DollhouseMCP

# Issue: Claude Desktop Reports 499 Personas ## Problem Description Claude Desktop is reporting "499 personas" including "test personas created during security testing", even though: 1. The test data safety mechanism is working correctly (confirmed via testing) 2. Only 6 personas exist in `data/personas/` 3. Only 31 total .md files exist in the entire `data/` directory ## Evidence ### Test Data Safety Working ```javascript Test 1: Default behavior in development mode - isTestDataLoadingEnabled: false - isDevelopmentMode: true ``` ### File Counts - `data/personas/`: 6 files - `data/*/*.md`: 31 files total - Not even close to 499 ## The Number 499 - Suspiciously close to 500 (common limit) - Suggests hitting a hard limit somewhere - Not a real count of actual files ## Theories ### Theory 1: Old Cached Data Claude Desktop might be reading personas that were previously copied to `~/.dollhouse/portfolio/personas/` before the safety mechanism was implemented. **Action**: Check and clean the portfolio directory ### Theory 2: Claude Desktop Bug Claude Desktop itself might have a bug where it's: - Generating phantom personas - Miscounting - Reading from wrong location - Hitting a 500 item limit and showing 499 ### Theory 3: Test Data Generation Some test or process might be generating personas dynamically that aren't saved to disk. ## What's Working - ✅ DefaultElementProvider correctly detects development mode - ✅ Test data loading is disabled by default - ✅ Can be enabled with `DOLLHOUSE_LOAD_TEST_DATA=true` - ✅ No test data is being copied to portfolio ## What's Not Working - ❌ Claude Desktop still "sees" 499 personas - ❌ Claude Desktop mentions "test personas created during security testing" - ❌ These phantom personas are visible to the end user ## Next Steps 1. **Check portfolio directory** - Count actual personas in `~/.dollhouse/portfolio/personas/` 2. **Clear portfolio** - Remove all test personas if they exist 3. **Restart Claude Desktop** - Clear any caches 4. **File bug report** - If issue persists, this is a Claude Desktop bug ## Workaround For now, users should: 1. Manually clean their portfolio directory 2. Restart Claude Desktop 3. Only the legitimate personas should remain --- *Issue discovered: August 11, 2025*