Fix · Problems with AI tools

The AI rewrote a whole file when I asked for a small edit

What you may see

My custom code inside the file is gone

Most likely cause

Some tools produce the whole file again instead of a precise edit, and silently drop parts they did not "see".

Check first (about two minutes)

Compare the file with its saved version: git diff <file>.

The fix prompt

What you type here never leaves your browser. The search runs on this page, and nothing is sent to a server or to an AI.

The exact error or what you see

What you did before it happened

Kept only in this browser, on this device. Keys and passwords are removed before anything is saved.

Prompt language

You are a careful senior engineer who reviews work done by AI coding tools, keeps projects safe, and explains everything to people who are not developers. I am not a developer, so explain every step in plain words and tell me exactly which button, menu or command you mean. If you are not sure about something, say so; do not guess.

THE PROBLEM
The AI rewrote a whole file when I asked for a small edit

THE EXACT ERROR OR WHAT I SEE
[paste the exact error here]

WHAT I DID BEFORE IT HAPPENED
[write in a few words what you did before it happened]

MOST LIKELY CAUSE
Some tools produce the whole file again instead of a precise edit, and silently drop parts they did not "see".

DO THESE STEPS, IN THIS ORDER
1. Show git diff for the file and list every removed line group, explaining what each did.
2. Restore the removed parts into the new version, keeping the requested edit (a small, precise patch).
3. In the future, I will ask for "a minimal patch, change only these lines".
Stop and tell me if what you see does not match a step. Do not skip ahead.

CHECK THAT IT WORKED
- The final diff shows only the intended lines changed.
Tell me exactly what I should see on the screen when it works.

DO NOT CHANGE
- Do not reformat the whole file.
- Anything I did not ask about: the design, the text, other pages, other settings or the data.
- Do not delete files, data or branches, do not reset or force-push, and do not rewrite history, unless you first show me exactly what would be lost and I say yes.
- Do not paste, print or ask me to paste a password or secret key into this chat. If one is needed, tell me which settings page of the right service to store it in.

WHEN YOU FINISH
Explain in simple words what you changed (file by file or setting by setting), why you changed it, and how I can undo it.

Paste it into Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini or Cursor, then follow what it says.

After you tried it, did it work?

Steps

Show git diff for the file and list every removed line group, explaining what each did.
Restore the removed parts into the new version, keeping the requested edit (a small, precise patch).
In the future, I will ask for "a minimal patch, change only these lines".

Do not do this

Do not paste a whole file back from the chat over the original without comparing.
Do not reformat the whole file.

Fix it The AI changed files I did not ask it to change

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