Errors and exit codes

Without --json, CLI errors are written to standard error as human-readable text beginning with error:. With --json, errors contain schema_version and an error object with code, message, and exit_code.

Exit code	Error code	Meaning	Recovery
0	None	Success	Consume stdout.
1	operation_failed	Vault read, write, or transcription failure, an unsupported import format, or an unhealthy doctor report	Check the reported action or inspect the diagnostic report and confirm app and CLI compatibility.
2	not_found	Meeting, audio file, or other requested data not found	List meetings again and use a returned ID, or verify the file path you passed.
3	vault_not_found	Vault not found at the resolved path	Start Free Meeting Transcriber once or pass --vault-path.
4	output_exists	Export output already exists	Choose another path or explicitly pass --force to replace the file.

Invalid arguments use the invalid_arguments error code with Clap’s nonzero exit code.

MCP reports missing meetings as invalid parameters. Vault and serialization failures are internal MCP errors.

Never recover by editing vault files directly; go through the CLI’s write commands or the desktop app. When a write command fails after creating a meeting, the error names the new meeting id — finish the job against that id instead of retrying from scratch (for example fmtr meetings note ID --set after a failed note write, or fmtr transcribe ID after a failed import --transcribe). The MCP server remains read-only.