Error running cypress with `--config-file` set to an absolute path

[gabrielSchaidhauer]

Current behavior:

When cypress is runned using cypress open --config-file ~/config.json a folder is created under the project tree with the path path/to/home/config.json instead of looking into the existing file at home folder.

Desired behavior:

The desired behavior would be for the cypress to find the config file at the home folder and use it.

Test code to reproduce

Steps:

1 - Setup a sample project with cypress;
2 - Create a config file at home named for example cypress.json;
3 - Create a npm script to run the command with `cypress open --config-file ~/cypress.json;
4 - Run the script;
5 - A new folder should be created under the project folder with a empty cypress.json configuration inside it;

Versions

cypress: 3.8.1
npm: 6.13.4
OS: Ubuntu 18.04.3 LTS

[jennifer-shehane]

I can confirm this behavior. This should not be happening.

Steps to reproduce

mkdir fake-repo
npm init --force --yes
npm i --save-dev cypress
touch ~/foobar.json
cypress open --config-file ~/foobar.json

[flotwig]

Seems like --config-file isn't respecting absolute paths. When you pass --config-file ~/foo, your shell expands it to /Users/username/foo, which Cypress is incorrectly appending to the project root. Looks like _pathToFile here needs to be fixed:

cypress/packages/server/lib/util/settings.js

Lines 60 to 62 in c9b392a

	_pathToFile (projectRoot, file) {
	return path.join(projectRoot, file)
	},

[drptbl]

Having same issue. You can't use absolute path with --config-file.

Using this:
cypress run --config-file /Users/xxx/something/project/cypress.json
will throw following error:

The "path" argument must be of type string. Received type boolean
TypeError [ERR_INVALID_ARG_TYPE] [ERR_INVALID_ARG_TYPE]: The "path" argument must be of type string. Received type boolean
    at validateString (internal/validators.js:112:11)
    at Object.join (path.js:1039:7)
    at Object._pathToFile (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/server/lib/util/settings.js:61:17)
    at Object.pathToConfigFile (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/server/lib/util/settings.js:204:31)
    at Object.exists (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/server/lib/util/settings.js:111:23)
    at Function.ensureExists (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/server/lib/project.js:794:21)
    at createAndOpenProject (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/server/lib/modes/run.js:607:4)
    at /Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/server/lib/modes/run.js:1413:14
    at tryCatcher (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/util.js:16:23)
    at Promise._settlePromiseFromHandler (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/promise.js:512:31)
    at Promise._settlePromise (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/promise.js:569:18)
    at Promise._settlePromise0 (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/promise.js:614:10)
    at Promise._settlePromises (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/promise.js:694:18)
    at _drainQueueStep (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/async.js:138:12)
    at _drainQueue (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/async.js:131:9)
    at Async._drainQueues (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/async.js:147:5)
    at Immediate.Async.drainQueues [as _onImmediate] (/Users/drptbl/Library/Caches/Cypress/5.1.0/Cypress.app/Contents/Resources/app/packages/launcher/node_modules/bluebird/js/release/async.js:17:14)
    at processImmediate (internal/timers.js:439:21)

^ @flotwig already linked proper place in code where the issue is.