errors.NewInvalidEditError(fmt.Sprintf("new_content is required for %s operation", edit.Operation))
+			msg := fmt.Sprintf("new_content is required for %s operation", edit.Operation)
+			if edit.Operation == EditReplace {
+				msg += " (to remove content instead, use operation=delete)"
+			}
+			return errors.NewInvalidEditError(msg)
 		}
 	case EditDelete:
 		// new_content not required
@@ -638,16 +657,19 @@ func flattenDiffLines(diffs []diffmatchpatch.Diff) (lines []diffLine, maxOldN, m
 			// Strip the terminator for display; also drop a trailing CR so CRLF files
 			// do not leak raw carriage returns into the rendered diff.
 			text := strings.TrimSuffix(strings.TrimSuffix(raw, "\n"), "\r")
+			// Record both running line numbers on every line (not just the active
+			// side): the opposite-side counter is the position the change sits at,
+			// which hunkBounds needs to compute correct @@ header start lines.
 			switch d.Type {
 			case diffmatchpatch.DiffEqual:
 				lines = append(lines, diffLine{op: d.Type, text: text, oldN: oldLine, newN: newLine})
 				oldLine++
 				newLine++
 			case diffmatchpatch.DiffDelete:
-				lines = append(lines, diffLine{op: d.Type, text: text, oldN: oldLine})
+				lines = append(lines, diffLine{op: d.Type, text: text, oldN: oldLine, newN: newLine})
 				oldLine++
 			case diffmatchpatch.DiffInsert:
-				lines = append(lines, diffLine{op: d.Type, text: text, newN: newLine})
+				lines = append(lines, diffLine{op: d.Type, text: text, oldN: oldLine, newN: newLine})
 				newLine++
 			}
 		}
@@ -676,38 +698,31 @@ func diffHunkRanges(lines []diffLine) []indexRange {
 }
 
 // hunkBounds computes the unified-diff hunk header line numbers and counts for
-// lines[start:end+1]. newStart/oldStart for one-sided lines are approximate.
+// lines[start:end+1]. Each line carries both running line numbers (see
+// flattenDiffLines), so the hunk start is simply the first line's numbers. When a
+// side has zero lines in the hunk (pure insertion or deletion), the header start
+// for that side follows GNU's convention: the line number *before* the change,
+// clamped to 0 at the start of the file (e.g. "@@ -0,0 +1,N @@").
 func hunkBounds(lines []diffLine, start, end int) (oldStart, oldCount, newStart, newCount int) {
+	oldStart = lines[start].oldN
+	newStart = lines[start].newN
 	for i := start; i <= end; i++ {
-		l := lines[i]
-		switch l.op {
+		switch lines[i].op {
 		case diffmatchpatch.DiffEqual:
-			if oldCount == 0 {
-				oldStart = l.oldN
-			}
-			if newCount == 0 {
-				newStart = l.newN
-			}
 			oldCount++
 			newCount++
 		case diffmatchpatch.DiffDelete:
-			if oldCount == 0 {
-				oldStart = l.oldN
-			}
-			if newCount == 0 {
-				newStart = l.oldN // approximate
-			}
 			oldCount++
 		case diffmatchpatch.DiffInsert:
-			if newCount == 0 {
-				newStart = l.newN
-			}
-			if oldCount == 0 {
-				oldStart = l.newN // approximate
-			}
 			newCount++
 		}
 	}
+	if oldCount == 0 {
+		oldStart = max(0, oldStart-1)
+	}
+	if newCount == 0 {
+		newStart = max(0, newStart-1)
+	}
 	return
 }
 
@@ -864,16 +879,5 @@ func truncateString(s string, maxLen int) string {
 	if len(s) <= maxLen {
 		return s
 	}
-	return s[:maxLen-3] + "..."
-}
-
-// ValidateLanguage checks if AST editing is supported for a file.
-// Returns nil for supported languages, error for unsupported.
-// Note: Text-based editing is always available regardless of this check.
-func ValidateLanguage(filename string) error {
-	lang := protocol.DetectLanguage(filename)
-	if lang == protocol.LangUnknown {
-		return fmt.Errorf("unsupported file type for AST editing: %s (text-based editing is available)", filename)
-	}
-	return nil
+	return s[:util.RuneBoundary(s, maxLen-3)] + "..."
 }

internal/edit/edit_test.go

@@ -101,6 +101,22 @@ func TestValidateEdit(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// A replace with empty new_content should point the caller at operation=delete.
+func TestValidateReplaceEmptySuggestsDelete(t *testing.T) {
+	e := NewEngine(parser.NewRegistry())
+	err := e.validateASTEdit(&ASTEdit{
+		File:      "test.go",
+		Operation: EditReplace,
+		Selector:  ASTSelector{Kind: "function_declaration"},
+	})
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected error for replace with empty new_content")
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(err.Error(), "operation=delete") {
+		t.Errorf("error should suggest operation=delete, got: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestResolveSelector(t *testing.T) {
 	registry := parser.NewRegistry()
 	defer registry.Close()
@@ -353,6 +369,112 @@ func Hello() {
 	}
 }
 
+// TestApplyRevalidatesPathBeforeWrite verifies the write-time admission re-check:
+// an Engine whose validator rejects the target must refuse the write and leave
+// the file untouched (the TOCTOU guard against a symlink swapped in after the
+// handler's original IsPathAllowed check).
+func TestApplyRevalidatesPathBeforeWrite(t *testing.T) {
+	registry := parser.NewRegistry()
+	defer registry.Close()
+
+	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+	tmpFile := filepath.Join(tmpDir, "test.go")
+	original := "package main\n\nfunc Hello() {}\n"
+	if err := os.WriteFile(tmpFile, []byte(original), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	// Validator denies the path (as IsPathAllowed would for a path that now
+	// resolves outside the workspace root).
+	e := NewEngineWithValidator(registry, func(string) bool { return false })
+
+	result, err := e.Apply(context.Background(), &ASTEdit{
+		File:       tmpFile,
+		Operation:  EditReplace,
+		Selector:   ASTSelector{Kind: "function_declaration"},
+		NewContent: "func Evil() {}",
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("apply returned transport error: %v", err)
+	}
+	if result.Success || result.Applied {
+		t.Errorf("rejected-path edit must not apply (Success=%v Applied=%v)", result.Success, result.Applied)
+	}
+	if got, _ := os.ReadFile(tmpFile); string(got) != original {
+		t.Errorf("file must be unchanged when path validation fails; got:\n%s", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestApplyPreservesFileMode verifies an edit keeps the file's existing
+// permission bits rather than resetting them.
+func TestApplyPreservesFileMode(t *testing.T) {
+	registry := parser.NewRegistry()
+	defer registry.Close()
+	e := NewEngine(registry)
+
+	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+	tmpFile := filepath.Join(tmpDir, "script.go")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(tmpFile, []byte("package main\n\nfunc Hello() {}\n"), 0o755); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	result, err := e.Apply(context.Background(), &ASTEdit{
+		File:       tmpFile,
+		Operation:  EditReplace,
+		Selector:   ASTSelector{Kind: "function_declaration"},
+		NewContent: "func Hi() {}",
+	})
+	if err != nil || !result.Success {
+		t.Fatalf("apply failed: err=%v result=%+v", err, result)
+	}
+	info, err := os.Stat(tmpFile)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if perm := info.Mode().Perm(); perm != 0o755 {
+		t.Errorf("file mode not preserved: got %o, want 0755", perm)
+	}
+}
+
+// An edit on a CRLF file must normalize inserted LF content to CRLF so the file
+// keeps a single, consistent line-ending convention (a documented guarantee).
+func TestApplyPreservesCRLF(t *testing.T) {
+	registry := parser.NewRegistry()
+	defer registry.Close()
+	e := NewEngine(registry)
+
+	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+	tmpFile := filepath.Join(tmpDir, "crlf.go")
+	content := "package main\r\n\r\nfunc Hello() {\r\n\tprintln(\"hi\")\r\n}\r\n"
+	if err := os.WriteFile(tmpFile, []byte(content), 0600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	_, err := e.Apply(context.Background(), &ASTEdit{
+		File:       tmpFile,
+		Operation:  EditReplace,
+		Selector:   ASTSelector{Kind: "function_declaration"},
+		NewContent: "func Bye() {\n\tprintln(\"bye\")\n}", // LF newlines on input
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("apply failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	out, err := os.ReadFile(tmpFile)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read: %v", err)
+	}
+	s := string(out)
+	if !strings.Contains(s, "func Bye()") {
+		t.Fatalf("edit not applied:\n%q", s)
+	}
+	for i := 0; i < len(s); i++ {
+		if s[i] == '\n' && (i == 0 || s[i-1] != '\r') {
+			t.Fatalf("bare LF at offset %d — CRLF not preserved:\n%q", i, s)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 func TestGenerateDiff(t *testing.T) {
 	original := "line1\nline2\nline3"
 	modified := "line1\nmodified\nline3"
@@ -411,6 +533,29 @@ func TestGenerateDiffLineLevelAccuracy(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// Hunk @@ headers must be correct at file boundaries (previously approximate).
+func TestGenerateDiffHunkHeaderBounds(t *testing.T) {
+	e := &Engine{dmp: diffmatchpatch.New()}
+	tests := []struct {
+		name     string
+		original string
+		modified string
+		wantHdr  string
+	}{
+		{name: "insert into empty file", original: "", modified: "X\nY\n", wantHdr: "@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@"},
+		{name: "delete entire file", original: "a\nb\n", modified: "", wantHdr: "@@ -1,2 +0,0 @@"},
+		{name: "mid-file change keeps 1-based start", original: "l1\nl2\nl3\nl4\nl5\n", modified: "l1\nl2\nCHANGED\nl4\nl5\n", wantHdr: "@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@"},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			diff := e.generateDiff(tt.original, tt.modified, "f.txt")
+			if !strings.Contains(diff, tt.wantHdr) {
+				t.Errorf("expected hunk header %q, got:\n%s", tt.wantHdr, diff)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 func TestGenerateDiffNoPhantomChanges(t *testing.T) {
 	// Regression test: replacing a line range should not produce phantom
 	// +/- lines for unchanged code after the edit region.
@@ -1673,3 +1818,80 @@ func TestRegressionLineMergeDelete(t *testing.T) {
 		})
 	}
 }
+
+// TestFindExactTextIndexAndOverlap pins selector_index resolution for literal
+// text matches, including overlapping matches and the out-of-range guard — the
+// range these return is the span that gets mutated, so wrong indices = wrong-
+// location writes.
+func TestFindExactTextIndexAndOverlap(t *testing.T) {
+	e := NewEngine(parser.NewRegistry())
+	content := []byte("aaaa") // "aa" matches at 0,1,2 (overlapping)
+
+	for i, want := range []struct{ start, end int }{{0, 2}, {1, 3}, {2, 4}} {
+		start, end, err := e.findExactText(content, "aa", i)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("index %d: unexpected error: %v", i, err)
+		}
+		if start != want.start || end != want.end {
+			t.Errorf("index %d: got [%d,%d), want [%d,%d)", i, start, end, want.start, want.end)
+		}
+	}
+
+	if _, _, err := e.findExactText(content, "aa", 3); err == nil {
+		t.Error("index 3 (only 3 matches) must be out-of-range error")
+	}
+	if _, _, err := e.findExactText(content, "zz", 0); err == nil {
+		t.Error("missing text must error")
+	}
+	if _, _, err := e.findExactText(content, "", 0); err == nil {
+		t.Error("empty text selector must error")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestFindRegexPatternIndexAndError pins selector_index and error paths for regex
+// selection (non-overlapping matches via FindAllIndex).
+func TestFindRegexPatternIndexAndError(t *testing.T) {
+	e := NewEngine(parser.NewRegistry())
+	content := []byte("a1b2c3") // [0-9] matches at 1,3,5
+
+	for i, want := range []struct{ start, end int }{{1, 2}, {3, 4}, {5, 6}} {
+		start, end, err := e.findRegexPattern(content, "[0-9]", i)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("index %d: unexpected error: %v", i, err)
+		}
+		if start != want.start || end != want.end {
+			t.Errorf("index %d: got [%d,%d), want [%d,%d)", i, start, end, want.start, want.end)
+		}
+	}
+
+	if _, _, err := e.findRegexPattern(content, "[0-9]", 3); err == nil {
+		t.Error("index 3 (only 3 matches) must be out-of-range error")
+	}
+	if _, _, err := e.findRegexPattern(content, "zzz", 0); err == nil {
+		t.Error("non-matching pattern must error")
+	}
+	if _, _, err := e.findRegexPattern(content, "[unclosed", 0); err == nil {
+		t.Error("invalid regex must error")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestSpliceContentCRLFNoBareLF verifies the CRLF pullback: when an edit range
+// ends between the \r and \n of a terminator, the \r\n must stay intact in the
+// tail rather than being split into a bare LF (which would corrupt the file's
+// line-ending convention).
+func TestSpliceContentCRLFNoBareLF(t *testing.T) {
+	// Replace [0,4) which ends on the \n of "foo\r\n" (index 4, preceded by \r@3).
+	got, err := spliceContent(EditReplace, []byte("foo\r\nbar\r\n"), 0, 4, "X", "\r\n")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("splice: %v", err)
+	}
+	if string(got) != "X\r\nbar\r\n" {
+		t.Fatalf("pullback failed: got %q, want %q", got, "X\r\nbar\r\n")
+	}
+	// No \n may appear without a preceding \r.
+	for i, b := range got {
+		if b == '\n' && (i == 0 || got[i-1] != '\r') {
+			t.Errorf("bare LF at index %d in %q", i, got)
+		}
+	}
+}

internal/lsp/client.go

@@ -22,6 +22,10 @@ const ProcessKillTimeout = 5 * time.Second
 // StderrBufferSize is the buffer size for draining stderr.
 const StderrBufferSize = 1024
 
+// StderrCaptureMax is the maximum number of recent stderr bytes retained for
+// diagnostics (e.g. to explain an init failure). Older bytes are dropped.
+const StderrCaptureMax = 4096
+
 // Client represents an LSP client connection.
 type Client struct {
 	stdin         io.WriteCloser
@@ -35,6 +39,8 @@ type Client struct {
 	runningMu     sync.RWMutex
 	stopOnce      sync.Once
 	mu            sync.Mutex
+	stderrMu      sync.Mutex
+	stderrTail    []byte // most recent stderr, capped at StderrCaptureMax (diagnostics)
 	running       bool
 }
 
@@ -121,6 +127,12 @@ func NewClient(cmd *exec.Cmd) (*Client, error) {
 
 // drainStderr consumes stderr output to prevent the LSP server from blocking.
 // LSP servers may write diagnostic messages to stderr which we discard.
+//
+// Cancellation note: the goroutine parks in the blocking stderr.Read below, so
+// closing c.done does not interrupt it directly — termination relies on the
+// read returning an error when the pipe reaches EOF (the process is killed on
+// Close). The c.done check is only a best-effort fast path for the case where
+// done is already closed between reads.
 func (c *Client) drainStderr() {
 	buf := make([]byte, StderrBufferSize)
 	for {
@@ -129,14 +141,35 @@ func (c *Client) drainStderr() {
 			return
 		default:
 		}
-		// Read and discard stderr output
-		_, err := c.stderr.Read(buf)
+		n, err := c.stderr.Read(buf)
+		if n > 0 {
+			c.captureStderr(buf[:n])
+		}
 		if err != nil {
 			return
 		}
 	}
 }
 
+// captureStderr appends p to the retained stderr tail, keeping at most
+// StderrCaptureMax bytes (dropping the oldest).
+func (c *Client) captureStderr(p []byte) {
+	c.stderrMu.Lock()
+	defer c.stderrMu.Unlock()
+	c.stderrTail = append(c.stderrTail, p...)
+	if len(c.stderrTail) > StderrCaptureMax {
+		c.stderrTail = c.stderrTail[len(c.stderrTail)-StderrCaptureMax:]
+	}
+}
+
+// RecentStderr returns the retained tail of the server's stderr, trimmed. Useful
+// for surfacing why an LSP server failed to start.
+func (c *Client) RecentStderr() string {
+	c.stderrMu.Lock()
+	defer c.stderrMu.Unlock()
+	return strings.TrimSpace(string(c.stderrTail))
+}
+
 // Call sends a request and waits for a response.
 func (c *Client) Call(ctx context.Context, method string, params interface{}) (*Response, error) {
 	c.runningMu.RLock()
@@ -271,7 +304,12 @@ func (c *Client) send(msg interface{}) error {
 // On exit (for any reason), it drains all pending Call waiters with a
 // synthetic error so that goroutines blocked in Call are unblocked.
 func (c *Client) readLoop() {
+	// On exit (EOF/error from a crashed or closed server) mark the client not
+	// running so subsequent Calls fail fast — otherwise they pass the running
+	// guard, send to a dead stdin, and block until their own timeout. Then
+	// unblock any already-in-flight waiters. LIFO: setRunning(false) runs first.
 	defer c.drainPending()
+	defer c.setRunning(false)
 
 	reader := bufio.NewReader(c.stdout)
 
@@ -315,7 +353,14 @@ func (c *Client) readLoop() {
 		if err := json.Unmarshal(body, &resp); err == nil && resp.ID != 0 {
 			c.mu.Lock()
 			if ch, ok := c.pending[resp.ID]; ok {
-				ch <- &resp
+				// Non-blocking send: the pending channel is buffered(1) and read
+				// exactly once. A misbehaving server that sends a duplicate
+				// response for the same id must not block here while holding c.mu
+				// (which would deadlock all future dispatches).
+				select {
+				case ch <- &resp:
+				default:
+				}
 			}
 			c.mu.Unlock()
 			continue
@@ -340,13 +385,19 @@ func (c *Client) drainPending() {
 	defer c.mu.Unlock()
 
 	for id, ch := range c.pending {
-		ch <- &Response{
+		// Non-blocking, matching the dispatch path: the channel is buffered(1)
+		// and read once, but a duplicate-id race could have already filled it —
+		// never block here while holding c.mu.
+		select {
+		case ch <- &Response{
 			JSONRPC: "2.0",
 			ID:      id,
 			Error: &ResponseError{
 				Code:    -32603, // InternalError
 				Message: "LSP client readLoop terminated",
 			},
+		}:
+		default:
 		}
 		delete(c.pending, id)
 	}
@@ -358,3 +409,10 @@ func (c *Client) IsRunning() bool {
 	defer c.runningMu.RUnlock()
 	return c.running
 }
+
+// setRunning sets the running flag under its lock.
+func (c *Client) setRunning(v bool) {
+	c.runningMu.Lock()
+	c.running = v
+	c.runningMu.Unlock()
+}

internal/lsp/client_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+package lsp
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"os/exec"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// TestClientMarksNotRunningOnProcessExit verifies crash detection: when the
+// underlying server process exits (stdout EOF), readLoop must flip the client to
+// not-running so later Calls fail fast instead of blocking until their timeout.
+func TestClientMarksNotRunningOnProcessExit(t *testing.T) {
+	cmd := exec.Command("sh", "-c", "exit 0") // exits immediately, closing stdout
+	c, err := NewClient(cmd)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Skipf("cannot start helper process: %v", err)
+	}
+	t.Cleanup(func() { _ = c.Close() })
+
+	deadline := time.Now().Add(2 * time.Second)
+	for c.IsRunning() && time.Now().Before(deadline) {
+		time.Sleep(10 * time.Millisecond)
+	}
+	if c.IsRunning() {
+		t.Fatal("client should be marked not running after its process exits")
+	}
+
+	// A Call on the dead client must fail fast (the running guard), not hang.
+	done := make(chan error, 1)
+	go func() {
+		_, callErr := c.Call(context.Background(), "test/method", nil)
+		done <- callErr
+	}()
+	select {
+	case callErr := <-done:
+		if callErr == nil {
+			t.Error("Call on a dead client should return an error")
+		}
+	case <-time.After(2 * time.Second):
+		t.Error("Call on a dead client hung instead of failing fast")
+	}
+}
+
+// drainStderr retains a bounded tail of server stderr for diagnostics; capture
+// must keep recent bytes and never grow past StderrCaptureMax.
+func TestClientStderrCapture(t *testing.T) {
+	c := &Client{}
+
+	if c.RecentStderr() != "" {
+		t.Errorf("expected empty stderr initially, got %q", c.RecentStderr())
+	}
+
+	c.captureStderr([]byte("gopls: command not found\n"))
+	if !strings.Contains(c.RecentStderr(), "command not found") {
+		t.Errorf("expected captured stderr, got %q", c.RecentStderr())
+	}
+
+	// Exceed the cap: only the most recent StderrCaptureMax bytes are kept.
+	big := strings.Repeat("x", StderrCaptureMax*2)
+	c.captureStderr([]byte(big))
+	if got := len(c.RecentStderr()); got > StderrCaptureMax {
+		t.Errorf("stderr tail not bounded: len=%d, want <= %d", got, StderrCaptureMax)
+	}
+}

internal/lsp/definition_parse_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+package lsp
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// TestParseDefinitionResult covers every LSP definition result shape: single
+// Location, Location[], single LocationLink, LocationLink[], plus empty/error
+// cases. The LocationLink shapes are the regression target — we advertise
+// LinkSupport, so gopls/rust-analyzer return targetUri/targetRange, which a
+// naive []Location unmarshal would silently turn into zero-value locations.
+func TestParseDefinitionResult(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name     string
+		raw      string
+		wantURIs []string
+		wantErr  bool
+	}{
+		{
+			name:     "single Location",
+			raw:      `{"uri":"file:///a.go","range":{"start":{"line":4,"character":2},"end":{"line":4,"character":8}}}`,
+			wantURIs: []string{"file:///a.go"},
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "Location array",
+			raw:      `[{"uri":"file:///a.go","range":{"start":{"line":1,"character":0},"end":{"line":1,"character":3}}},{"uri":"file:///b.go","range":{"start":{"line":2,"character":0},"end":{"line":2,"character":3}}}]`,
+			wantURIs: []string{"file:///a.go", "file:///b.go"},
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "single LocationLink",
+			raw:      `{"targetUri":"file:///c.go","targetRange":{"start":{"line":9,"character":0},"end":{"line":12,"character":1}}}`,
+			wantURIs: []string{"file:///c.go"},
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "LocationLink array",
+			raw:      `[{"targetUri":"file:///d.go","targetRange":{"start":{"line":0,"character":0},"end":{"line":0,"character":5}}}]`,
+			wantURIs: []string{"file:///d.go"},
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "empty array",
+			raw:      `[]`,
+			wantURIs: []string{},
+		},
+		{
+			name:    "garbage",
+			raw:     `"not-a-location"`,
+			wantErr: true,
+		},
+	}
+
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			locs, err := parseDefinitionResult(json.RawMessage(tt.raw))
+			if tt.wantErr {
+				if err == nil {
+					t.Fatalf("expected error, got locations %+v", locs)
+				}
+				return
+			}
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("unexpected error: %v", err)
+			}
+			if len(locs) != len(tt.wantURIs) {
+				t.Fatalf("got %d locations, want %d (%+v)", len(locs), len(tt.wantURIs), locs)
+			}
+			for i, want := range tt.wantURIs {
+				if locs[i].URI != want {
+					t.Errorf("location[%d].URI = %q, want %q", i, locs[i].URI, want)
+				}
+			}
+			// LocationLink ranges must be carried over, not zeroed.
+			if tt.name == "single LocationLink" && locs[0].Range.Start.Line != 9 {
+				t.Errorf("LocationLink targetRange not preserved: got start line %d, want 9", locs[0].Range.Start.Line)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}

internal/lsp/manager.go

@@ -128,7 +128,11 @@ func (m *Manager) GetServer(ctx context.Context, lang protocol.Language) (*Manag
 	srv, exists := m.servers[lang]
 	m.mu.RUnlock()
 
-	if exists && srv.ready {
+	// A cached server is only reusable if it is both initialized and still
+	// running — a crashed language server stays in the map with ready==true, so
+	// without the liveness check every later call would be routed to a dead
+	// process and block until timeout.
+	if exists && srv.ready && srv.client.IsRunning() {
 		// Update lastUsed with server's own lock to avoid race condition
 		srv.mu.Lock()
 		srv.lastUsed = time.Now()
@@ -141,13 +145,21 @@ func (m *Manager) GetServer(ctx context.Context, lang protocol.Language) (*Manag
 	defer m.mu.Unlock()
 
 	// Double-check after acquiring write lock
-	if srv, ok := m.servers[lang]; ok && srv.ready {
+	if srv, ok := m.servers[lang]; ok && srv.ready && srv.client.IsRunning() {
 		srv.mu.Lock()
 		srv.lastUsed = time.Now()
 		srv.mu.Unlock()
 		return srv, nil
 	}
 
+	// Evict a stale entry (crashed or never-ready) before spawning a replacement.
+	// Its process has already exited, so close it asynchronously to avoid holding
+	// m.mu on the (fast) cmd.Wait().
+	if stale, ok := m.servers[lang]; ok {
+		delete(m.servers, lang)
+		go func() { _ = stale.client.Close() }()
+	}
+
 	// Check if server config exists
 	config, ok := DefaultServerConfigs[lang]
 	if !ok {
@@ -212,10 +224,16 @@ func (m *Manager) GetServer(ctx context.Context, lang protocol.Language) (*Manag
 	// Initialize server
 	if err := m.initializeServer(ctx, newSrv); err != nil {
 		newSrv.initErr = err
-		return nil, errors.Wrap(errors.ErrLSPInitFailed, "LSP server initialization failed", err).
+		wrapped := errors.Wrap(errors.ErrLSPInitFailed, "LSP server initialization failed", err).
 			WithContext("language", string(lang)).
 			WithContext("command", config.Command[0]).
 			WithRemediation("Check LSP server logs for initialization errors")
+		// Surface the server's own stderr (e.g. "command not found", missing
+		// module) so the failure is diagnosable instead of opaque.
+		if stderr := client.RecentStderr(); stderr != "" {
+			wrapped = wrapped.WithContext("stderr", stderr)
+		}
+		return nil, wrapped
 	}
 
 	// Mark as successfully initialized to prevent cleanup
@@ -358,19 +376,57 @@ func (m *Manager) Definition(ctx context.Context, file string, line, col int) ([
 		return nil, nil
 	}
 
-	// Result can be Location, []Location, or []LocationLink
-	var locations []Location
-	if err := json.Unmarshal(resp.Result, &locations); err != nil {
-		// Try single location
-		var single Location
-		if err := json.Unmarshal(resp.Result, &single); err == nil {
-			locations = []Location{single}
-		}
+	return parseDefinitionResult(resp.Result)
 }
 
+// parseDefinitionResult decodes a textDocument/definition result. Per LSP the
+// result may be Location, Location[], LocationLink, or LocationLink[]. Because
+// we advertise LinkSupport (see initialize), servers such as gopls and
+// rust-analyzer return the LocationLink shape (targetUri/targetRange). A naive
+// unmarshal into []Location silently succeeds with zero-value URIs/ranges, so
+// decode into a unified shape that captures both and normalize to Location.
+func parseDefinitionResult(raw json.RawMessage) ([]Location, error) {
+	// locOrLink captures both the Location (uri/range) and LocationLink
+	// (targetUri/targetRange) field sets; whichever is populated wins.
+	type locOrLink struct {
+		URI         string `json:"uri"`
+		Range       Range  `json:"range"`
+		TargetURI   string `json:"targetUri"`
+		TargetRange Range  `json:"targetRange"`
+	}
+	toLocation := func(l locOrLink) (Location, bool) {
+		if l.URI != "" {
+			return Location{URI: l.URI, Range: l.Range}, true
+		}
+		if l.TargetURI != "" {
+			return Location{URI: l.TargetURI, Range: l.TargetRange}, true
+		}
+		return Location{}, false
+	}
+
+	// Array form (Location[] or LocationLink[]).
+	var arr []locOrLink
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(raw, &arr); err == nil {
+		locations := make([]Location, 0, len(arr))
+		for _, l := range arr {
+			if loc, ok := toLocation(l); ok {
+				locations = append(locations, loc)
+			}
+		}
 		return locations, nil
 	}
 
+	// Single object form (Location or LocationLink).
+	var single locOrLink
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(raw, &single); err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to parse definition result: %w", err)
+	}
+	if loc, ok := toLocation(single); ok {
+		return []Location{loc}, nil
+	}
+	return nil, nil
+}
+
 // References finds all references to the symbol at the given position.
 func (m *Manager) References(ctx context.Context, file string, line, col int, includeDeclaration bool) ([]Location, error) {
 	lang := protocol.DetectLanguage(file)

internal/metrics/metrics.go

@@ -33,8 +33,13 @@ func (c *Counter) Inc() {
 	c.value.Add(1)
 }
 
-// Add adds the given value to the counter.
+// Add adds the given value to the counter. Counters are monotonic, so a
+// negative delta (which would corrupt rate()-style calculations downstream) is
+// ignored rather than applied.
 func (c *Counter) Add(delta int64) {
+	if delta < 0 {
+		return
+	}
 	c.value.Add(delta)
 }
 
@@ -278,27 +283,27 @@ func (r *Registry) Expose() string {
 	// Export counters
 	for _, c := range r.counters {
 		if c.help != "" {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("# HELP %s %s\n", c.name, c.help))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "# HELP %s %s\n", c.name, c.help)
 		}
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("# TYPE %s counter\n", c.name))
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s%s %d\n", c.name, formatLabels(c.labels), c.value.Load()))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "# TYPE %s counter\n", c.name)
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s%s %d\n", c.name, formatLabels(c.labels), c.value.Load())
 	}
 
 	// Export gauges
 	for _, g := range r.gauges {
 		if g.help != "" {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("# HELP %s %s\n", g.name, g.help))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "# HELP %s %s\n", g.name, g.help)
 		}
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("# TYPE %s gauge\n", g.name))
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s%s %d\n", g.name, formatLabels(g.labels), g.value.Load()))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "# TYPE %s gauge\n", g.name)
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s%s %d\n", g.name, formatLabels(g.labels), g.value.Load())
 	}
 
 	// Export histograms
 	for _, h := range r.histograms {
 		if h.help != "" {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("# HELP %s %s\n", h.name, h.help))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "# HELP %s %s\n", h.name, h.help)
 		}
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("# TYPE %s histogram\n", h.name))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "# TYPE %s histogram\n", h.name)
 
 		// Cumulative bucket counts
 		var cumulative int64
@@ -306,26 +311,26 @@ func (r *Registry) Expose() string {
 			cumulative += h.counts[i].Load()
 			labelStr := formatLabels(h.labels)
 			if labelStr == "" {
-				sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s_bucket{le=\"%g\"} %d\n", h.name, bound, cumulative))
+				fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s_bucket{le=\"%g\"} %d\n", h.name, bound, cumulative)
 			} else {
 				// Insert le label into existing labels
-				sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s_bucket%s %d\n", h.name,
-					strings.Replace(labelStr, "}", fmt.Sprintf(",le=\"%g\"}", bound), 1), cumulative))
+				fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s_bucket%s %d\n", h.name,
+					strings.Replace(labelStr, "}", fmt.Sprintf(",le=\"%g\"}", bound), 1), cumulative)
 			}
 		}
 		// +Inf bucket
 		cumulative += h.counts[len(h.buckets)].Load()
 		labelStr := formatLabels(h.labels)
 		if labelStr == "" {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s_bucket{le=\"+Inf\"} %d\n", h.name, cumulative))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s_bucket{le=\"+Inf\"} %d\n", h.name, cumulative)
 		} else {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s_bucket%s %d\n", h.name,
-				strings.Replace(labelStr, "}", ",le=\"+Inf\"}", 1), cumulative))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s_bucket%s %d\n", h.name,
+				strings.Replace(labelStr, "}", ",le=\"+Inf\"}", 1), cumulative)
 		}
 
 		// Sum and count
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s_sum%s %g\n", h.name, formatLabels(h.labels), h.Sum()))
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s_count%s %d\n", h.name, formatLabels(h.labels), h.count.Load()))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s_sum%s %g\n", h.name, formatLabels(h.labels), h.Sum())
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s_count%s %d\n", h.name, formatLabels(h.labels), h.count.Load())
 	}
 
 	return sb.String()

internal/metrics/metrics_test.go

@@ -71,6 +71,16 @@ func TestCounter(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// Counters are monotonic: a negative Add must be ignored, not applied.
+func TestCounterRejectsNegativeAdd(t *testing.T) {
+	c := NewCounter("mono_counter", "test", nil)
+	c.Add(5)
+	c.Add(-3)
+	if got := c.Value(); got != 5 {
+		t.Errorf("negative Add should be ignored: Value() = %d, want 5", got)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestCounterConcurrency(t *testing.T) {
 	c := NewCounter("concurrent_counter", "test", nil)
 	var wg sync.WaitGroup

internal/parser/ast.go

@@ -16,6 +16,14 @@ func FindNodeAtPosition(tree *sitter.Tree, line, col int) *sitter.Node {
 		return nil
 	}
 
+	// Positions are 1-indexed; reject non-positive values so the uint32
+	// conversion below can't underflow to a huge Row/Column (line/col == 0
+	// would wrap to 4294967295). Reachable from the LSP-down AST fallback with
+	// caller-supplied coordinates.
+	if line < 1 || col < 1 {
+		return nil
+	}
+
 	// Convert to 0-indexed
 	point := sitter.Point{
 		Row:    uint32(line - 1), // #nosec G115 - line numbers are bounded by file size

internal/parser/ast_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
+package parser
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestFindNodeAtPosition(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	content := []byte("package main\n\nfunc Hello() string { return \"hi\" }\n")
+	res, err := r.Parse(context.Background(), "test.go", content)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parse: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	t.Run("nil tree", func(t *testing.T) {
+		if FindNodeAtPosition(nil, 3, 6) != nil {
+			t.Error("nil tree must return nil")
+		}
+	})
+
+	// Guard against the uint32 underflow: non-positive coordinates must return
+	// nil, never wrap to a huge Row/Column.
+	t.Run("non-positive coordinates", func(t *testing.T) {
+		for _, c := range []struct{ line, col int }{{0, 0}, {0, 5}, {3, 0}, {-1, 4}} {
+			if got := FindNodeAtPosition(res.Tree, c.line, c.col); got != nil {
+				t.Errorf("FindNodeAtPosition(tree, %d, %d) = %v, want nil", c.line, c.col, got.Type())
+			}
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("out of range line returns nil", func(t *testing.T) {
+		if got := FindNodeAtPosition(res.Tree, 99999, 1); got != nil {
+			t.Errorf("far-out-of-range line should return nil, got %v", got.Type())
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("valid position returns a node", func(t *testing.T) {
+		// Line 3, column 6 lands inside "Hello".
+		got := FindNodeAtPosition(res.Tree, 3, 6)
+		if got == nil {
+			t.Fatal("expected a node at a valid in-range position, got nil")
+		}
+	})
+}

internal/parser/docextract.go

@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ package parser
 
 import (
 	"regexp"
+	"sort"
 	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
@@ -530,11 +531,16 @@ func FormatDocComment(doc *DocComment) string {
 			written[t] = true
 		}
 
-		for tagName, val := range doc.Tags {
+		remaining := make([]string, 0, len(doc.Tags))
+		for tagName := range doc.Tags {
 			if !written[tagName] {
-				sb.WriteString("@" + tagName + " " + val + "\n")
+				remaining = append(remaining, tagName)
 			}
 		}
+		sort.Strings(remaining) // deterministic output (map order is random)
+		for _, tagName := range remaining {
+			sb.WriteString("@" + tagName + " " + doc.Tags[tagName] + "\n")
+		}
 	}
 
 	return strings.TrimSpace(sb.String())

internal/parser/parser.go

@@ -48,10 +48,13 @@ type Registry struct {
 }
 
 // CachedTree stores a parsed tree with its metadata.
-// Content is not stored to reduce memory usage.
+// Content is not stored to reduce memory usage. Syntax errors are a pure
+// function of the tree (extractErrors ignores content), so they are cached
+// alongside it to avoid re-walking the whole tree on every cache hit.
 type CachedTree struct {
 	Tree     *sitter.Tree
 	Language protocol.Language
+	Errors   []SyntaxError
 }
 
 // ParseResult contains the result of parsing a file.
@@ -202,11 +205,10 @@ func (r *Registry) Parse(ctx context.Context, filename string, content []byte) (
 	hash := fmt.Sprintf("%s:%016x", string(lang), xxhash.Sum64(content))
 	if cached, ok := r.cache.Get(hash); ok && cached.Language == lang {
 		r.cacheHits.Add(1)
-		errors := extractErrors(cached.Tree.RootNode(), content)
 		return &ParseResult{
 			Tree:     cached.Tree,
 			Language: lang,
-			Errors:   errors,
+			Errors:   cached.Errors,
 			Content:  content,
 		}, nil
 	}
@@ -242,10 +244,12 @@ func (r *Registry) Parse(ctx context.Context, filename string, content []byte) (
 	// Extract syntax errors
 	errors := extractErrors(tree.RootNode(), content)
 
-	// Cache result (LRU cache handles eviction automatically)
+	// Cache result (LRU cache handles eviction automatically).
+	// Errors are cached so cache hits skip a full tree walk.
 	r.cache.Add(hash, &CachedTree{
 		Tree:     tree,
 		Language: lang,
+		Errors:   errors,
 	})
 
 	return &ParseResult{

internal/parser/parser_test.go

@@ -172,6 +172,43 @@ func TestParseWithSyntaxErrors(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// TestParseCachedErrorsMatch verifies that the syntax errors returned on a
+// cache hit are identical to those computed on the initial parse. Errors are
+// cached alongside the tree (they are a pure function of the tree), so the hot
+// cache-hit path must not lose or alter them.
+func TestParseCachedErrorsMatch(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+
+	content := []byte("package main\n\nfunc main( {}\n") // missing closing paren
+	ctx := context.Background()
+
+	first, err := r.Parse(ctx, "test.go", content)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("first parse failed: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(first.Errors) == 0 {
+		t.Fatal("expected syntax errors on first parse")
+	}
+
+	second, err := r.Parse(ctx, "test.go", content)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("cached parse failed: %v", err)
+	}
+	if second.Tree != first.Tree {
+		t.Fatal("expected cache hit (same tree pointer)")
+	}
+
+	if len(second.Errors) != len(first.Errors) {
+		t.Fatalf("cached errors count = %d, want %d", len(second.Errors), len(first.Errors))
+	}
+	for i := range first.Errors {
+		if second.Errors[i] != first.Errors[i] {
+			t.Errorf("cached error[%d] = %+v, want %+v", i, second.Errors[i], first.Errors[i])
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 func TestIsBinary(t *testing.T) {
 	tests := []struct {
 		name    string

internal/parser/skeleton.go

@@ -36,22 +36,23 @@ func SkeletonFile(ctx context.Context, reg *Registry, filename string, content [
 	default:
 		// TODO: skeleton for c, cpp, elixir, html, vue — fall back to symbols_only
 		syms := ExtractSymbols(result.Tree, content, lang, filename)
-		return renderSymbolsOnly(syms, filename, lang, content), false, nil
+		return renderSymbolsOnly(syms, lang), false, nil
 	}
 }
 
-// renderSymbolsOnly renders a simple symbol list (fallback for unsupported languages).
-func renderSymbolsOnly(syms []protocol.Symbol, _ string, lang protocol.Language, content []byte) string {
-	lines := strings.Split(string(content), "\n")
+// renderSymbolsOnly renders a compact symbol list (fallback for unsupported
+// languages). It deliberately does not fabricate "<source line> { ... }" output:
+// the raw start line plus a guessed brace is wrong for brace-less languages (e.g.
+// Elixir's "def f do", HTML) and only wastes tokens. The output is not valid
+// source, so it drops "// " comment framing and uses a dense "kind name :line"
+// form to minimise tokens. The symbol list (kind, name, line, doc) is accurate.
+func renderSymbolsOnly(syms []protocol.Symbol, lang protocol.Language) string {
 	var sb strings.Builder
-	sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("// skeleton unavailable for %s — symbol list only\n", lang))
+	fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "symbols only (no skeleton for %s):\n", lang)
 	for _, s := range syms {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("// %s %s  (line %d)\n", s.Kind, s.Name, s.Location.Line))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s %s :%d\n", s.Kind, s.Name, s.Location.Line)
 		if s.Doc != "" {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("// doc: %s\n", s.Doc))
-		}
-		if s.Location.Line >= 1 && s.Location.Line <= len(lines) {
-			sb.WriteString(lines[s.Location.Line-1] + " { ... }\n")
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "  doc: %s\n", s.Doc)
 		}
 	}
 	return sb.String()
@@ -216,7 +217,34 @@ func skeletonPythonNode(node *sitter.Node, content []byte, sb *strings.Builder,
 			skeletonPythonNode(child, content, sb, indent)
 		}
 		return
-	case "function_definition", "decorated_definition":
+	case "decorated_definition":
+		// Emit the decorator line(s), then render the wrapped definition so its
+		// signature (def/class) is preserved — taking lines[0] of the whole node
+		// would keep only the first decorator and drop the signature entirely.
+		var def *sitter.Node
+		for i := 0; i < int(node.NamedChildCount()); i++ {
+			if child := node.NamedChild(i); child != nil {
+				if t := child.Type(); t == "function_definition" || t == "class_definition" {
+					def = child
+					break
+				}
+			}
+		}
+		if def != nil {
+			decText := strings.TrimRight(string(content[node.StartByte():def.StartByte()]), "\n")
+			for _, dl := range strings.Split(decText, "\n") {
+				if strings.TrimSpace(dl) == "" {
+					continue
+				}
+				sb.WriteString(indent)
+				sb.WriteString(dl)
+				sb.WriteString("\n")
+			}
+			skeletonPythonNode(def, content, sb, indent)
+			return
+		}
+		fallthrough
+	case "function_definition":
 		nodeText := string(content[node.StartByte():node.EndByte()])
 		lines := strings.SplitN(nodeText, "\n", 2)
 		sb.WriteString(indent)

internal/parser/skeleton_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+package parser
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// A decorated Python function must keep BOTH its decorator(s) and its def
+// signature in the skeleton — previously only the first decorator survived and
+// the signature was dropped.
+func TestSkeletonPythonDecoratedFunction(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+
+	src := "@app.route(\"/\")\n" +
+		"def home():\n" +
+		"    return \"hi\"\n"
+
+	out, _, err := SkeletonFile(context.Background(), r, "app.py", []byte(src))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("SkeletonFile error: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(out, "@app.route(\"/\")") {
+		t.Errorf("skeleton lost decorator, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(out, "def home():") {
+		t.Errorf("skeleton lost def signature, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(out, "return \"hi\"") {
+		t.Errorf("skeleton should elide the body, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+}
+
+// A plain (undecorated) Python function still renders its signature + body stub.
+func TestSkeletonPythonPlainFunction(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+
+	src := "def add(a, b):\n    return a + b\n"
+	out, _, err := SkeletonFile(context.Background(), r, "m.py", []byte(src))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("SkeletonFile error: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(out, "def add(a, b):") {
+		t.Errorf("skeleton lost signature, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+}

internal/parser/strip.go

@@ -59,20 +59,60 @@ func StripContent(content string, flags []StripFlag, lang protocol.Language) Str
 	return StripResult{Content: content, Stripped: stripped}
 }
 
-// stripLicense removes a leading block comment that looks like a license header.
-// A comment qualifies if it contains "copyright", "license", or "spdx-license-identifier" (case-insensitive).
+// containsLicenseKeyword reports whether lowercased text looks like a license
+// header (contains "copyright", "license", or an SPDX identifier).
+func containsLicenseKeyword(lower string) bool {
+	return strings.Contains(lower, "copyright") ||
+		strings.Contains(lower, "license") ||
+		strings.Contains(lower, "spdx-license-identifier")
+}
+
+// peelLicensePrefix splits off a leading run of lines that must be preserved
+// above a license header: a shebang (#!) on the first line and/or Go
+// build-constraint lines (//go:build, // +build). Returns the preserved prefix
+// (with terminators) and the remaining content. With no such lines, prefix is "".
+func peelLicensePrefix(content string) (prefix, rest string) {
+	lines := strings.SplitAfter(content, "\n")
+	n := 0
+	for n < len(lines) {
+		t := strings.TrimSpace(lines[n])
+		isShebang := n == 0 && strings.HasPrefix(t, "#!")
+		isBuild := strings.HasPrefix(t, "//go:build") || strings.HasPrefix(t, "// +build")
+		if !isShebang && !isBuild {
+			break
+		}
+		n++
+	}
+	if n == 0 {
+		return "", content
+	}
+	return strings.Join(lines[:n], ""), strings.Join(lines[n:], "")
+}
+
+// stripLicense removes a leading license header comment. A comment qualifies if
+// it contains a license keyword (see containsLicenseKeyword). A leading shebang
+// or Go build-constraint block is preserved above the license rather than
+// consumed or blocking detection.
 func stripLicense(content string) (string, bool) {
-	trimmed := strings.TrimLeft(content, " \t\n\r")
+	prefix, rest := peelLicensePrefix(content)
+	next, removed := stripLeadingLicenseComment(rest)
+	if !removed {
+		return content, false
+	}
+	return prefix + next, true
+}
+
+// stripLeadingLicenseComment removes a license header at the top of s, handling
+// C-style /* */ blocks, contiguous // line comments, and contiguous # comments.
+func stripLeadingLicenseComment(s string) (string, bool) {
+	trimmed := strings.TrimLeft(s, " \t\n\r")
 
 	// C-style block comment at top
 	if strings.HasPrefix(trimmed, "/*") {
 		end := strings.Index(trimmed, "*/")
 		if end >= 0 {
 			candidate := trimmed[:end+2]
-			lower := strings.ToLower(candidate)
-			if strings.Contains(lower, "copyright") ||
-				strings.Contains(lower, "license") ||
-				strings.Contains(lower, "spdx-license-identifier") {
+			if containsLicenseKeyword(strings.ToLower(candidate)) {
 				rest := trimmed[end+2:]
 				// Consume trailing newline(s)
 				rest = strings.TrimLeft(rest, "\r\n")
@@ -81,6 +121,24 @@ func stripLicense(content string) (string, bool) {
 		}
 	}
 
+	// "//" line-comment header (Go/C/TS). Only contiguous "//" lines belong to
+	// the header; a non-comment line ends it and is preserved.
+	if strings.HasPrefix(trimmed, "//") {
+		lines := strings.Split(trimmed, "\n")
+		var commentLines, rest []string
+		for i, l := range lines {
+			if strings.HasPrefix(strings.TrimSpace(l), "//") {
+				commentLines = append(commentLines, l)
+				continue
+			}
+			rest = lines[i:]
+			break
+		}
+		if containsLicenseKeyword(strings.ToLower(strings.Join(commentLines, "\n"))) {
+			return strings.Join(rest, "\n"), true
+		}
+	}
+
 	// Python/hash-style leading comment block. Only contiguous "#" lines belong to the
 	// header; a blank line ends it and is preserved as a separator (rather than being
 	// greedily swallowed and collapsed away).
@@ -95,15 +153,12 @@ func stripLicense(content string) (string, bool) {
 			rest = lines[i:]
 			break
 		}
-		lower := strings.ToLower(strings.Join(commentLines, "\n"))
-		if strings.Contains(lower, "copyright") ||
-			strings.Contains(lower, "license") ||
-			strings.Contains(lower, "spdx-license-identifier") {
+		if containsLicenseKeyword(strings.ToLower(strings.Join(commentLines, "\n"))) {
 			return strings.Join(rest, "\n"), true
 		}
 	}
 
-	return content, false
+	return s, false
 }
 
 // stripImports removes top-of-file import blocks, language-specific.
@@ -147,7 +202,10 @@ func stripGoImports(content string) (string, bool) {
 			}
 			continue
 		}
-		if strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, `import "`) || strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, "import `") {
+		// Single import spec in any form: import "path", import `path`,
+		// import alias "path", import _ "path", import . "path".
+		if strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, "import ") &&
+			(strings.Contains(trimLine, `"`) || strings.Contains(trimLine, "`")) {
 			removed = true
 			i++
 			continue
@@ -161,15 +219,45 @@ func stripGoImports(content string) (string, bool) {
 	return strings.Join(out, "\n"), true
 }
 
-// stripTSImports removes TypeScript/JavaScript "import ... from ..." and "require(...)" lines.
+// tsImportNeedsContinuation reports whether an import line (known to start an
+// import) continues onto following lines. A multi-line named import opens a
+// brace and only reaches its module specifier ("from '...'") on a later line.
+func tsImportNeedsContinuation(line string) bool {
+	if strings.Contains(line, "from ") || strings.HasSuffix(line, ";") {
+		return false
+	}
+	// Side-effect import (import '...' / import "...") is single-line.
+	rest := strings.TrimSpace(strings.TrimPrefix(line, "import"))
+	if strings.HasPrefix(rest, "'") || strings.HasPrefix(rest, `"`) {
+		return false
+	}
+	return true
+}
+
+// stripTSImports removes TypeScript/JavaScript "import ... from ..." (including
+// multi-line named imports) and destructured require() lines.
 func stripTSImports(content string) (string, bool) {
 	lines := strings.Split(content, "\n")
 	var out []string
 	removed := false
+	inMulti := false
 	for _, l := range lines {
 		trimLine := strings.TrimSpace(l)
-		if strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, "import ") || strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, "const {") && strings.Contains(trimLine, "require(") {
+		if inMulti {
 			removed = true
+			// The module-specifier line ("from '...'") or a statement terminator ends it.
+			if strings.Contains(trimLine, "from ") || strings.HasSuffix(trimLine, ";") {
+				inMulti = false
+			}
+			continue
+		}
+		isImport := strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, "import ") || strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, "import{")
+		isRequire := strings.HasPrefix(trimLine, "const {") && strings.Contains(trimLine, "require(")
+		if isImport || isRequire {
+			removed = true
+			if isImport && tsImportNeedsContinuation(trimLine) {
+				inMulti = true
+			}
 			continue
 		}
 		out = append(out, l)

internal/parser/strip_newline_test.go

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package parser
 
 import (
+	"strings"
 	"testing"
 
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
@@ -45,3 +46,55 @@ func TestStripLicensePythonPreservesSeparatorBlank(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("python license strip must keep the blank separator.\nwant: %q\ngot:  %q", want, got.Content)
 	}
 }
+
+// A multi-line TS named import must be removed in full, not just its first line.
+func TestStripTSImportsMultiLine(t *testing.T) {
+	src := "import {\n  a,\n  b,\n} from 'x';\nconst y = 1;\n"
+	got := StripContent(src, []StripFlag{StripImports}, protocol.LangTypeScript)
+	want := "const y = 1;\n"
+	if got.Content != want {
+		t.Fatalf("multi-line import must be fully removed.\nwant: %q\ngot:  %q", want, got.Content)
+	}
+}
+
+// A side-effect import without a semicolon must not consume following code.
+func TestStripTSImportsSideEffectNoRunaway(t *testing.T) {
+	src := "import './setup'\nconst y = 1\n"
+	got := StripContent(src, []StripFlag{StripImports}, protocol.LangTypeScript)
+	want := "const y = 1\n"
+	if got.Content != want {
+		t.Fatalf("side-effect import must not swallow code.\nwant: %q\ngot:  %q", want, got.Content)
+	}
+}
+
+// Blank/underscore/dot/aliased single Go imports must all be stripped.
+func TestStripGoImportsSingleSpecForms(t *testing.T) {
+	src := "package main\n\nimport _ \"embed\"\nimport . \"math\"\nimport m \"strings\"\n\nfunc main() {}\n"
+	got := StripContent(src, []StripFlag{StripImports}, protocol.LangGo)
+	for _, frag := range []string{`"embed"`, `"math"`, `"strings"`} {
+		if containsStr(got.Content, frag) {
+			t.Fatalf("single import %s not stripped, got:\n%s", frag, got.Content)
+		}
+	}
+	if !containsStr(got.Content, "func main") {
+		t.Fatalf("code removed, got:\n%s", got.Content)
+	}
+}
+
+// A Go // line-comment license after build constraints: the license is removed
+// while the build constraint is preserved above it.
+func TestStripLicenseGoLineCommentAfterBuildTag(t *testing.T) {
+	src := "//go:build linux\n\n// Copyright 2024 Acme\n// SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT\n\npackage main\n"
+	got := StripContent(src, []StripFlag{StripLicense}, protocol.LangGo)
+	if containsStr(got.Content, "Copyright") {
+		t.Fatalf("line-comment license not stripped, got:\n%q", got.Content)
+	}
+	if !containsStr(got.Content, "//go:build linux") {
+		t.Fatalf("build constraint must be preserved, got:\n%q", got.Content)
+	}
+	if !containsStr(got.Content, "package main") {
+		t.Fatalf("code removed, got:\n%q", got.Content)
+	}
+}
+
+func containsStr(s, sub string) bool { return strings.Contains(s, sub) }

internal/parser/symbols.go

@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 package parser
 
 import (
+	"strings"
+
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
 	sitter "github.com/smacker/go-tree-sitter"
 )
@@ -35,6 +37,28 @@ func ExtractSymbols(tree *sitter.Tree, content []byte, lang protocol.Language, f
 }
 
 // extractGoSymbols extracts symbols from Go code.
+// goBodyTypes are the node types whose descendants are function-local (not
+// package-level) declarations in Go.
+var goBodyTypes = map[string]bool{"block": true, "func_literal": true}
+
+// jsBodyTypes are the node types whose descendants are function-local (not
+// module/class-member) declarations in JS/TS.
+var jsBodyTypes = map[string]bool{
+	"statement_block": true, "function_declaration": true, "method_definition": true,
+	"arrow_function": true, "function_expression": true, "generator_function_declaration": true,
+}
+
+// isNestedInBody reports whether n has an ancestor in bodyTypes, i.e. it is a
+// function-local declaration rather than a top-level/module one.
+func isNestedInBody(n *sitter.Node, bodyTypes map[string]bool) bool {
+	for p := n.Parent(); p != nil; p = p.Parent() {
+		if bodyTypes[p.Type()] {
+			return true
+		}
+	}
+	return false
+}
+
 func extractGoSymbols(root *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) []protocol.Symbol {
 	var symbols []protocol.Symbol
 
@@ -49,6 +73,10 @@ func extractGoSymbols(root *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) []prot
 		case "type_declaration":
 			symbol = extractGoType(n, content, filename)
 		case "const_declaration", "var_declaration":
+			// Skip function-local var/const; only package-level ones are symbols.
+			if isNestedInBody(n, goBodyTypes) {
+				return true
+			}
 			syms := extractGoVarConst(n, content, filename)
 			symbols = append(symbols, syms...)
 			return true
@@ -152,12 +180,20 @@ func extractGoVarConst(n *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) []protoc
 
 	WalkTree(n, func(node *sitter.Node) bool {
 		if node.Type() == "const_spec" || node.Type() == "var_spec" {
-			nameNode := node.ChildByFieldName("name")
-			if nameNode != nil {
+			// A spec may declare multiple names (e.g. var a, b = 1, 2);
+			// ChildByFieldName returns only the first, so iterate all "name" fields.
+			for i := 0; i < int(node.ChildCount()); i++ {
+				if node.FieldNameForChild(i) != "name" {
+					continue
+				}
+				nameNode := node.Child(i)
+				if nameNode == nil {
+					continue
+				}
 				symbols = append(symbols, protocol.Symbol{
 					Name:     GetNodeText(nameNode, content),
 					Kind:     kind,
-					Location: NodeLocation(node, filename),
+					Location: NodeLocation(nameNode, filename),
 				})
 			}
 		}
@@ -182,6 +218,11 @@ func extractJSSymbols(root *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) []prot
 		case "method_definition":
 			symbol = extractJSMethod(n, content, filename)
 		case "lexical_declaration", "variable_declaration":
+			// Skip function-local let/const/var; only module/top-level ones
+			// (including `export const`) are symbols.
+			if isNestedInBody(n, jsBodyTypes) {
+				return true
+			}
 			syms := extractJSVariable(n, content, filename)
 			symbols = append(symbols, syms...)
 			return true
@@ -386,29 +427,65 @@ func extractCSymbols(root *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) []proto
 	return symbols
 }
 
+// cDeclaratorName descends the declarator field-chain (pointer/reference/array/
+// function declarators) to the innermost name node and returns its text. Unlike a
+// first-identifier scan, this returns the function/method NAME (not a parameter)
+// and handles C++ method names (field_identifier), out-of-line definitions
+// (qualified_identifier like User::foo), destructors and operators.
+func cDeclaratorName(declarator *sitter.Node, content []byte) string {
+	node := declarator
+	for node != nil {
+		switch node.Type() {
+		case "identifier", "field_identifier", "qualified_identifier",
+			"destructor_name", "operator_name":
+			return GetNodeText(node, content)
+		}
+		next := node.ChildByFieldName("declarator")
+		if next == nil {
+			return ""
+		}
+		node = next
+	}
+	return ""
+}
+
+// enclosingCppClassName returns the name of the nearest class/struct ancestor of
+// n (for qualifying in-class method names), or "" if n is not inside one.
+func enclosingCppClassName(n *sitter.Node, content []byte) string {
+	for p := n.Parent(); p != nil; p = p.Parent() {
+		if p.Type() == "class_specifier" || p.Type() == "struct_specifier" {
+			if name := p.ChildByFieldName("name"); name != nil {
+				return GetNodeText(name, content)
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	return ""
+}
+
 func extractCFunction(n *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) *protocol.Symbol {
 	declarator := n.ChildByFieldName("declarator")
 	if declarator == nil {
 		return nil
 	}
 
-	// Find the function name within the declarator
-	var name string
-	WalkTree(declarator, func(node *sitter.Node) bool {
-		if node.Type() == "identifier" {
-			name = GetNodeText(node, content)
-			return false
-		}
-		return true
-	})
-
+	name := cDeclaratorName(declarator, content)
 	if name == "" {
 		return nil
 	}
 
+	// In-class definitions are methods; qualify the name with the class. Out-of-line
+	// definitions already carry a qualified name (Class::method).
+	kind := protocol.SymbolFunction
+	if cls := enclosingCppClassName(n, content); cls != "" {
+		kind = protocol.SymbolMethod
+		name = cls + "::" + name
+	} else if strings.Contains(name, "::") {
+		kind = protocol.SymbolMethod
+	}
+
 	return &protocol.Symbol{
 		Name:     name,
-		Kind:     protocol.SymbolFunction,
+		Kind:     kind,
 		Location: NodeLocation(n, filename),
 	}
 }
@@ -445,22 +522,22 @@ func extractCFunctionDecl(n *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) *prot
 		return nil
 	}
 
-	var name string
-	WalkTree(declarator, func(node *sitter.Node) bool {
-		if node.Type() == "identifier" {
-			name = GetNodeText(node, content)
-			return false
-		}
-		return true
-	})
-
+	name := cDeclaratorName(declarator, content)
 	if name == "" {
 		return nil
 	}
 
+	kind := protocol.SymbolFunction
+	if cls := enclosingCppClassName(n, content); cls != "" {
+		kind = protocol.SymbolMethod
+		name = cls + "::" + name
+	} else if strings.Contains(name, "::") {
+		kind = protocol.SymbolMethod
+	}
+
 	return &protocol.Symbol{
 		Name:     name,
-		Kind:     protocol.SymbolFunction,
+		Kind:     kind,
 		Location: NodeLocation(n, filename),
 	}
 }
@@ -673,17 +750,52 @@ func extractElixirMacro(n *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) *protoc
 	}
 }
 
-// extractElixirStruct extracts a struct definition.
+// extractElixirStruct extracts a struct definition. A defstruct has no name of
+// its own — it defines the struct of its enclosing module — so name it after
+// that module (%ModuleName{}) rather than the useless literal "defstruct".
 func extractElixirStruct(n *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) *protocol.Symbol {
-	// defstruct is typically inside a module, the struct name is the module name
-	// We just mark this as a struct symbol
+	name := "defstruct"
+	if mod := enclosingElixirModuleName(n, content); mod != "" {
+		name = "%" + mod + "{}"
+	}
 	return &protocol.Symbol{
-		Name:     "defstruct",
+		Name:     name,
 		Kind:     protocol.SymbolStruct,
 		Location: NodeLocation(n, filename),
 	}
 }
 
+// enclosingElixirModuleName walks ancestors of n to the nearest defmodule call
+// and returns its module alias (e.g. "MyApp.User"), or "" if none is found.
+func enclosingElixirModuleName(n *sitter.Node, content []byte) string {
+	for p := n.Parent(); p != nil; p = p.Parent() {
+		if p.Type() != "call" || p.NamedChildCount() < 1 {
+			continue
+		}
+		target := p.NamedChild(0)
+		if target == nil || GetNodeText(target, content) != "defmodule" {
+			continue
+		}
+		args := p.ChildByFieldName("arguments")
+		if args == nil && p.NamedChildCount() >= 2 {
+			args = p.NamedChild(1)
+		}
+		if args == nil {
+			return ""
+		}
+		var moduleName string
+		WalkTree(args, func(node *sitter.Node) bool {
+			if node.Type() == "alias" {
+				moduleName = GetNodeText(node, content)
+				return false
+			}
+			return true
+		})
+		return moduleName
+	}
+	return ""
+}
+
 // extractElixirProtocol extracts a protocol definition.
 func extractElixirProtocol(n *sitter.Node, content []byte, filename string) *protocol.Symbol {
 	// defprotocol ProtocolName do ... end
@@ -910,17 +1022,37 @@ func kindMatchesNode(kind protocol.SymbolKind, nodeType string) bool {
 	return true
 }
 
-// FindSymbolRange finds a named symbol in the AST and returns its line range (1-indexed, inclusive).
-// symbolKind filters by symbol kind (e.g. "function", "struct"); empty string matches any kind.
-// Returns (0, 0, false) if the symbol is not found.
-func FindSymbolRange(tree *sitter.Tree, content []byte, filename, symbolName string, symbolKind protocol.SymbolKind) (startLine, endLine int, found bool) {
+// SymbolCandidate is one symbol matching a name (and optional kind) lookup,
+// with its declaration node type and 1-indexed inclusive line range. NameLine
+// and NameColumn point at the name identifier itself (1-indexed), which is the
+// position LSP queries (hover/definition/references) expect.
+type SymbolCandidate struct {
+	NodeType   string
+	StartLine  int
+	EndLine    int
+	NameLine   int
+	NameColumn int
+}
+
+// symbolDeclNodeTypes is the set of declaration node types FindSymbolCandidates
+// treats as nameable symbols across supported languages.
+var symbolDeclNodeTypes = map[string]bool{
+	"function_declaration": true, "method_declaration": true, "type_declaration": true,
+	"function_definition": true, "class_definition": true, "class_declaration": true,
+	"interface_declaration": true, "type_alias_declaration": true,
+	"function_item": true, "struct_item": true, "enum_item": true, "trait_item": true,
+	"type_item": true, "const_item": true, "mod_item": true,
+}
+
+// FindSymbolCandidates returns every declaration whose name equals symbolName and
+// whose kind matches symbolKind (empty matches any). Multiple results indicate an
+// ambiguous lookup (e.g. two methods named String on different receivers).
+func FindSymbolCandidates(tree *sitter.Tree, content []byte, filename, symbolName string, symbolKind protocol.SymbolKind) []SymbolCandidate {
 	if tree == nil || symbolName == "" {
-		return
+		return nil
 	}
+	var candidates []SymbolCandidate
 	WalkTree(tree.RootNode(), func(n *sitter.Node) bool {
-		if found {
-			return false
-		}
 		nameNode := n.ChildByFieldName("name")
 		if nameNode == nil {
 			return true
@@ -928,22 +1060,34 @@ func FindSymbolRange(tree *sitter.Tree, content []byte, filename, symbolName str
 		if GetNodeText(nameNode, content) != symbolName {
 			return true
 		}
-		switch n.Type() {
-		case "function_declaration", "method_declaration", "type_declaration",
-			"function_definition", "class_definition", "class_declaration",
-			"interface_declaration", "type_alias_declaration",
-			"function_item", "struct_item", "enum_item", "trait_item",
-			"type_item", "const_item", "mod_item":
+		if !symbolDeclNodeTypes[n.Type()] {
+			return true
+		}
 		if !kindMatchesNode(symbolKind, n.Type()) {
 			return true // kind mismatch, keep searching
 		}
 		r := NodeRange(n, filename)
-			startLine = r.Start.Line
-			endLine = r.End.Line
-			found = true
-			return false
-		}
+		nameLoc := NodeLocation(nameNode, filename)
+		candidates = append(candidates, SymbolCandidate{
+			NodeType:   n.Type(),
+			StartLine:  r.Start.Line,
+			EndLine:    r.End.Line,
+			NameLine:   nameLoc.Line,
+			NameColumn: nameLoc.Column,
+		})
 		return true
 	})
-	return
+	return candidates
+}
+
+// FindSymbolRange finds a named symbol in the AST and returns its line range (1-indexed, inclusive).
+// symbolKind filters by symbol kind (e.g. "function", "struct"); empty string matches any kind.
+// Returns (0, 0, false) if the symbol is not found. On ambiguity it returns the first match;
+// callers that need to detect ambiguity should use FindSymbolCandidates.
+func FindSymbolRange(tree *sitter.Tree, content []byte, filename, symbolName string, symbolKind protocol.SymbolKind) (startLine, endLine int, found bool) {
+	candidates := FindSymbolCandidates(tree, content, filename, symbolName, symbolKind)
+	if len(candidates) == 0 {
+		return 0, 0, false
+	}
+	return candidates[0].StartLine, candidates[0].EndLine, true
 }

internal/parser/symbols_test.go

@@ -7,6 +7,64 @@ import (
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
 )
 
+func TestFindSymbolCandidates(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+
+	// Two methods named String on different receivers, plus a unique func.
+	content := `package main
+
+type A struct{}
+
+func (a A) String() string { return "a" }
+
+type B struct{}
+
+func (b B) String() string { return "b" }
+
+func Unique() {}
+`
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	result, err := r.Parse(ctx, "test.go", []byte(content))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parse failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	t.Run("ambiguous name returns all candidates", func(t *testing.T) {
+		got := FindSymbolCandidates(result.Tree, []byte(content), "test.go", "String", "")
+		if len(got) != 2 {
+			t.Fatalf("got %d candidates for String, want 2: %+v", len(got), got)
+		}
+		if got[0].StartLine >= got[1].StartLine {
+			t.Errorf("candidates not in source order: %+v", got)
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("unique name returns one candidate", func(t *testing.T) {
+		got := FindSymbolCandidates(result.Tree, []byte(content), "test.go", "Unique", "")
+		if len(got) != 1 {
+			t.Fatalf("got %d candidates for Unique, want 1: %+v", len(got), got)
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("missing name returns none", func(t *testing.T) {
+		got := FindSymbolCandidates(result.Tree, []byte(content), "test.go", "Missing", "")
+		if len(got) != 0 {
+			t.Fatalf("got %d candidates for Missing, want 0", len(got))
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("FindSymbolRange returns first match", func(t *testing.T) {
+		start, end, found := FindSymbolRange(result.Tree, []byte(content), "test.go", "String", "")
+		if !found {
+			t.Fatal("expected String to be found")
+		}
+		if start <= 0 || end < start {
+			t.Errorf("invalid range: start=%d end=%d", start, end)
+		}
+	})
+}
+
 func TestExtractGoSymbols(t *testing.T) {
 	r := NewRegistry()
 	defer r.Close()
@@ -65,6 +123,149 @@ var globalVar = "test"
 	}
 }
 
+// Grouped var/const specs declare multiple names on one spec (var a, b = 1, 2);
+// every name must surface as its own symbol, not just the first.
+// C++ in-class methods must be extracted as methods qualified by their class
+// (Class::method), not misnamed after a parameter or dropped entirely.
+func TestExtractCppMethods(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+	content := "class User {\npublic:\n  void setName(const char* n) { name_ = n; }\n  int id() const { return id_; }\nprivate:\n  const char* name_;\n  int id_;\n};\n\nvoid freeFunc() {}\n"
+	result, err := r.Parse(context.Background(), "u.cpp", []byte(content))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parse: %v", err)
+	}
+	syms := ExtractSymbols(result.Tree, []byte(content), protocol.LangCpp, "u.cpp")
+
+	kindByName := make(map[string]protocol.SymbolKind, len(syms))
+	for _, s := range syms {
+		kindByName[s.Name] = s.Kind
+	}
+	if kindByName["User::setName"] != protocol.SymbolMethod {
+		t.Errorf("setName: want method User::setName, got %v", kindByName)
+	}
+	if kindByName["User::id"] != protocol.SymbolMethod {
+		t.Errorf("id: want method User::id, got %v", kindByName)
+	}
+	if kindByName["freeFunc"] != protocol.SymbolFunction {
+		t.Errorf("freeFunc: want function, got %v", kindByName)
+	}
+	if _, leaked := kindByName["n"]; leaked {
+		t.Errorf("parameter 'n' leaked as a symbol: %v", kindByName)
+	}
+}
+
+// Function-local var/const declarations must NOT appear as top-level symbols
+// (they flood the list and aren't package/module symbols).
+func TestExtractSymbolsExcludesLocals(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+	ctx := context.Background()
+
+	t.Run("go", func(t *testing.T) {
+		content := "package main\n\nvar TopLevel = 1\n\nfunc f() {\n\tvar localVar = 2\n\tconst localConst = 3\n\t_ = localVar\n\t_ = localConst\n}\n"
+		result, err := r.Parse(ctx, "m.go", []byte(content))
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("parse: %v", err)
+		}
+		names := symbolNameSet(ExtractSymbols(result.Tree, []byte(content), protocol.LangGo, "m.go"))
+		if !names["TopLevel"] {
+			t.Errorf("expected TopLevel symbol, got %v", names)
+		}
+		if names["localVar"] || names["localConst"] {
+			t.Errorf("function-local var/const leaked into symbols: %v", names)
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("js exported and module consts kept, locals dropped", func(t *testing.T) {
+		content := "export const Exported = 1;\nconst ModuleConst = 2;\nfunction f() {\n  const localOne = 3;\n  return localOne;\n}\n"
+		result, err := r.Parse(ctx, "m.js", []byte(content))
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("parse: %v", err)
+		}
+		names := symbolNameSet(ExtractSymbols(result.Tree, []byte(content), protocol.LangJavaScript, "m.js"))
+		if !names["Exported"] || !names["ModuleConst"] {
+			t.Errorf("expected Exported and ModuleConst symbols, got %v", names)
+		}
+		if names["localOne"] {
+			t.Errorf("function-local const leaked into symbols: %v", names)
+		}
+	})
+}
+
+func symbolNameSet(syms []protocol.Symbol) map[string]bool {
+	m := make(map[string]bool, len(syms))
+	for _, s := range syms {
+		m[s.Name] = true
+	}
+	return m
+}
+
+// An Elixir defstruct must be named after its enclosing module (%Mod{}),
+// not the useless literal "defstruct".
+func TestExtractElixirStructNamedByModule(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+
+	content := "defmodule MyApp.User do\n  defstruct [:name, :email]\nend\n"
+	result, err := r.Parse(context.Background(), "user.ex", []byte(content))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parse failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	symbols := ExtractSymbols(result.Tree, []byte(content), protocol.LangElixir, "user.ex")
+	var structName string
+	found := false
+	for _, s := range symbols {
+		if s.Kind == protocol.SymbolStruct {
+			structName = s.Name
+			found = true
+		}
+	}
+	if !found {
+		t.Fatalf("no struct symbol extracted, got: %+v", symbols)
+	}
+	if structName != "%MyApp.User{}" {
+		t.Errorf("struct name = %q, want %q", structName, "%MyApp.User{}")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestExtractGoVarConstMultiName(t *testing.T) {
+	r := NewRegistry()
+	defer r.Close()
+
+	content := `package main
+
+var a, b = 1, 2
+
+const (
+	C, D = 3, 4
+)
+`
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	result, err := r.Parse(ctx, "test.go", []byte(content))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parse failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	symbols := ExtractSymbols(result.Tree, []byte(content), protocol.LangGo, "test.go")
+	want := map[string]protocol.SymbolKind{
+		"a": protocol.SymbolVariable,
+		"b": protocol.SymbolVariable,
+		"C": protocol.SymbolConstant,
+		"D": protocol.SymbolConstant,
+	}
+	got := make(map[string]protocol.SymbolKind)
+	for _, sym := range symbols {
+		got[sym.Name] = sym.Kind
+	}
+	for name, kind := range want {
+		if got[name] != kind {
+			t.Errorf("symbol %q: got kind %q, want %q (symbols: %+v)", name, got[name], kind, symbols)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 func TestExtractJSSymbols(t *testing.T) {
 	r := NewRegistry()
 	defer r.Close()

internal/parser/yaml_json.go

@@ -4,70 +4,45 @@ package parser
 import (
 	"context"
 	"encoding/json"
-	"fmt"
 
 	"gopkg.in/yaml.v3"
 
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/errors"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
-	sitter "github.com/smacker/go-tree-sitter"
 )
 
-// YAMLNode wraps yaml.Node to provide tree-sitter-like interface
-type YAMLNode struct {
-	*yaml.Node
-	Content []byte
-}
-
-// JSONNode represents a JSON AST node
-type JSONNode struct {
-	Value    any
-	Type     string
-	Children []*JSONNode
-	Line     int
-	Column   int
-}
-
-// ParseYAML parses YAML content and returns a tree-sitter-compatible result
+// ParseYAML parses YAML content and returns a tree-sitter-compatible result.
+// YAML does not use tree-sitter, so the returned ParseResult.Tree is nil.
 func (r *Registry) ParseYAML(ctx context.Context, filename string, content []byte) (*ParseResult, error) {
-	// Check file size
 	if len(content) > maxFileSize {
 		return nil, errors.NewFileTooLarge(filename, int64(len(content)), maxFileSize)
 	}
 
-	// Parse YAML
 	var root yaml.Node
 	if err := yaml.Unmarshal(content, &root); err != nil {
 		return nil, errors.NewParseError("yaml", filename, err)
 	}
 
-	// Extract syntax errors from YAML parse
-	syntaxErrors := extractYAMLErrors()
-
-	// Create a pseudo tree-sitter tree for compatibility
-	// We'll use nil for the tree since YAML doesn't use tree-sitter
 	return &ParseResult{
-		Tree:     nil, // YAML uses yaml.Node instead
+		Tree:     nil, // YAML uses yaml.Node instead of tree-sitter
 		Language: protocol.LangYAML,
-		Errors:   syntaxErrors,
+		Errors:   extractYAMLErrors(),
 		Content:  content,
 	}, nil
 }
 
-// ParseJSON parses JSON content and returns a tree-sitter-compatible result
+// ParseJSON parses JSON content and returns a tree-sitter-compatible result.
+// JSON does not use tree-sitter, so the returned ParseResult.Tree is nil.
 func (r *Registry) ParseJSON(ctx context.Context, filename string, content []byte) (*ParseResult, error) {
-	// Check file size
 	if len(content) > maxFileSize {
 		return nil, errors.NewFileTooLarge(filename, int64(len(content)), maxFileSize)
 	}
 
-	// Parse JSON to validate syntax
 	var jsonData any
 	if err := json.Unmarshal(content, &jsonData); err != nil {
 		return nil, errors.NewParseError("json", filename, err)
 	}
 
-	// JSON parsing succeeded, no syntax errors
 	return &ParseResult{
 		Tree:     nil, // JSON uses native Go structures
 		Language: protocol.LangJSON,
@@ -76,120 +51,8 @@ func (r *Registry) ParseJSON(ctx context.Context, filename string, content []byt
 	}, nil
 }
 
-// extractYAMLErrors extracts errors from YAML nodes
+// extractYAMLErrors returns YAML syntax errors. yaml.Unmarshal already reports
+// parse errors, so reaching here means the document was syntactically valid.
 func extractYAMLErrors() []SyntaxError {
-	// YAML parser already validates during unmarshal
-	// If we got here, there are no syntax errors
-	// However, we could add semantic validation here in the future
 	return []SyntaxError{}
 }
-
-// WalkYAML walks a YAML AST and calls fn for each node
-func WalkYAML(node *yaml.Node, fn func(*yaml.Node) bool) {
-	if node == nil || !fn(node) {
-		return
-	}
-
-	for _, child := range node.Content {
-		WalkYAML(child, fn)
-	}
-}
-
-// GetYAMLNodeText returns the text representation of a YAML node
-func GetYAMLNodeText(node *yaml.Node) string {
-	if node == nil {
-		return ""
-	}
-
-	switch node.Kind {
-	case yaml.DocumentNode:
-		if len(node.Content) > 0 {
-			return GetYAMLNodeText(node.Content[0])
-		}
-		return ""
-	case yaml.MappingNode:
-		return node.Value
-	case yaml.SequenceNode:
-		return node.Value
-	case yaml.ScalarNode:
-		return node.Value
-	case yaml.AliasNode:
-		return node.Value
-	default:
-		return ""
-	}
-}
-
-// GetYAMLNodeLocation returns the location of a YAML node
-func GetYAMLNodeLocation(node *yaml.Node) protocol.Location {
-	if node == nil {
-		return protocol.Location{Line: 1, Column: 1}
-	}
-
-	return protocol.Location{
-		Line:   node.Line,
-		Column: node.Column,
-	}
-}
-
-// QueryYAML performs a simple query on YAML content
-// Example: "$.metadata.name" to find the name field in metadata
-func QueryYAML(content []byte, query string) ([]*yaml.Node, error) {
-	var root yaml.Node
-	if err := yaml.Unmarshal(content, &root); err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to parse YAML: %w", err)
-	}
-
-	// Simple path-based query implementation
-	// This is a basic implementation - can be extended with more sophisticated queries
-	var results []*yaml.Node
-
-	WalkYAML(&root, func(node *yaml.Node) bool {
-		if node.Value == query || node.Tag == query {
-			results = append(results, node)
-		}
-		return true
-	})
-
-	return results, nil
-}
-
-// QueryJSON performs a simple query on JSON content
-func QueryJSON(content []byte, query string) ([]any, error) {
-	var data any
-	if err := json.Unmarshal(content, &data); err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to parse JSON: %w", err)
-	}
-
-	// Basic implementation - can be extended with JSONPath support
-	var results []any
-
-	// For now, just validate that it's valid JSON
-	results = append(results, data)
-
-	return results, nil
-}
-
-// ValidateYAML validates YAML content without parsing to full AST
-func ValidateYAML(content []byte) error {
-	var node yaml.Node
-	if err := yaml.Unmarshal(content, &node); err != nil {
-		return fmt.Errorf("YAML validation failed: %w", err)
-	}
-	return nil
-}
-
-// ValidateJSON validates JSON content
-func ValidateJSON(content []byte) error {
-	var data any
-	if err := json.Unmarshal(content, &data); err != nil {
-		return fmt.Errorf("JSON validation failed: %w", err)
-	}
-	return nil
-}
-
-// ToSitterTree is a placeholder that returns nil for YAML/JSON
-// These formats don't use tree-sitter, but we keep this for interface compatibility
-func (yn *YAMLNode) ToSitterTree() *sitter.Tree {
-	return nil
-}

internal/parser/yaml_json_test.go

@@ -4,8 +4,6 @@ import (
 	"context"
 	"testing"
 
-	"gopkg.in/yaml.v3"
-
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
 )
 
@@ -202,82 +200,3 @@ version: 1.0.0`)
 		t.Errorf("expected YAML language for .yml extension, got %s", ymlResult.Language)
 	}
 }
-
-func TestWalkYAML(t *testing.T) {
-	content := []byte(`metadata:
-  name: test
-  labels:
-    app: myapp
-    env: prod`)
-
-	var root yaml.Node
-	if err := yaml.Unmarshal(content, &root); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("failed to parse YAML: %v", err)
-	}
-
-	nodeCount := 0
-	WalkYAML(&root, func(node *yaml.Node) bool {
-		nodeCount++
-		return true
-	})
-
-	if nodeCount == 0 {
-		t.Error("expected to visit nodes, but count is 0")
-	}
-}
-
-func TestValidateYAML(t *testing.T) {
-	tests := []struct {
-		name        string
-		content     []byte
-		shouldError bool
-	}{
-		{
-			name:        "valid YAML",
-			content:     []byte("name: test\nvalue: 100"),
-			shouldError: false,
-		},
-		{
-			name:        "invalid YAML",
-			content:     []byte("name: test\n  bad:\n[unclosed"),
-			shouldError: true,
-		},
-	}
-
-	for _, tt := range tests {
-		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
-			err := ValidateYAML(tt.content)
-			if (err != nil) != tt.shouldError {
-				t.Errorf("ValidateYAML() error = %v, shouldError = %v", err, tt.shouldError)
-			}
-		})
-	}
-}
-
-func TestValidateJSON(t *testing.T) {
-	tests := []struct {
-		name        string
-		content     []byte
-		shouldError bool
-	}{
-		{
-			name:        "valid JSON",
-			content:     []byte(`{"name": "test", "value": 100}`),
-			shouldError: false,
-		},
-		{
-			name:        "invalid JSON",
-			content:     []byte(`{"name": "test", "value": 100`),
-			shouldError: true,
-		},
-	}
-
-	for _, tt := range tests {
-		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
-			err := ValidateJSON(tt.content)
-			if (err != nil) != tt.shouldError {
-				t.Errorf("ValidateJSON() error = %v, shouldError = %v", err, tt.shouldError)
-			}
-		})
-	}
-}

internal/query/format_test.go

@@ -128,6 +128,33 @@ func TestFormatResultsPaginationCursor(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// FormatResultsWithCursor must emit the supplied cursor footer verbatim in place
+// of the bare "[remaining: N]" hint when results are truncated.
+func TestFormatResultsWithCursor(t *testing.T) {
+	results := makeResults(5)
+	cursor := "[cursor: abc123, remaining: 3]"
+
+	out := FormatResultsWithCursor(results, 2, "compact", 0, false, cursor)
+	if !strings.Contains(out, cursor) {
+		t.Errorf("expected cursor footer %q, got:\n%s", cursor, out)
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(out, "[remaining: 3]\n") {
+		t.Errorf("bare remaining hint should be replaced by cursor footer, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+
+	// Empty cursorLine falls back to the bare hint (parity with FormatResultsWithOptions).
+	fallback := FormatResultsWithCursor(results, 2, "compact", 0, false, "")
+	if !strings.Contains(fallback, "[remaining: 3]") {
+		t.Errorf("empty cursorLine should fall back to [remaining: 3], got:\n%s", fallback)
+	}
+
+	// No truncation → no footer at all.
+	none := FormatResultsWithCursor(makeResults(2), 0, "compact", 0, false, cursor)
+	if strings.Contains(none, cursor) || strings.Contains(none, "[remaining:") {
+		t.Errorf("no truncation should emit no footer, got:\n%s", none)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestFormatResultsEmpty(t *testing.T) {
 	out := FormatResultsWithOptions(nil, 0, "verbose", 0)
 	if out != "No matches found." {
@@ -159,6 +186,9 @@ func TestFirstLineOf(t *testing.T) {
 		{"line1\nline2", 20, "line1"},
 		{"\n\nfoo", 20, "foo"},
 		{"abcdefghij", 5, "abcd…"},
+		// Multibyte: "ααα" is 6 bytes (each α = 2). maxLen-1 = 3 lands inside the
+		// 2nd α; must back off to a rune boundary, never split into invalid UTF-8.
+		{"ααα", 4, "α…"},
 	}
 	for _, c := range cases {
 		got := firstLineOf(c.input, c.maxLen)

internal/query/query.go

@@ -460,7 +460,24 @@ func FormatResults(results []MatchResult, maxResults int) string {
 // format: "verbose" (default) | "compact" | "location"
 // offset: skip this many results before rendering (used for cursor pagination).
 // verbose: opt-in variadic — pass true to restore "Found N match(es):" preamble (v1 behaviour).
+// When results are truncated it emits a bare "[remaining: N]" hint; callers that
+// have a pagination cursor should use FormatResultsWithCursor to emit the full line.
 func FormatResultsWithOptions(results []MatchResult, maxResults int, format string, offset int, verbose ...bool) string {
+	return formatResults(results, maxResults, format, offset, len(verbose) > 0 && verbose[0], "")
+}
+
+// FormatResultsWithCursor is like FormatResultsWithOptions but, when results are
+// truncated, appends cursorLine verbatim instead of the bare "[remaining: N]"
+// hint. This lets the caller pass a fully-formed "[cursor: ..., remaining: N]"
+// footer without string-replacing a placeholder. If cursorLine is empty it
+// behaves like FormatResultsWithOptions.
+func FormatResultsWithCursor(results []MatchResult, maxResults int, format string, offset int, verbose bool, cursorLine string) string {
+	return formatResults(results, maxResults, format, offset, verbose, cursorLine)
+}
+
+// formatResults is the shared implementation. cursorLine, when non-empty, is
+// emitted in place of the "[remaining: N]" hint on truncation.
+func formatResults(results []MatchResult, maxResults int, format string, offset int, verbose bool, cursorLine string) string {
 	if len(results) == 0 {
 		return "No matches found."
 	}
@@ -484,27 +501,30 @@ func FormatResultsWithOptions(results []MatchResult, maxResults int, format stri
 	var sb strings.Builder
 
 	// Emit preamble only when verbose=true is explicitly passed (opt-in, default off).
-	wantVerbose := len(verbose) > 0 && verbose[0]
-	if wantVerbose {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("Found %d match(es):\n", renderCount))
+	if verbose {
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "Found %d match(es):\n", renderCount)
 	}
 
 	switch format {
 	case "compact":
 		for i := 0; i < renderCount; i++ {
 			r := results[i]
+			firstLine := firstLineOf(r.Text, 80)
+			if !verbose {
+				fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s:%d %s\n", r.File, r.Location.Line, firstLine)
+				continue
+			}
 			nodeType := "unknown"
 			if r.Node != nil {
 				nodeType = r.Node.Type()
 			}
-			firstLine := firstLineOf(r.Text, 80)
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s:%d (%s) %s\n", r.File, r.Location.Line, nodeType, firstLine))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s:%d (%s) %s\n", r.File, r.Location.Line, nodeType, firstLine)
 		}
 
 	case "location":
 		for i := 0; i < renderCount; i++ {
 			r := results[i]
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s:%d\n", r.File, r.Location.Line))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "%s:%d\n", r.File, r.Location.Line)
 		}
 
 	default: // "verbose"
@@ -514,7 +534,7 @@ func FormatResultsWithOptions(results []MatchResult, maxResults int, format stri
 			if r.Node != nil {
 				nodeType = r.Node.Type()
 			}
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("**%s:%d** (%s)\n", r.File, r.Location.Line, nodeType))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "**%s:%d** (%s)\n", r.File, r.Location.Line, nodeType)
 
 			// Truncate very long text
 			text := r.Text
@@ -538,7 +558,7 @@ func FormatResultsWithOptions(results []MatchResult, maxResults int, format stri
 					if len(capText) > 50 {
 						capText = capText[:50] + "..."
 					}
-					sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("$%s=%s", name, capText))
+					fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "$%s=%s", name, capText)
 				}
 				sb.WriteString("\n")
 			}
@@ -547,9 +567,13 @@ func FormatResultsWithOptions(results []MatchResult, maxResults int, format stri
 	}
 
 	if remaining > 0 {
-		// Caller must embed the cursor token; we just append the remaining count hint.
-		// The actual [cursor: ...] line is written by the handler after calling MakeCursor.
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("[remaining: %d]\n", remaining))
+		if cursorLine != "" {
+			// Caller supplied a fully-formed "[cursor: ..., remaining: N]" footer.
+			sb.WriteString(strings.TrimRight(cursorLine, "\n"))
+			sb.WriteByte('\n')
+		} else {
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "[remaining: %d]\n", remaining)
+		}
 	}
 
 	return sb.String()
@@ -563,7 +587,7 @@ func firstLineOf(s string, maxLen int) string {
 			continue
 		}
 		if len(line) > maxLen {
-			return line[:maxLen-1] + "…"
+			return line[:util.RuneBoundary(line, maxLen-1)] + "…"
 		}
 		return line
 	}

internal/search/search.go

@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import (
 
 	json "github.com/goccy/go-json"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/config"
+	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/util"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/errors"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
 )
@@ -257,6 +258,17 @@ func (s *Searcher) validatePaths(paths []string) error {
 		WithRemediation("Provide paths within the workspace root")
 }
 
+// resultPathAllowed reports whether a ripgrep result path is within the
+// workspace root. ripgrep runs with Dir=WorkspaceRoot and emits paths relative
+// to it, so a relative path is joined to the root before the check; IsPathAllowed
+// then resolves symlinks, rejecting any path that --follow led outside the root.
+func (s *Searcher) resultPathAllowed(p string) bool {
+	if !filepath.IsAbs(p) {
+		p = filepath.Join(s.cfg.WorkspaceRoot, p)
+	}
+	return s.cfg.IsPathAllowed(p)
+}
+
 // parseOutput parses ripgrep JSON output.
 func (s *Searcher) parseOutput(output *bytes.Buffer, maxResults int) (*SearchResults, error) {
 	results := &SearchResults{
@@ -287,6 +299,14 @@ func (s *Searcher) parseOutput(output *bytes.Buffer, maxResults int) (*SearchRes
 				continue
 			}
 
+			// Defense in depth: never surface a file outside the workspace root.
+			// ripgrep with --follow (default on) can traverse a symlink whose
+			// target lives outside the root; dropping those matches keeps search
+			// from leaking external file content.
+			if !s.resultPathAllowed(match.Path.Text) {
+				continue
+			}
+
 			// Check max results
 			if maxResults > 0 && len(results.Results) >= maxResults {
 				results.Truncated = true
@@ -389,13 +409,15 @@ func (s *Searcher) FormatResultsWithOptions(results *SearchResults, opts FormatO
 	if opts.Verbose {
 		totalMatches := len(results.Results)
 		fileCount := len(fileResults)
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("Found %d matches in %d files", totalMatches, fileCount))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "Found %d matches in %d files", totalMatches, fileCount)
 		if results.Truncated {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf(" (truncated, total: %d)", results.Total))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, " (truncated, total: %d)", results.Total)
 		}
 		sb.WriteString(":\n\n")
-	} else if results.Truncated {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("(truncated, showing subset of %d total matches)\n\n", results.Total))
+	} else if results.Truncated && opts.CursorLine == "" {
+		// When a cursor footer is present it already reports the remaining count,
+		// so the prose truncation line would be redundant.
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "(truncated, showing subset of %d total matches)\n\n", results.Total)
 	}
 
 	// Write results grouped by file
@@ -408,7 +430,7 @@ func (s *Searcher) FormatResultsWithOptions(results *SearchResults, opts FormatO
 			}
 		}
 
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("**%s**\n", relPath))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "**%s**\n", relPath)
 
 		if opts.Cluster {
 			writeClusteredResults(&sb, fileResults[file])
@@ -486,10 +508,11 @@ func writeClusteredResults(sb *strings.Builder, results []Result) {
 	}
 }
 
-// truncateLine truncates a line if it exceeds maxLen.
+// truncateLine truncates a line if it exceeds maxLen bytes, backing off to a
+// rune boundary so a multibyte character is never split into invalid UTF-8.
 func truncateLine(s string, maxLen int) string {
 	if len(s) <= maxLen {
 		return s
 	}
-	return s[:maxLen-3] + "..."
+	return s[:util.RuneBoundary(s, maxLen-3)] + "..."
 }

internal/search/search_test.go

@@ -8,10 +8,72 @@ import (
 	"path/filepath"
 	"strings"
 	"testing"
+	"unicode/utf8"
 
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/config"
 )
 
+// parseOutput must not attach one file's pending before-context to a match in a
+// different file (cross-file leak guard in the JSON stream parser).
+func TestParseOutputCrossFileContextNotLeaked(t *testing.T) {
+	s := newTestSearcher(t)
+	var buf bytes.Buffer
+	// fileA emits a before-context with no following match in fileA; then fileB
+	// has a match. fileA's pending context must NOT attach to fileB's match.
+	buf.WriteString(`{"type":"context","data":{"path":{"text":"fileA.go"},"lines":{"text":"orphan a ctx\n"},"line_number":1}}` + "\n")
+	buf.WriteString(`{"type":"match","data":{"path":{"text":"fileB.go"},"lines":{"text":"hit B\n"},"line_number":5,"submatches":[{"match":{"text":"hit"},"start":0,"end":3}]}}` + "\n")
+
+	res, err := s.parseOutput(&buf, 0)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parseOutput: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(res.Results) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("want 1 result, got %d", len(res.Results))
+	}
+	if res.Results[0].File != "fileB.go" {
+		t.Errorf("result file = %q, want fileB.go", res.Results[0].File)
+	}
+	if len(res.Results[0].Context.Before) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("fileA context leaked into fileB match: %v", res.Results[0].Context.Before)
+	}
+}
+
+// parseOutput must attach a same-file before-context to the following match.
+func TestParseOutputSameFileBeforeContext(t *testing.T) {
+	s := newTestSearcher(t)
+	var buf bytes.Buffer
+	buf.WriteString(`{"type":"context","data":{"path":{"text":"f.go"},"lines":{"text":"before line\n"},"line_number":4}}` + "\n")
+	buf.WriteString(`{"type":"match","data":{"path":{"text":"f.go"},"lines":{"text":"the match\n"},"line_number":5,"submatches":[{"match":{"text":"match"},"start":4,"end":9}]}}` + "\n")
+
+	res, err := s.parseOutput(&buf, 0)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parseOutput: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(res.Results) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("want 1 result, got %d", len(res.Results))
+	}
+	got := res.Results[0].Context.Before
+	if len(got) != 1 || got[0] != "before line" {
+		t.Errorf("same-file before-context not attached: %v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// truncateLine must back off to a rune boundary so multibyte characters are
+// never split into invalid UTF-8.
+func TestTruncateLineRuneSafe(t *testing.T) {
+	s := strings.Repeat("é", 200) // 2 bytes each → 400 bytes
+	out := truncateLine(s, 50)
+	if !utf8.ValidString(out) {
+		t.Errorf("truncated output is not valid UTF-8: %q", out)
+	}
+	if !strings.HasSuffix(out, "...") {
+		t.Errorf("expected ellipsis suffix, got %q", out)
+	}
+	if got := truncateLine("hi", 50); got != "hi" {
+		t.Errorf("short string should be unchanged, got %q", got)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestNew(t *testing.T) {
 	cfg := config.Default()
 	logger := slog.New(slog.NewTextHandler(os.Stderr, nil))
@@ -340,3 +402,45 @@ func TestSearchEmptyPattern(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Error("expected error for empty pattern")
 	}
 }
+
+// TestSearchSymlinkEscapeNotLeaked is a security regression guard: with
+// FollowSymlinks on (the default), ripgrep can traverse a symlink whose target
+// is outside the workspace root. Such matches must never be returned — search
+// must not leak the content of files outside the workspace.
+func TestSearchSymlinkEscapeNotLeaked(t *testing.T) {
+	const secret = "SUPERSECRETLEAKCANARY"
+
+	outside := t.TempDir()
+	if err := os.WriteFile(filepath.Join(outside, "secret.txt"), []byte(secret+"\n"), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	workspace := t.TempDir()
+	// A regular in-workspace file that does NOT contain the secret.
+	if err := os.WriteFile(filepath.Join(workspace, "ok.txt"), []byte("nothing here\n"), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	// A symlink inside the workspace pointing at the outside directory.
+	if err := os.Symlink(outside, filepath.Join(workspace, "escape")); err != nil {
+		t.Skipf("symlinks unsupported: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	cfg := config.Default()
+	cfg.WorkspaceRoot = workspace
+	if !cfg.FollowSymlinks {
+		t.Fatal("precondition: FollowSymlinks should default true so rg --follow is exercised")
+	}
+	logger := slog.New(slog.NewTextHandler(os.Stderr, &slog.HandlerOptions{Level: slog.LevelError}))
+	s, err := New(cfg, logger)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Skip("ripgrep not installed")
+	}
+
+	results, err := s.Search(context.Background(), &Request{Pattern: secret})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("search: %v", err)
+	}
+	for _, r := range results.Results {
+		t.Errorf("symlink escape leaked an out-of-workspace match: file=%q text=%q", r.File, r.MatchText)
+	}
+}

internal/server/features_test.go

@@ -55,16 +55,18 @@ func Epsilon() int { return 2 }
 
 // ---- Feature 1: ast_query format flag ----
 
-func TestASTQueryFormatVerboseDefault(t *testing.T) {
+func TestASTQueryFormatCompactDefault(t *testing.T) {
 	srv, tmpDir := newFeaturesServer(t)
 	ctx := context.Background()
 
-	req := mcp.CallToolRequest{}
-	req.Params.Arguments = map[string]interface{}{
+	// Default (no format arg) is compact: one line per match, no code blocks.
+	args := map[string]interface{}{
 		"pattern":  "func $NAME() string",
 		"language": "go",
 		"paths":    []interface{}{tmpDir},
 	}
+	req := mcp.CallToolRequest{}
+	req.Params.Arguments = args
 	res, err := srv.handleASTQuery(ctx, req)
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("unexpected error: %v", err)
@@ -72,10 +74,19 @@ func TestASTQueryFormatVerboseDefault(t *testing.T) {
 	if res == nil || len(res.Content) == 0 {
 		t.Fatal("nil/empty result")
 	}
-	text := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
-	// verbose mode has code blocks
-	if !strings.Contains(text, "```") {
-		t.Errorf("verbose mode should have code blocks, got:\n%s", text)
+	if text := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text; strings.Contains(text, "```") {
+		t.Errorf("compact default should NOT have code blocks, got:\n%s", text)
+	}
+
+	// Verbose remains available on explicit request.
+	args["format"] = "verbose"
+	req.Params.Arguments = args
+	res, err = srv.handleASTQuery(ctx, req)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("unexpected error: %v", err)
+	}
+	if text := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text; !strings.Contains(text, "```") {
+		t.Errorf("format=verbose should have code blocks, got:\n%s", text)
 	}
 }
 
@@ -139,8 +150,115 @@ func TestASTQueryFormatLocation(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// TestASTQuerySkipsDependencyDirs verifies ast_query excludes node_modules/vendor
+// by default (they flood results with third-party code) but still searches them
+// when the caller targets one explicitly via paths (the walk root is never skipped).
+func TestASTQuerySkipsDependencyDirs(t *testing.T) {
+	srv, tmpDir := newFeaturesServer(t)
+	ctx := context.Background()
+
+	deps := map[string]string{
+		"node_modules": "NodeModulesDep",
+		"vendor":       "VendorDep",
+	}
+	for dir, fn := range deps {
+		full := filepath.Join(tmpDir, dir)
+		if err := os.MkdirAll(full, 0o750); err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+		src := "package dep\n\nfunc " + fn + "() string { return \"\" }\n"
+		if err := os.WriteFile(filepath.Join(full, "dep.go"), []byte(src), 0o600); err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Default: workspace-root query must skip the dependency dirs.
+	req := mcp.CallToolRequest{}
+	req.Params.Arguments = map[string]interface{}{
+		"pattern":  "func $NAME() string",
+		"language": "go",
+		"paths":    []interface{}{tmpDir},
+		"format":   "location",
+	}
+	res, err := srv.handleASTQuery(ctx, req)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("default query error: %v", err)
+	}
+	// location format prints file:line, so assert on paths.
+	text := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
+	if !strings.Contains(text, "a.go") {
+		t.Errorf("default query should find top-level a.go, got:\n%s", text)
+	}
+	for dir := range deps {
+		if strings.Contains(text, dir+string(filepath.Separator)) {
+			t.Errorf("default query must skip %s, got:\n%s", dir, text)
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Explicit target: querying inside node_modules must still find its code.
+	req2 := mcp.CallToolRequest{}
+	req2.Params.Arguments = map[string]interface{}{
+		"pattern":  "func $NAME() string",
+		"language": "go",
+		"paths":    []interface{}{filepath.Join(tmpDir, "node_modules")},
+		"format":   "location",
+	}
+	res2, err := srv.handleASTQuery(ctx, req2)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("explicit-target query error: %v", err)
+	}
+	text2 := res2.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
+	if !strings.Contains(text2, "node_modules"+string(filepath.Separator)+"dep.go") {
+		t.Errorf("explicit node_modules target must find node_modules/dep.go, got:\n%s", text2)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestRelPath verifies workspace-relative display paths (token saving) with a
+// safe fallback to the original path for anything outside the root.
+func TestRelPath(t *testing.T) {
+	srv, tmpDir := newFeaturesServer(t)
+	if got := srv.relPath(filepath.Join(tmpDir, "pkg", "a.go")); got != filepath.Join("pkg", "a.go") {
+		t.Errorf("in-workspace path should be relativized, got %q", got)
+	}
+	// Outside the workspace root → returned unchanged (never a ../ escape string).
+	outside := "/definitely/outside/x.go"
+	if got := srv.relPath(outside); got != outside {
+		t.Errorf("out-of-workspace path should be returned as-is, got %q", got)
+	}
+}
+
 // ---- Feature 3 (ast_query): pagination cursor ----
 
+// TestASTQueryFirstPageCursor is a strict regression guard: page 1 must emit a
+// cursor with an accurate remaining count when more matches exist. Previously
+// the page-1 walk was capped at max_results, so the total was truncated and the
+// cursor fired nondeterministically (and with a wrong remaining count).
+func TestASTQueryFirstPageCursor(t *testing.T) {
+	srv, tmpDir := newFeaturesServer(t)
+	ctx := context.Background()
+
+	// Fixture has 5 functions (Alpha/Beta/Gamma/Delta/Epsilon); cap at 2.
+	req := mcp.CallToolRequest{}
+	req.Params.Arguments = map[string]interface{}{
+		"pattern":     "func $NAME() $RET",
+		"language":    "go",
+		"paths":       []interface{}{tmpDir},
+		"max_results": float64(2),
+	}
+	res, err := srv.handleASTQuery(ctx, req)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("page1 error: %v", err)
+	}
+	text := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
+	if !strings.Contains(text, "[cursor:") {
+		t.Fatalf("page1 with 5 matches capped at 2 must emit a cursor, got:\n%s", text)
+	}
+	// 5 total - 2 shown = 3 remaining.
+	if !strings.Contains(text, "remaining: 3") {
+		t.Errorf("expected accurate 'remaining: 3', got:\n%s", text)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestASTQueryPaginationCursor(t *testing.T) {
 	srv, tmpDir := newFeaturesServer(t)
 	ctx := context.Background()
@@ -281,6 +399,39 @@ func TestFileSearchCursorStaleHash(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// TestFileSearchFirstPageCursor is a strict regression guard: when the first
+// page is capped by max_results but more matches exist, the response MUST carry
+// a cursor so the caller can page. Previously offset==0 emitted "(truncated...)"
+// with no cursor, silently breaking pagination on the common path.
+func TestFileSearchFirstPageCursor(t *testing.T) {
+	srv, tmpDir := newFeaturesServer(t)
+	if srv.searcher == nil {
+		t.Skip("rg not available")
+	}
+	ctx := context.Background()
+
+	// Corpus has 5 lines containing "func"; cap at 1 forces truncation on page 1.
+	req := mcp.CallToolRequest{}
+	req.Params.Arguments = map[string]interface{}{
+		"pattern":       "func",
+		"paths":         []interface{}{tmpDir},
+		"max_results":   float64(1),
+		"context_lines": float64(0),
+	}
+	res, err := srv.handleFileSearch(ctx, req)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("file_search error: %v", err)
+	}
+	text := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
+	if !strings.Contains(text, "[cursor:") {
+		t.Errorf("first page truncated at max_results=1 with 5 matches must emit a cursor, got:\n%s", text)
+	}
+	// The dead-end prose must not be used when a cursor is available.
+	if strings.Contains(text, "(truncated, showing subset") {
+		t.Errorf("dead-end truncation prose should be replaced by a cursor footer, got:\n%s", text)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestFileSearchPaginationCursor(t *testing.T) {
 	srv, tmpDir := newFeaturesServer(t)
 	if srv.searcher == nil {

internal/server/handlers_ast.go

@@ -60,14 +60,17 @@ func (s *Server) resolveASTQueryParams(request mcp.CallToolRequest) (*astQueryPa
 		prefsMaxResults = sp.DefaultMaxResults
 		prefsFormat = sp.ASTQueryFormat
 	}
-	p.maxResults = effectiveInt(request, "max_results", prefsMaxResults, 100)
+	p.maxResults = effectiveInt(request, "max_results", prefsMaxResults, 50)
 
 	p.format = request.GetString("format", "")
 	if p.format == "" {
 		if prefsFormat != "" {
 			p.format = prefsFormat
 		} else {
-			p.format = "verbose"
+			// Default to compact (one line per match): far fewer tokens than
+			// verbose (full code + captures) on multi-match queries. Callers can
+			// opt into verbose per-call or via the default_format session pref.
+			p.format = "compact"
 		}
 	}
 
@@ -106,12 +109,13 @@ func (s *Server) runASTQueryWalk(ctx context.Context, p *astQueryParams, exts []
 		},
 	}
 
-	// Collect limit for early-exit: when paginating we need all results first.
-	collectLimit := p.maxResults
-	if p.offset > 0 {
-		collectLimit = 0
-	}
-
+	// A full walk is required on every page: the cursor's "remaining" count is
+	// derived from the total match count (see buildASTCursorFooter), so the page-1
+	// response can only emit a correct cursor if it has seen every match. Capping
+	// page 1 at max_results made the cursor fire nondeterministically (only when
+	// the last parsed file overshot the cap) with a wrong remaining count. Parse
+	// results are LRU-cached, so re-walking on later pages is mostly file I/O, and
+	// matches below max_results already visit the whole tree regardless.
 	var allResults []query.MatchResult
 	for _, searchPath := range p.paths {
 		if !s.cfg.IsPathAllowed(searchPath) {
@@ -128,7 +132,10 @@ func (s *Server) runASTQueryWalk(ctx context.Context, p *astQueryParams, exts []
 				return nil
 			}
 			if info.IsDir() {
-				if strings.HasPrefix(info.Name(), ".") {
+				// Skip hidden and dependency dirs (third-party code that would
+				// flood results), but never the walk root itself — the caller
+				// explicitly targeted it, e.g. paths:["vendor/foo"].
+				if path != searchPath && (strings.HasPrefix(info.Name(), ".") || isDependencyDir(info.Name())) {
 					return filepath.SkipDir
 				}
 				return nil
@@ -137,11 +144,13 @@ func (s *Server) runASTQueryWalk(ctx context.Context, p *astQueryParams, exts []
 				return nil
 			}
 
-			content, err := os.ReadFile(path)
-			if err != nil {
+			// Skip oversized files before reading them off disk.
+			if info.Size() > s.cfg.MaxFileSize {
 				return nil
 			}
-			if int64(len(content)) > s.cfg.MaxFileSize {
+
+			content, err := os.ReadFile(path)
+			if err != nil {
 				return nil
 			}
 
@@ -154,10 +163,6 @@ func (s *Server) runASTQueryWalk(ctx context.Context, p *astQueryParams, exts []
 				return nil
 			}
 			allResults = append(allResults, matches...)
-
-			if collectLimit > 0 && len(allResults) >= collectLimit {
-				return filepath.SkipAll
-			}
 			return nil
 		})
 		if walkErr != nil {
@@ -167,6 +172,19 @@ func (s *Server) runASTQueryWalk(ctx context.Context, p *astQueryParams, exts []
 	return allResults
 }
 
+// isDependencyDir reports whether name is a well-known third-party dependency
+// directory that ast_query skips by default. These hold vendored/installed code,
+// not the caller's source, and parsing them wastes time and floods results with
+// irrelevant matches. Target one explicitly via paths to query inside it.
+func isDependencyDir(name string) bool {
+	switch name {
+	case "node_modules", "vendor", "bower_components":
+		return true
+	default:
+		return false
+	}
+}
+
 // hasAnySuffix reports whether path ends with any of the given suffixes.
 func hasAnySuffix(path string, suffixes []string) bool {
 	for _, ext := range suffixes {
@@ -222,16 +240,9 @@ func (s *Server) handleASTQuery(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest
 	allResults := s.runASTQueryWalk(ctx, p, exts)
 	cursorFooter := buildASTCursorFooter(len(allResults), p.offset, p.maxResults, p.queryHash)
 
-	output := query.FormatResultsWithOptions(allResults, p.maxResults, p.format, p.offset, p.verbose)
-	if cursorFooter != "" {
-		// Replace the [remaining: N] placeholder emitted by FormatResultsWithOptions
-		// with the full [cursor: ..., remaining: N] line.
-		output = strings.ReplaceAll(output, fmt.Sprintf("[remaining: %d]\n", len(allResults)-p.offset-p.maxResults), cursorFooter+"\n")
-		// Fallback: if placeholder wasn't present (e.g. format=location), append footer.
-		if !strings.Contains(output, cursorFooter) {
-			output = strings.TrimRight(output, "\n") + "\n" + cursorFooter + "\n"
-		}
-	}
+	// The formatter emits cursorFooter in place of its "[remaining: N]" hint when
+	// results are truncated; no fragile placeholder string-replacement needed.
+	output := query.FormatResultsWithCursor(allResults, p.maxResults, p.format, p.offset, p.verbose, cursorFooter)
 	return mcp.NewToolResultText(output), nil
 }
 
@@ -252,25 +263,29 @@ func (s *Server) generateASTSummary(ctx context.Context, path string, content []
 
 	var sb strings.Builder
 
-	// Get relative path
-	relPath := path
-	if absPath, err := filepath.Abs(path); err == nil {
-		if rel, err := filepath.Rel(s.cfg.WorkspaceRoot, absPath); err == nil && !strings.HasPrefix(rel, "..") {
-			relPath = rel
-		}
-	}
-
-	sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("**%s** (%d lines, %s)\n\n", relPath, len(splitLines(string(content))), lang))
+	fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "**%s** (%d lines, %s)\n\n", s.relPath(path), countLines(content), lang)
 	sb.WriteString("Symbols:\n")
 
 	for _, sym := range symbols {
 		kindStr := symbolKindIcon(sym.Kind)
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("  %s %s  L%d\n", kindStr, sym.Name, sym.Location.Line))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "  %s %s  L%d\n", kindStr, sym.Name, sym.Location.Line)
 	}
 
 	return sb.String()
 }
 
+// relPath renders path relative to the workspace root for display, saving the
+// tokens an absolute path would cost. Falls back to the original path when it
+// can't be relativized (outside the root, or on error).
+func (s *Server) relPath(path string) string {
+	if absPath, err := filepath.Abs(path); err == nil {
+		if rel, err := filepath.Rel(s.cfg.WorkspaceRoot, absPath); err == nil && !strings.HasPrefix(rel, "..") {
+			return rel
+		}
+	}
+	return path
+}
+
 // symbolKindIcon returns an icon/prefix for a symbol kind.
 func symbolKindIcon(kind protocol.SymbolKind) string {
 	switch kind {

internal/server/handlers_edit.go

@@ -92,22 +92,21 @@ func (s *Server) handleEdit(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest) (*
 		return mcp.NewToolResultText(fmt.Sprintf("+%d -%d", added, removed)), nil
 
 	case "diff":
-		var output strings.Builder
-		output.WriteString("Diff:\n```diff\n")
-		output.WriteString(result.Diff)
-		output.WriteString("```\n")
-		return mcp.NewToolResultText(output.String()), nil
+		return mcp.NewToolResultText(fencedDiff(result.Diff)), nil
 
 	default:
 		// Fallback: treat unknown values as "diff" for safety.
-		var output strings.Builder
-		output.WriteString("Diff:\n```diff\n")
-		output.WriteString(result.Diff)
-		output.WriteString("```\n")
-		return mcp.NewToolResultText(output.String()), nil
+		return mcp.NewToolResultText(fencedDiff(result.Diff)), nil
 	}
 }
 
+// fencedDiff wraps a unified diff in a ```diff code fence. No "Diff:" label is
+// added — the fence and the diff's own ---/+++ headers already identify it, so
+// the label would only cost tokens.
+func fencedDiff(diff string) string {
+	return "```diff\n" + diff + "```\n"
+}
+
 // countDiffLines counts added (+) and removed (-) content lines in a unified diff.
 // Only lines inside hunks are counted (everything after the first "@@" header), so the
 // "---"/"+++" file headers are skipped structurally — and content whose own text starts

internal/server/handlers_edit_test.go

@@ -59,6 +59,33 @@ func TestEditApplyPreservesBackslashSequencesText(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// TestEditApplyDiffResponseFencedNoLabel verifies response=diff emits the unified
+// diff in a ```diff fence with no redundant "Diff:" label (the fence and the diff's
+// own headers already identify it; the label would only cost tokens).
+func TestEditApplyDiffResponseFencedNoLabel(t *testing.T) {
+	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+	srv := newTestServer(t, tmpDir)
+	f := writeFile(t, tmpDir, "note.txt", "before\n")
+
+	res := callEdit(t, srv, map[string]any{
+		"file":          f,
+		"operation":     "replace",
+		"selector_text": "before",
+		"new_content":   "after",
+		"response":      "diff",
+	})
+	if res.IsError {
+		t.Fatalf("edit returned error: %+v", res.Content)
+	}
+	out := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
+	if !strings.HasPrefix(out, "```diff\n") {
+		t.Errorf("diff response should start with the ```diff fence, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(out, "Diff:") {
+		t.Errorf("diff response should not carry a redundant 'Diff:' label, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+}
+
 // TestCountDiffLinesHunkAware verifies the line counter skips file headers structurally and
 // counts content lines whose own text begins with + or - (previously dropped as "+++"/"---").
 func TestCountDiffLinesHunkAware(t *testing.T) {

internal/server/handlers_file.go

@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ package server
 
 import (
 	"bufio"
+	"bytes"
 	"context"
 	"fmt"
 	"os"
@@ -15,10 +16,19 @@ import (
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/parser"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/search"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/errors"
+	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/fuzzy"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
 	"github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go/mcp"
 )
 
+// Symbol-suggestion tuning for not-found symbol_name reads.
+const (
+	// maxSymbolSuggestionDistance is the max fuzzy edit distance for a suggestion.
+	maxSymbolSuggestionDistance = 3
+	// maxSymbolSuggestions caps how many "did you mean" names are listed.
+	maxSymbolSuggestions = 3
+)
+
 // handleFileSearch handles the file_search tool.
 func (s *Server) handleFileSearch(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest) (*mcp.CallToolResult, error) {
 	start := time.Now()
@@ -41,7 +51,7 @@ func (s *Server) handleFileSearch(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolReque
 	fileTypes := request.GetStringSlice("file_types", nil)
 	ignoreCase := request.GetBool("ignore_case", false)
 	regex := request.GetBool("regex", true)
-	contextLines := request.GetInt("context_lines", 2)
+	contextLines := request.GetInt("context_lines", 0)
 
 	// Consult session prefs for max_results and cluster when not explicitly supplied.
 	prefs := s.sessionPrefs.Load()
@@ -51,7 +61,10 @@ func (s *Server) handleFileSearch(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolReque
 		prefsMaxResults = prefs.DefaultMaxResults
 		prefsCluster = prefs.DefaultCluster
 	}
-	maxResults := effectiveInt(request, "max_results", prefsMaxResults, 0)
+	// Default to the configured cap (not 0/unbounded) so a broad pattern can't
+	// flood memory and the context window; an explicit max_results still wins,
+	// and the cursor footer lets the caller page through the rest.
+	maxResults := effectiveInt(request, "max_results", prefsMaxResults, s.cfg.MaxSearchResults)
 	cluster := effectiveBool(request, "cluster", prefsCluster, false)
 
 	cursorStr := request.GetString("cursor", "")
@@ -94,6 +107,7 @@ func (s *Server) handleFileSearch(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolReque
 		Regex:         regex,
 		ContextLines:  contextLines,
 		MaxResults:    rgMaxResults,
+		IncludeHidden: request.GetBool("include_hidden", false),
 	}
 
 	results, err := s.searcher.Search(ctx, req)
@@ -113,13 +127,23 @@ func (s *Server) handleFileSearch(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolReque
 
 	// Apply in-process max_results cap and compute cursor footer.
 	var cursorLine string
-	if maxResults > 0 && len(results.Results) > maxResults {
+	switch {
+	case maxResults > 0 && len(results.Results) > maxResults:
+		// Cursor pages (offset>0) fetch all results, so cap here and emit a cursor.
 		remaining := len(results.Results) - maxResults
 		results.Results = results.Results[:maxResults]
 		results.Truncated = true
 		nextOffset := offset + maxResults
 		nextCursor := cursor.Encode(nextOffset, queryHash)
 		cursorLine = fmt.Sprintf("[cursor: %s, remaining: %d]", nextCursor, remaining)
+	case offset == 0 && maxResults > 0 && results.Truncated:
+		// First page: ripgrep capped us at exactly maxResults in parseOutput, but
+		// more matches exist. Emit a cursor so the caller can page instead of being
+		// told "truncated" with no way to continue. remaining derives from rg's
+		// total match count (a submatch count — an upper-bound proxy for rows).
+		nextCursor := cursor.Encode(maxResults, queryHash)
+		remaining := max(results.Total-maxResults, 1)
+		cursorLine = fmt.Sprintf("[cursor: %s, remaining: %d]", nextCursor, remaining)
 	}
 
 	s.logger.Info("search completed",
@@ -184,7 +208,7 @@ func (s *Server) handleFileRead(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest
 			}
 			result, err := s.readOneFile(ctx, request, p)
 			if err != nil {
-				output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("--- %s ---\n[error: %s]\n", p, errors.SanitizeError(err)))
+				fmt.Fprintf(&output, "--- %s ---\n[error: %s]\n", p, errors.SanitizeError(err))
 				continue
 			}
 			// Extract etag from result footer for dedup check.
@@ -192,12 +216,12 @@ func (s *Server) handleFileRead(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest
 			if etag != "" {
 				if firstPath, seen := seenEtag[etag]; seen {
 					// Duplicate content: emit pointer instead of full content.
-					output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("--- %s ---\n[duplicate of %s, etag: %s]\n", p, firstPath, etag))
+					fmt.Fprintf(&output, "--- %s ---\n[duplicate of %s, etag: %s]\n", p, firstPath, etag)
 					continue
 				}
 				seenEtag[etag] = p
 			}
-			output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("--- %s ---\n%s", p, result))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&output, "--- %s ---\n%s", p, result)
 		}
 		return mcp.NewToolResultText(output.String()), nil
 	}
@@ -304,7 +328,11 @@ func (s *Server) resolveLineNumberOpts(request mcp.CallToolRequest) lineNumberOp
 	opts := lineNumberOpts{
 		noLineNumbers: request.GetBool("no_line_numbers", false),
 		lineInterval:  request.GetInt("line_number_interval", 1),
-		compactLineNums: request.GetBool("compact_line_numbers", false),
+		// Compact prefix ("12│content") is the default — it drops the 4-wide
+		// padding and trailing space of the legacy "  12│ " form, saving ~3
+		// chars/line with no information loss. Pass compact_line_numbers=false
+		// (or mode/line_numbers="full") to restore the padded alignment.
+		compactLineNums: request.GetBool("compact_line_numbers", true),
 	}
 
 	// Apply session line_numbers pref when no explicit per-call override was supplied.
@@ -439,12 +467,19 @@ func (s *Server) readOneFile(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest, p
 	// Symbol-based line range: find the symbol and use its exact bounds.
 	if symbolName != "" {
 		symbolKind := protocol.SymbolKind(request.GetString("symbol_kind", ""))
-		start, end, found := s.resolveSymbolLines(ctx, path, content, symbolName, symbolKind)
-		if !found {
-			return "", fmt.Errorf("symbol %q not found in %s", symbolName, path)
+		candidates := s.resolveSymbolCandidates(ctx, path, content, symbolName, symbolKind)
+		switch len(candidates) {
+		case 0:
+			return "", fmt.Errorf("symbol %q not found in %s%s", symbolName, path, s.nearestSymbolSuggestion(ctx, path, content, symbolName))
+		case 1:
+			lineStart = candidates[0].StartLine
+			lineEnd = candidates[0].EndLine
+		default:
+			// Ambiguous: returning the first match risks reading the wrong
+			// symbol. List candidates so the caller can disambiguate.
+			return "", fmt.Errorf("symbol %q is ambiguous in %s (%d matches): %s — disambiguate with symbol_kind, or read a specific one with line_start/line_end",
+				symbolName, path, len(candidates), formatSymbolCandidates(candidates))
 		}
-		lineStart = start
-		lineEnd = end
 	}
 
 	// Clamp to valid range.
@@ -499,14 +534,60 @@ func (s *Server) readOneFile(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest, p
 	return output.String(), nil
 }
 
-// resolveSymbolLines parses the AST and returns the line range of the named symbol.
-// symbolKind optionally filters by kind (empty = any).
-func (s *Server) resolveSymbolLines(ctx context.Context, path string, content []byte, symbolName string, symbolKind protocol.SymbolKind) (startLine, endLine int, found bool) {
+// resolveSymbolCandidates parses the AST and returns every symbol matching the
+// name (and optional kind). Zero results means not found; more than one means an
+// ambiguous lookup. Returns nil on parse failure (treated as not found).
+func (s *Server) resolveSymbolCandidates(ctx context.Context, path string, content []byte, symbolName string, symbolKind protocol.SymbolKind) []parser.SymbolCandidate {
 	result, err := s.parser.Parse(ctx, path, content)
 	if err != nil {
-		return
+		return nil
 	}
-	return parser.FindSymbolRange(result.Tree, content, path, symbolName, symbolKind)
+	return parser.FindSymbolCandidates(result.Tree, content, path, symbolName, symbolKind)
+}
+
+// nearestSymbolSuggestion returns a " — did you mean: a, b, c?" hint listing the
+// closest symbol names in the file to name, or "" if none are reasonably close.
+// The re-parse is cheap: the tree is served from the parser cache.
+func (s *Server) nearestSymbolSuggestion(ctx context.Context, path string, content []byte, name string) string {
+	result, err := s.parser.Parse(ctx, path, content)
+	if err != nil {
+		return ""
+	}
+	syms := parser.ExtractSymbols(result.Tree, content, result.Language, path)
+	if len(syms) == 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	names := make([]string, 0, len(syms))
+	seen := make(map[string]bool, len(syms))
+	for _, sym := range syms {
+		if !seen[sym.Name] {
+			seen[sym.Name] = true
+			names = append(names, sym.Name)
+		}
+	}
+	matches := fuzzy.New(maxSymbolSuggestionDistance).Match(name, names)
+	if len(matches) == 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	top := matches
+	if len(top) > maxSymbolSuggestions {
+		top = top[:maxSymbolSuggestions]
+	}
+	suggestions := make([]string, len(top))
+	for i, m := range top {
+		suggestions[i] = m.Text
+	}
+	return " — did you mean: " + strings.Join(suggestions, ", ") + "?"
+}
+
+// formatSymbolCandidates renders ambiguous symbol matches as a compact,
+// comma-separated list, e.g. "method_declaration L10-24, method_declaration L42-58".
+func formatSymbolCandidates(candidates []parser.SymbolCandidate) string {
+	parts := make([]string, len(candidates))
+	for i, c := range candidates {
+		parts[i] = fmt.Sprintf("%s L%d-%d", c.NodeType, c.StartLine, c.EndLine)
+	}
+	return strings.Join(parts, ", ")
 }
 
 // writeLines writes the selected line range into output, applying all formatting options.
@@ -571,6 +652,21 @@ func extractEtag(result string) string {
 // splitLines splits a string into lines.
 // For large files (> 1MB), uses bufio.Scanner which is more memory efficient.
 // For smaller files, uses simple string split which is faster.
+// countLines returns the number of source lines in content. Unlike
+// len(splitLines(...)), it does not over-count newline-terminated files
+// (a trailing "\n" does not introduce a phantom final line) and avoids
+// materializing the line slice.
+func countLines(content []byte) int {
+	if len(content) == 0 {
+		return 0
+	}
+	n := bytes.Count(content, []byte{'\n'})
+	if content[len(content)-1] != '\n' {
+		n++
+	}
+	return n
+}
+
 func splitLines(s string) []string {
 	const largeSizeThreshold = 1024 * 1024 // 1MB
 

internal/server/handlers_file_test.go

@@ -266,6 +266,28 @@ struct Foo {
 
 // ---- Feature 2: strip flag ----
 
+// A misspelled symbol_name should fail with a "did you mean" hint listing the
+// closest real symbols, so the model can self-correct.
+func TestReadSymbolNotFoundSuggestsNearest(t *testing.T) {
+	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+	srv := newTestServer(t, tmpDir)
+
+	goSrc := "package main\n\nfunc Hello() {}\n\nfunc Goodbye() {}\n"
+	f := writeFile(t, tmpDir, "main.go", goSrc)
+
+	out := callRead(t, srv, map[string]interface{}{
+		"path":        f,
+		"symbol_name": "Helo", // typo for Hello
+	})
+
+	if !strings.Contains(out, "not found") {
+		t.Errorf("expected not-found error, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(out, "did you mean") || !strings.Contains(out, "Hello") {
+		t.Errorf("expected suggestion of Hello, got:\n%s", out)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestStripImportsGo(t *testing.T) {
 	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
 	srv := newTestServer(t, tmpDir)
@@ -567,19 +589,23 @@ func TestCompactLineNumbers(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
-func TestCompactLineNumbersOffByDefault(t *testing.T) {
+func TestCompactLineNumbersDefaultAndOptOut(t *testing.T) {
 	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
 	srv := newTestServer(t, tmpDir)
 
 	content := "line one\nline two\n"
 	f := writeFile(t, tmpDir, "test.txt", content)
 
-	// Default: no compact_line_numbers
-	out := callRead(t, srv, map[string]interface{}{"path": f})
+	// Default is now the compact prefix (token-saving): "1│line one".
+	def := callRead(t, srv, map[string]interface{}{"path": f})
+	if !strings.Contains(def, "1│line one") || strings.Contains(def, "   1│ line one") {
+		t.Errorf("default should use compact prefix, got:\n%s", def)
+	}
 
-	// Should have padded format
-	if !strings.Contains(out, "   1│ line one") {
-		t.Errorf("default should have padded format, got:\n%s", out)
+	// Explicit opt-out restores the padded alignment.
+	padded := callRead(t, srv, map[string]interface{}{"path": f, "compact_line_numbers": false})
+	if !strings.Contains(padded, "   1│ line one") {
+		t.Errorf("compact_line_numbers=false should restore padded format, got:\n%s", padded)
 	}
 }
 
@@ -657,9 +683,9 @@ func Hello() {
 	if !strings.Contains(out, `println("hello")`) {
 		t.Errorf("full mode missing body, got:\n%s", out)
 	}
-	// Padded line numbers
+	// Default line numbers use the compact prefix.
 	if !strings.Contains(out, "1│package main") {
-		t.Errorf("default should have padded line numbers, got:\n%s", out)
+		t.Errorf("default should have compact line numbers, got:\n%s", out)
 	}
 	// etag present
 	if !strings.Contains(out, "[etag:") {

internal/server/handlers_lsp.go

@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/lsp"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/parser"
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/errors"
+	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/pkg/protocol"
 	"github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go/mcp"
 )
 
@@ -26,20 +27,30 @@ func (s *Server) handleLSPQuery(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest
 		return mcp.NewToolResultError("file is required"), nil
 	}
 
-	line := request.GetInt("line", 0)
-	if line <= 0 {
-		return mcp.NewToolResultError("line must be positive"), nil
-	}
-
-	col := request.GetInt("column", 0)
-	if col <= 0 {
-		return mcp.NewToolResultError("column must be positive"), nil
-	}
-
 	if !s.cfg.IsPathAllowed(file) {
 		return mcp.NewToolResultError("file is outside workspace root"), nil
 	}
 
+	// Position can be given directly (line+column) or resolved from a symbol name.
+	var line, col int
+	if symbolName := request.GetString("symbol_name", ""); symbolName != "" {
+		symbolKind := protocol.SymbolKind(request.GetString("symbol_kind", ""))
+		resolvedLine, resolvedCol, errResult := s.resolveLSPSymbolPosition(ctx, file, symbolName, symbolKind)
+		if errResult != nil {
+			return errResult, nil
+		}
+		line, col = resolvedLine, resolvedCol
+	} else {
+		line = request.GetInt("line", 0)
+		if line <= 0 {
+			return mcp.NewToolResultError("line must be positive (or provide symbol_name)"), nil
+		}
+		col = request.GetInt("column", 0)
+		if col <= 0 {
+			return mcp.NewToolResultError("column must be positive (or provide symbol_name)"), nil
+		}
+	}
+
 	verbose := request.GetBool("verbose", false)
 
 	switch action {
@@ -63,12 +74,14 @@ func (s *Server) handleLSPQuery(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest
 
 	case "references":
 		includeDecl := request.GetBool("include_declaration", true)
-		// compact: explicit call-time > session compact_refs pref > false
+		// compact: explicit call-time > session compact_refs pref > true.
+		// Compact (one line per file) is the default — it preserves every
+		// line:col pair while cutting ~one line per reference for the LLM consumer.
 		var prefsCompact *bool
 		if sp := s.sessionPrefs.Load(); sp != nil {
 			prefsCompact = sp.CompactRefs
 		}
-		compact := effectiveBool(request, "compact", prefsCompact, false)
+		compact := effectiveBool(request, "compact", prefsCompact, true)
 		return s.lspReferences(ctx, file, line, col, includeDecl, compact, verbose)
 
 	default:
@@ -76,6 +89,31 @@ func (s *Server) handleLSPQuery(ctx context.Context, request mcp.CallToolRequest
 	}
 }
 
+// resolveLSPSymbolPosition resolves a symbol name to the 1-indexed line:column of
+// its name identifier, for use as an LSP position. Returns an error result when the
+// file can't be read/parsed, the symbol is not found (with a "did you mean" hint),
+// or the name is ambiguous (listing candidates).
+func (s *Server) resolveLSPSymbolPosition(ctx context.Context, file, symbolName string, symbolKind protocol.SymbolKind) (line, col int, errResult *mcp.CallToolResult) {
+	content, err := os.ReadFile(file)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, 0, mcp.NewToolResultError(fmt.Sprintf("failed to read file: %s", errors.SanitizeError(err)))
+	}
+	result, err := s.parser.Parse(ctx, file, content)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, 0, mcp.NewToolResultError(fmt.Sprintf("failed to parse file: %s", errors.SanitizeError(err)))
+	}
+	candidates := parser.FindSymbolCandidates(result.Tree, content, file, symbolName, symbolKind)
+	switch len(candidates) {
+	case 0:
+		return 0, 0, mcp.NewToolResultError(fmt.Sprintf("symbol %q not found in %s%s", symbolName, file, s.nearestSymbolSuggestion(ctx, file, content, symbolName)))
+	case 1:
+		return candidates[0].NameLine, candidates[0].NameColumn, nil
+	default:
+		return 0, 0, mcp.NewToolResultError(fmt.Sprintf("symbol %q is ambiguous in %s (%d matches): %s — disambiguate with symbol_kind, or pass line+column",
+			symbolName, file, len(candidates), formatSymbolCandidates(candidates)))
+	}
+}
+
 // lspHover performs hover (symbol info) for the given position.
 func (s *Server) lspHover(ctx context.Context, file string, line, col int, verbose bool) (*mcp.CallToolResult, error) {
 	hover, err := s.lspManager.Hover(ctx, file, line, col)
@@ -115,10 +153,14 @@ func (s *Server) handleSymbolAtFallback(ctx context.Context, file string, line,
 
 	var output strings.Builder
 	if verbose {
-		output.WriteString("**Symbol Information** (AST fallback)\n\n")
+		output.WriteString("**Symbol Information** (AST fallback — LSP unavailable)\n\n")
+	} else {
+		// Always signal the degraded result so the model knows this is an AST
+		// guess, not real LSP type info, and can decide whether to retry.
+		output.WriteString("[AST fallback — LSP unavailable]\n")
 	}
-	output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("Node type: `%s`\n", node.Type()))
-	output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("Text: `%s`\n", parser.GetNodeText(node, content)))
+	fmt.Fprintf(&output, "Node type: `%s`\n", node.Type())
+	fmt.Fprintf(&output, "Text: `%s`\n", parser.GetNodeText(node, content))
 
 	return mcp.NewToolResultText(output.String()), nil
 }
@@ -136,12 +178,12 @@ func (s *Server) lspDefinition(ctx context.Context, file string, line, col int,
 
 	var output strings.Builder
 	if verbose {
-		output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("Found %d definition(s):\n\n", len(locations)))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&output, "Found %d definition(s):\n\n", len(locations))
 	}
 
 	for _, loc := range locations {
 		filePath := lsp.URIToFile(loc.URI)
-		output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("**%s:%d:%d**\n", filePath, loc.Range.Start.Line+1, loc.Range.Start.Character+1))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&output, "**%s:%d:%d**\n", s.relPath(filePath), loc.Range.Start.Line+1, loc.Range.Start.Character+1)
 
 		preview := s.readFilePreview(filePath, loc.Range.Start.Line+1, 3)
 		if preview != "" {
@@ -170,7 +212,9 @@ func (s *Server) lspReferences(ctx context.Context, file string, line, col int,
 	fileGroups := make(map[string][]lsp.Location)
 	fileOrder := make([]string, 0)
 	for _, loc := range locations {
-		filePath := lsp.URIToFile(loc.URI)
+		// Relativize for display; references are not re-read so the absolute
+		// path isn't needed downstream.
+		filePath := s.relPath(lsp.URIToFile(loc.URI))
 		if _, seen := fileGroups[filePath]; !seen {
 			fileOrder = append(fileOrder, filePath)
 		}
@@ -187,7 +231,7 @@ func (s *Server) lspReferences(ctx context.Context, file string, line, col int,
 func formatReferences(fileGroups map[string][]lsp.Location, fileOrder []string, total int, compact bool, verbose bool) string {
 	var output strings.Builder
 	if verbose {
-		output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("Found %d reference(s):\n\n", total))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&output, "Found %d reference(s):\n\n", total)
 	}
 
 	for _, filePath := range fileOrder {
@@ -195,9 +239,9 @@ func formatReferences(fileGroups map[string][]lsp.Location, fileOrder []string,
 		if compact {
 			output.WriteString(formatReferencesCompact(filePath, locs))
 		} else {
-			output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("**%s** (%d)\n", filePath, len(locs)))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&output, "**%s** (%d)\n", filePath, len(locs))
 			for _, loc := range locs {
-				output.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("  L%d:%d\n", loc.Range.Start.Line+1, loc.Range.Start.Character+1))
+				fmt.Fprintf(&output, "  L%d:%d\n", loc.Range.Start.Line+1, loc.Range.Start.Character+1)
 			}
 			output.WriteString("\n")
 		}
@@ -273,7 +317,7 @@ func (s *Server) readFilePreview(file string, line, contextLines int) string {
 		if i+1 == line {
 			prefix = "> "
 		}
-		preview.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s%4d: %s\n", prefix, i+1, lineText))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&preview, "%s%4d: %s\n", prefix, i+1, lineText)
 	}
 
 	return preview.String()

internal/server/handlers_lsp_test.go

@@ -1,12 +1,25 @@
 package server
 
 import (
+	"context"
 	"strings"
 	"testing"
 
 	"github.com/lukaszraczylo/mcp-filepuff/internal/lsp"
+	"github.com/mark3labs/mcp-go/mcp"
 )
 
+// errorText extracts the text payload from an error CallToolResult.
+func errorText(res *mcp.CallToolResult) string {
+	if res == nil || len(res.Content) == 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	if tc, ok := res.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent); ok {
+		return tc.Text
+	}
+	return ""
+}
+
 // makeLocation builds an lsp.Location with a file:// URI.
 func makeLocation(file string, line, col int) lsp.Location {
 	return lsp.Location{
@@ -179,3 +192,53 @@ func TestFormatReferencesVerbosePreservesLPrefix(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Errorf("verbose output must contain L3:4, got:\n%s", out)
 	}
 }
+
+// resolveLSPSymbolPosition underpins lsp_query's symbol_name affordance: it maps
+// a symbol name to the line:column of its name identifier, or returns an error
+// result for not-found / ambiguous names. It does not require a running LSP.
+func TestResolveLSPSymbolPosition(t *testing.T) {
+	tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+	srv := newTestServer(t, tmpDir)
+
+	goSrc := "package main\n" + // 1
+		"\n" + // 2
+		"type A struct{}\n" + // 3
+		"func (a A) Run() {}\n" + // 4
+		"\n" + // 5
+		"type B struct{}\n" + // 6
+		"func (b B) Run() {}\n" + // 7
+		"\n" + // 8
+		"func Unique() {}\n" // 9
+	f := writeFile(t, tmpDir, "main.go", goSrc)
+	ctx := context.Background()
+
+	t.Run("unique symbol resolves to its name position", func(t *testing.T) {
+		line, col, errRes := srv.resolveLSPSymbolPosition(ctx, f, "Unique", "")
+		if errRes != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("unexpected error result for Unique: %s", errorText(errRes))
+		}
+		if line != 9 || col != 6 {
+			t.Errorf("Unique position = %d:%d, want 9:6", line, col)
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("ambiguous symbol errors", func(t *testing.T) {
+		_, _, errRes := srv.resolveLSPSymbolPosition(ctx, f, "Run", "")
+		if errRes == nil {
+			t.Fatal("expected ambiguity error for Run")
+		}
+		if !strings.Contains(errorText(errRes), "ambiguous") {
+			t.Errorf("expected 'ambiguous' in error, got: %s", errorText(errRes))
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("missing symbol errors", func(t *testing.T) {
+		_, _, errRes := srv.resolveLSPSymbolPosition(ctx, f, "Nope", "")
+		if errRes == nil {
+			t.Fatal("expected not-found error for Nope")
+		}
+		if !strings.Contains(errorText(errRes), "not found") {
+			t.Errorf("expected 'not found' in error, got: %s", errorText(errRes))
+		}
+	})
+}

internal/server/help_content.go

@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ const helpFileSearch = "# file_search — flags and examples\n\n" +
 	"| `cluster=true` | Coalesce consecutive match lines into ranges (`L12-14│ text`). Drops context lines for density. |\n" +
 	"| `cursor` | Opaque pagination token from a previous truncated response — fetches next page. |\n" +
 	"| `max_results` | Page size for pagination. Re-run with `cursor` to get next page. |\n" +
-	"| `context_lines` | Number of context lines around matches (default: 2). |\n" +
+	"| `context_lines` | Number of context lines around matches (default: 0). |\n" +
 	"| `ignore_case` | Case-insensitive search. |\n" +
 	"| `regex` | Treat pattern as regex (default: true). |\n" +
 	"| `file_types` | Restrict to file extensions, e.g. `[\"go\", \"ts\"]`. |\n" +
@@ -75,9 +75,9 @@ const helpASTQuery = "# ast_query — flags and examples\n\n" +
 	"| Flag | Effect |\n" +
 	"|------|--------|\n" +
 	"| `verbose=true` | Emit `Found N match(es):` preamble (v1 behaviour). Default: false. |\n" +
-	"| `format` | `verbose` (default, full code+captures) \\| `compact` (one line per match) \\| `location` (file:line only) |\n" +
+	"| `format` | `compact` (default, one line per match) \\| `verbose` (full code+captures) \\| `location` (file:line only) |\n" +
 	"| `cursor` | Opaque pagination token from a previous truncated response — fetches next page. |\n" +
-	"| `max_results` | Page size (default: 100). |\n" +
+	"| `max_results` | Page size (default: 50). |\n" +
 	"| `name_exact` | Exact symbol name to match. |\n" +
 	"| `name_matches` | Regex pattern to filter by name. |\n" +
 	"| `kind_in` | Node types to match (e.g. `function_declaration`, `class_declaration`). |\n" +
@@ -88,9 +88,22 @@ const helpASTQuery = "# ast_query — flags and examples\n\n" +
 	"| `$NAME` | Matches a single node, captures as `$NAME` |\n" +
 	"| `$$$ARGS` | Matches zero or more nodes (variadic capture) |\n" +
 	"| `$_` | Wildcard — matches any single node, no capture |\n\n" +
+	"## Matching semantics (important)\n\n" +
+	"Matching is keyword- and kind-based, not full structural matching. The leading keyword " +
+	"(`func`/`function`/`class`/`struct`/`interface`) plus placeholders select the node KIND; " +
+	"argument shapes, return types, and the literal bound to `$NAME` are NOT enforced as filters. " +
+	"So `func $NAME($$$ARGS) error` matches every function/method, not only those returning `error`. " +
+	"Captured `$VAR` values appear in output but do not constrain which nodes match.\n\n" +
+	"For precise selection, combine the pattern with `name_exact`, `name_matches`, and/or `kind_in` — " +
+	"these ARE applied as filters.\n\n" +
+	"## Scope\n\n" +
+	"The walk skips hidden directories (dot-prefixed) and dependency directories " +
+	"(`node_modules`, `vendor`, `bower_components`) — these hold third-party code that would " +
+	"flood results. To query inside one, name it explicitly in `paths` (e.g. `\"paths\": [\"vendor/foo\"]`); " +
+	"the targeted root is never skipped. Note: unlike file_search, ast_query does not consult .gitignore.\n\n" +
 	"## Examples\n\n" +
 	"```json\n" +
-	"// All Go functions returning error\n" +
+	"// All Go functions/methods (the 'error' return is NOT enforced — add name_/kind_in to narrow)\n" +
 	`{"pattern": "func $NAME($$$ARGS) error", "language": "go"}` + "\n\n" +
 	"// Python classes\n" +
 	`{"pattern": "class $NAME: $$$BODY", "language": "python"}` + "\n\n" +
@@ -114,10 +127,16 @@ const helpLSPQuery = "# lsp_query — flags and examples\n\n" +
 	"- `compact=true` — collapse to one line per file\n" +
 	"- `verbose=true` — add `Found N reference(s):` header\n\n" +
 	"Note: `include_declaration` and `compact` are errors when used with actions other than `references`.\n\n" +
+	"## Position: line+column or symbol_name\n\n" +
+	"Give the position directly with `line`+`column`, or pass `symbol_name` (optionally `symbol_kind`) to " +
+	"resolve it from the AST — handy when you know the name but not the coordinates. Ambiguous or unknown " +
+	"names return an error (with candidates / a 'did you mean' hint).\n\n" +
 	"## Examples\n\n" +
 	"```json\n" +
 	"// Hover — type/doc at position\n" +
 	`{"action": "hover", "file": "server.go", "line": 45, "column": 6}` + "\n\n" +
+	"// Definition by symbol name — no line/column needed\n" +
+	`{"action": "definition", "file": "server.go", "symbol_name": "NewServer"}` + "\n\n" +
 	"// Definition — where is this symbol defined?\n" +
 	`{"action": "definition", "file": "handler.go", "line": 23, "column": 10}` + "\n\n" +
 	"// References — all usages\n" +

internal/server/server.go

@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ func New(cfg *config.Config, logger *slog.Logger) (*Server, error) {
 		logger:   logger,
 		parser:   parserRegistry,
 		matcher:  query.NewMatcher(parserRegistry),
-		editor:   edit.NewEngine(parserRegistry),
+		editor:   edit.NewEngineWithValidator(parserRegistry, cfg.IsPathAllowed),
 		readSem:  make(chan struct{}, MaxConcurrentReads),
 		querySem: make(chan struct{}, MaxConcurrentQueries),
 	}
@@ -129,11 +129,14 @@ func (s *Server) registerTools() {
 				mcp.WithBoolean("ignore_case",
 					mcp.Description("Case insensitive search"),
 				),
+				mcp.WithBoolean("include_hidden",
+					mcp.Description("Search hidden files and directories (dotfiles like .github/). Default: false."),
+				),
 				mcp.WithBoolean("regex",
 					mcp.Description("Treat pattern as regex (default: true)"),
 				),
 				mcp.WithNumber("context_lines",
-					mcp.Description("Number of context lines around matches (default: 2)"),
+					mcp.Description("Number of context lines around matches (default: 0)"),
 				),
 				mcp.WithNumber("max_results",
 					mcp.Description("Maximum number of results to return (page size for pagination)"),
@@ -190,7 +193,7 @@ func (s *Server) registerTools() {
 				mcp.Description("Output mode: 'full' (default, full file), 'skeleton' (signatures + { ... } stubs, bodies elided), 'symbols_only' (symbol list only, alias for symbols_only=true)."),
 			),
 			mcp.WithArray("strip",
-				mcp.Description("Strip content classes before line-numbering. Values: 'imports' (remove import blocks), 'license' (remove leading license comment), 'block_comments' (remove /* */ and Python triple-quoted strings). Emits [stripped: ...] footer."),
+				mcp.Description("Strip content classes before line-numbering. Values: 'imports' (remove import blocks), 'license' (remove leading license comment), 'block_comments' (remove /* */ and Python triple-quoted strings). Emits [stripped: ...] footer. Note: line numbers are renumbered from 1 over the stripped content, so they no longer match the file's original line numbers."),
 				mcp.WithStringItems(),
 			),
 			mcp.WithNumber("max_lines",
@@ -203,7 +206,7 @@ func (s *Server) registerTools() {
 				mcp.Description("Print line numbers only every N lines (default: 1 = every line). E.g. 10 = anchor every 10th line plus first/last. 0 = no line numbers."),
 			),
 			mcp.WithBoolean("compact_line_numbers",
-				mcp.Description("Use compact line prefix '12\u2502' instead of '  12\u2502 ' (no padding, no trailing space). Works with line_number_interval. Default off."),
+				mcp.Description("Use compact line prefix '12\u2502' instead of padded '  12\u2502 ' (no padding, no trailing space). Works with line_number_interval. Default true; set false to restore padded alignment."),
 			),
 			mcp.WithBoolean("collapse_blank_lines",
 				mcp.Description("Collapse runs of consecutive blank lines to a single blank line. Useful for token savings on heavily-spaced code."),
@@ -222,6 +225,8 @@ func (s *Server) registerTools() {
 	s.mcp.AddTool(
 		mcp.NewTool("ast_query",
 			mcp.WithDescription("Search for AST patterns in code files. Use code patterns with $VAR placeholders to match and capture code structures like functions, classes, and types. "+
+				"Matching is keyword/kind-based, not fully structural: argument and return-type constraints in the pattern are not enforced — use name_exact/name_matches/kind_in to filter precisely. "+
+				"Hidden dirs and dependency dirs (node_modules, vendor, bower_components) are skipped unless targeted explicitly via paths. "+
 				"See resource filepuff://help/ast_query for flags and examples."),
 			mcp.WithReadOnlyHintAnnotation(true),
 			mcp.WithString("pattern",
@@ -247,10 +252,10 @@ func (s *Server) registerTools() {
 				mcp.WithStringItems(),
 			),
 			mcp.WithNumber("max_results",
-				mcp.Description("Maximum number of results to return (default: 100, page size for pagination)"),
+				mcp.Description("Maximum number of results to return (default: 50, page size for pagination)"),
 			),
 			mcp.WithString("format",
-				mcp.Description("Output format: \"verbose\" (default, full code+captures), \"compact\" (one line per match), \"location\" (file:line only)"),
+				mcp.Description("Output format: \"compact\" (default, one line per match), \"verbose\" (full code+captures), \"location\" (file:line only)"),
 			),
 			mcp.WithString("cursor",
 				mcp.Description("Pagination cursor from a previous truncated response. Pass back to fetch the next page."),
@@ -266,7 +271,8 @@ func (s *Server) registerTools() {
 	if s.lspManager != nil {
 		s.mcp.AddTool(
 			mcp.NewTool("lsp_query",
-				mcp.WithDescription("Query LSP for symbol info, definition, or references at a specific file position. "+
+				mcp.WithDescription("Query LSP for symbol info, definition, or references at a file position. "+
+					"Give the position as line+column, or pass symbol_name to resolve it via AST (no line/column needed). "+
 					"See resource filepuff://help/lsp_query for flags and examples."),
 				mcp.WithReadOnlyHintAnnotation(true),
 				mcp.WithString("action",
@@ -277,19 +283,23 @@ func (s *Server) registerTools() {
 					mcp.Required(),
 					mcp.Description("Path to the file"),
 				),
+				mcp.WithString("symbol_name",
+					mcp.Description("Resolve the position from a named symbol (function, struct, class, etc.) instead of line+column. Errors if the name is ambiguous or not found."),
+				),
+				mcp.WithString("symbol_kind",
+					mcp.Description("Disambiguate symbol_name by kind when multiple symbols share the name. Accepted: function, method, struct, class, interface, type, enum, trait, constant, module."),
+				),
 				mcp.WithNumber("line",
-					mcp.Required(),
-					mcp.Description("Line number (1-indexed)"),
+					mcp.Description("Line number (1-indexed). Required unless symbol_name is given."),
 				),
 				mcp.WithNumber("column",
-					mcp.Required(),
-					mcp.Description("Column number (1-indexed)"),
+					mcp.Description("Column number (1-indexed). Required unless symbol_name is given."),
 				),
 				mcp.WithBoolean("include_declaration",
 					mcp.Description("Include the declaration in results. Only valid for action=references (default: true)."),
 				),
 				mcp.WithBoolean("compact",
-					mcp.Description("Compact output: one line per file with all refs in brackets. Only valid for action=references. Default: false."),
+					mcp.Description("Compact output: one line per file with all refs in brackets. Only valid for action=references. Default: true; set false for one line per reference."),
 				),
 				mcp.WithBoolean("verbose",
 					mcp.Description("Emit count/header preamble. Applies to all actions. Default: false."),

internal/server/server_test.go

@@ -415,6 +415,32 @@ func TestSplitLinesLargeFileNoTrailingNewline(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// TestCountLines verifies countLines reports source line counts without the
+// phantom trailing line that len(splitLines(...)) produces for newline-terminated
+// files.
+func TestCountLines(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name    string
+		content string
+		want    int
+	}{
+		{name: "empty", content: "", want: 0},
+		{name: "single line no newline", content: "a", want: 1},
+		{name: "single line trailing newline", content: "a\n", want: 1},
+		{name: "two lines trailing newline", content: "a\nb\n", want: 2},
+		{name: "two lines no trailing newline", content: "a\nb", want: 2},
+		{name: "blank lines", content: "\n\n\n", want: 3},
+		{name: "crlf trailing", content: "a\r\nb\r\n", want: 2},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			if got := countLines([]byte(tt.content)); got != tt.want {
+				t.Errorf("countLines(%q) = %d, want %d", tt.content, got, tt.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 // TestSplitLinesLongLine verifies the scanner gracefully handles very long lines
 // (up to the 1MB buffer limit set in C-05 fix).
 func TestSplitLinesLongLine(t *testing.T) {

internal/server/session_integration_test.go

@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ func TestSessionPrefsFileReadLineNumbersNone(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("handleFileRead: %v", err)
 	}
 	text := result.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
-	// Standard line-number format is "   1│ "; with no_line_numbers it's absent.
+	// line_numbers=none suppresses the prefix entirely (no "│" gutter at all).
 	if strings.Contains(text, "   1│") {
 		t.Errorf("session line_numbers=none: expected no line-number prefix, got:\n%s", text)
 	}
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ func TestSessionPrefsFileReadLineNumbersCompact(t *testing.T) {
 	req.Params.Arguments = map[string]interface{}{"path": testFile}
 	result, _ := srv.handleFileRead(ctx, req)
 	text := result.Content[0].(mcp.TextContent).Text
-	// Standard padded prefix is "   1│ "; compact is "1│".
+	// Padded prefix is "   1│ "; compact is "1│".
 	if strings.Contains(text, "   1\u2502") {
 		t.Errorf("session line_numbers=compact should use compact prefix, got:\n%s", text)
 	}
@@ -199,7 +199,7 @@ func TestSessionPrefsASTQueryMaxResults(t *testing.T) {
 	var sb strings.Builder
 	sb.WriteString("package main\n\n")
 	for i := 0; i < 5; i++ {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("func Fn%c() {}\n\n", rune('A'+i)))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "func Fn%c() {}\n\n", rune('A'+i))
 	}
 	testFile := filepath.Join(tmpDir, "many.go")
 	if err := os.WriteFile(testFile, []byte(sb.String()), 0600); err != nil {
@@ -281,7 +281,7 @@ func TestSessionPrefsMaxResultsExplicitOverride(t *testing.T) {
 	var sb strings.Builder
 	sb.WriteString("package main\n\n")
 	for i := 0; i < 5; i++ {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("func Fn%c() {}\n\n", rune('A'+i)))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "func Fn%c() {}\n\n", rune('A'+i))
 	}
 	testFile := filepath.Join(tmpDir, "many.go")
 	if err := os.WriteFile(testFile, []byte(sb.String()), 0600); err != nil {

internal/util/truncate.go

@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+package util
+
+import "unicode/utf8"
+
+// RuneBoundary returns the largest index j <= i such that s[:j] is valid UTF-8
+// (j falls on a rune start, never inside a multibyte sequence). i is clamped to
+// [0, len(s)]. Callers slicing s[:i] for truncation should slice s[:RuneBoundary(s, i)]
+// instead so a multibyte character is never split into an invalid encoding.
+func RuneBoundary(s string, i int) int {
+	if i <= 0 {
+		return 0
+	}
+	if i >= len(s) {
+		return len(s)
+	}
+	for i > 0 && !utf8.RuneStart(s[i]) {
+		i--
+	}
+	return i
+}

internal/util/truncate_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package util
+
+import (
+	"testing"
+	"unicode/utf8"
+)
+
+func TestRuneBoundary(t *testing.T) {
+	// "café" — 'é' is 2 bytes (0xC3 0xA9), occupying indices 3,4. len == 5.
+	const cafe = "café"
+	cases := []struct {
+		name string
+		s    string
+		i    int
+		want int
+	}{
+		{"negative clamps to zero", "abc", -1, 0},
+		{"zero", "abc", 0, 0},
+		{"beyond length clamps to len", "abc", 99, 3},
+		{"ascii exact boundary", "abcdef", 4, 4},
+		{"inside multibyte backs off", cafe, 4, 3}, // index 4 is the 2nd byte of 'é'
+		{"on multibyte start stays", cafe, 3, 3},   // index 3 is the 1st byte of 'é'
+		{"end of multibyte string", cafe, 5, 5},    // len == 5, clamped path
+	}
+	for _, c := range cases {
+		t.Run(c.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			got := RuneBoundary(c.s, c.i)
+			if got != c.want {
+				t.Fatalf("RuneBoundary(%q, %d) = %d, want %d", c.s, c.i, got, c.want)
+			}
+			// Invariant: the prefix is always valid UTF-8.
+			if !utf8.ValidString(c.s[:got]) {
+				t.Fatalf("RuneBoundary(%q, %d) sliced invalid UTF-8: %q", c.s, c.i, c.s[:got])
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}

pkg/errors/errors.go

@@ -77,24 +77,24 @@ func (e *StructuredError) Error() string {
 	var sb strings.Builder
 
 	// Error code and message
-	sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("[%d] %s", e.Code, e.Message))
+	fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "[%d] %s", e.Code, e.Message)
 
 	// Context if available
 	if len(e.Context) > 0 {
 		sb.WriteString("\nContext:")
 		for k, v := range e.Context {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("\n  %s: %v", k, v))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "\n  %s: %v", k, v)
 		}
 	}
 
 	// Remediation if available
 	if e.Remediation != "" {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("\nHow to fix: %s", e.Remediation))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "\nHow to fix: %s", e.Remediation)
 	}
 
 	// Underlying cause if available
 	if e.Cause != nil {
-		sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("\nCaused by: %v", e.Cause))
+		fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "\nCaused by: %v", e.Cause)
 	}
 
 	return sb.String()
@@ -215,7 +215,7 @@ func captureStack(skip int) string {
 	for {
 		frame, more := frames.Next()
 		if !strings.Contains(frame.File, "runtime/") {
-			sb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("\n  %s:%d %s", frame.File, frame.Line, frame.Function))
+			fmt.Fprintf(&sb, "\n  %s:%d %s", frame.File, frame.Line, frame.Function)
 		}
 		if !more {
 			break