translation agent stuck re-extracting string catalog

Fix the translation agent stuck re-extracting the string catalog

TL;DR

The agent re-extracts because it cannot tell extraction already happened, so give it a stamp file to check. Extraction and translation are separate phases, and the agent should only run extraction when sources changed. Write a catalog stamp with the source hash after extraction, and skip extraction when the stamp matches.

The error

Translation agent log: extract, translate, extract, translate...
catalog rebuilt from scratch on every loop iteration

Fix it

Step 1: Confirm extraction runs every iteration

grep -c "extracting string catalog" logs/agent.log

Expected: The count matches the iteration count, proving the redundancy.

Step 2: Add a stamp file with the source hash

node -e "console.log('after extraction: write .catalog-stamp with a hash of the source file list and mtimes')"

Expected: The stamp records what extraction covered.

Step 3: Skip extraction when the stamp matches

node -e "console.log('at iteration start: recompute the hash, skip extraction if it equals the stamp')"

Expected: Unchanged sources skip extraction.

Step 4: Run two iterations and confirm one extraction

node scripts/translate-agent.js | grep -c "extracting string catalog"

Expected: The count is 1 for two iterations.

When to use this

• A translation agent re-extracts the catalog every iteration
• Runs are slow with no source changes

When NOT to use this

• Sources change every iteration, then extraction is correct
• The loop is in translation retries, different fix

Tool and version compatibility

• Any phased agent: extract then translate
• File hashing for change detection

Variant phrasings

stamp matches but strings are stale

Your hash misses something, like config. Hash the inputs that actually affect extraction.

agent runs extraction on purpose each time

Then the bug is the loop itself. Fix why it iterates instead of finishing.

Why it happens

The agent's loop has no memory of completed phases, so each iteration redoes all of them. Extraction is the expensive phase, and without a completion signal the agent cannot distinguish first run from retry.

Edge cases

• Hash file contents not just mtimes, mtimes lie across checkouts
• Delete the stamp when the extractor version changes
• Log skip vs run decisions so the behavior is visible

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstdPNVdg9LsSfdK9-XAew4A

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstdPNVdg9LsSfdK9-XAew4A

Thread query: translation agent stuck re-extracting string catalog

TL;DR: The agent re-extracts because it cannot tell extraction already happened, so give it a stamp file to check. Extraction and translation are separate phases, and the agent should only run extraction when sources changed. Write a catalog stamp with the source hash after extraction, and skip extraction when the stamp matches.