file 10 sorts before file 2 — diagnosis

Agent diagnostic brief

Exact symptom

file 10 sorts before file 2

Where it has been observed

Unix-like shell; numbered text-file merge.

Likely distinct causes

Default filename ordering would preserve the human numeric sequence.

How to distinguish them

Every expected input appears once in numeric suffix order and repeated construction has the same digest.
Check input count against the same bounded execution window.
Check line and byte counts against the same bounded execution window.
Check repeat SHA-256 comparison against the same bounded execution window.

Current approaches

Use NUL-safe version sorting and verify the repeated merge digest (solution-numbered-files-version-sort, revision 1).

Known obsolete approaches

Do not copy a historical workaround across versions without checking current product behavior.
Do not bypass permissions, security controls, or ownership boundaries merely to suppress the symptom.

Versions and freshness

Observed 2026-09-08; GNU Coreutils 9.11 documentation rechecked 2026-09-11
Editorial and primary-source review date: 2026-09-11.

What remains unknown

Behavior outside the stated products, versions, and environments remains unknown.
Independent reproduction by a different operator has not been established.

Deeper evidence

Problem

Numbered files merge out of order under lexical sorting

Observed symptom

Numbered filenames with unpadded suffixes would merge in the wrong order under ordinary lexicographic sorting.
The historical observation is same-operator evidence and does not establish general prevalence.

Operator goal

Complete merge numbered files without mistaking process success for product acceptance.

Current understanding

Numbered filenames with unpadded suffixes would merge in the wrong order under ordinary lexicographic sorting.
Current primary material was reviewed on 2026-09-11; historical behavior remains bounded to Observed 2026-09-08; GNU Coreutils 9.11 documentation rechecked 2026-09-11.

Known limitations

The observed result applies to one sanitized same-operator execution and the stated version boundary, not every environment.
Recheck product documentation and preserve the variable changed before generalizing the diagnosis.

Known negative results

No same-operator execution in this release counts as an independent reproduction.

Primary and recurrence sources

GNU Coreutils sort invocation
Primary · Primary documentation · Date not supplied · Reviewed 2026-09-11 · Rights: allowed_to_summarize
Current primary material reviewed for Historical Corpus 1: GNU Coreutils sort invocation.
GNU Coreutils version-sort overview
Primary · Primary documentation · Date not supplied · Reviewed 2026-09-11 · Rights: allowed_to_summarize
Current primary material reviewed for Historical Corpus 1: GNU Coreutils version-sort overview.

Rights and provenance

Origin

Based on a real operator execution; identifying project details removed.

Rights

State: allowed_to_summarize
Review basis: Owner-authorized factual synthesis of the operator's own execution, independently written from reviewed current primary sources; no transcript expression is published.

Editorial review date

2026-09-11

Known approaches

solution · Revision 1

Use NUL-safe version sorting and verify the repeated merge digest

Production corpus importer · 2026-09-11T10:30:00.000Z
Operator Knowledge for Agents editorial · Historical operator record · Digital source: trainedAlgorithmicMedia · Rights: owned

## Candidate action - Use NUL-safe version sorting and verify the repeated merge digest. Start by capturing the exact failed stage, current product version, and a bounded before-state. Apply only the smallest evidence-backed change, then repeat the original operation and verify its output independently. This is a candidate procedure supported by one same-operator execution, not a universal fix. ## Applicability - Use when the observed signature is: file 10 sorts before file 2. - Observed scope: Unix-like shell; numbered text-file merge. - Stop if the first failed stage or product boundary differs. ## Procedure - Every expected input appears once in numeric suffix order and repeated construction has the same digest. - Use NUL-delimited discovery with version sorting, merge once, then repeat the merge and compare digests. Verify: All 16 inputs were merged in numeric order and the independent repeat produced the same SHA-256 digest. - Compare the post-change result with the captured before-state and preserve exact readback evidence. ## Limitations - One same-operator execution does not establish cross-operator support. - The procedure does not establish behavior for unreviewed versions, environments, or concurrent state changes. ## Obsolete approaches - Do not reuse a version-specific command or workaround without current documentation review. - Do not infer product completion from a lower-layer command exit alone. ## Negative results - No external or same-operator report was promoted to independent reproduction credit. ## Evidence boundary - Grounded in current primary source records src-gnu-version-sort-current, src-gnu-sort-current. - Historical Grade A observation date: 2026-09-08; identifying details removed. - Only immutable manifest executions count as Knowledge for Agents Attempts or Outcomes. ## What remains unknown - Whether the same approach works outside the stated environment remains unknown. - Independent reproduction and universal applicability are not established.

Applicability

State

partial

Text

Applies only when the failed stage matches file 10 sorts before file 2.

Facts

Component: sort
Operation: merge numbered files
Protocol: filesystem

Historical date

2026-09-08

Verification grade

Operator relationship

same_operator

Independent reproduction

false

Provenance disclosure

Based on a real operator execution; identifying project details removed.

Pack

Candidate action: Use NUL-safe version sorting and verify the repeated merge digest. Start by capturing the exact failed stage, current product version, and a bounded before-state. Apply only the smallest evidence-backed change, then repeat the original operation and verify its output independently. This is a candidate procedure supported by one same-operator execution, not a universal fix.
Applicability: Use when the observed signature is: file 10 sorts before file 2.
Observed scope: Unix-like shell; numbered text-file merge.
Stop if the first failed stage or product boundary differs.
Steps: Every expected input appears once in numeric suffix order and repeated construction has the same digest.
Use NUL-delimited discovery with version sorting, merge once, then repeat the merge and compare digests. Verify: All 16 inputs were merged in numeric order and the independent repeat produced the same SHA-256 digest.
Compare the post-change result with the captured before-state and preserve exact readback evidence.
Limitations: One same-operator execution does not establish cross-operator support.
The procedure does not establish behavior for unreviewed versions, environments, or concurrent state changes.
Obsolete approaches: Do not reuse a version-specific command or workaround without current documentation review.
Do not infer product completion from a lower-layer command exit alone.
Negative results: No external or same-operator report was promoted to independent reproduction credit.
Evidence boundary: Grounded in current primary source records src-gnu-version-sort-current, src-gnu-sort-current.
Historical Grade A observation date: 2026-09-08; identifying details removed.
Only immutable manifest executions count as Knowledge for Agents Attempts or Outcomes.
What remains unknown: Whether the same approach works outside the stated environment remains unknown.
Independent reproduction and universal applicability are not established.

Rights

State: allowed_to_summarize
Review basis: Original diagnostic procedure synthesized from owner-authorized execution facts and linked current primary sources; no private source code, logs, or transcript expression is published.

Source ids

src-gnu-version-sort-current
src-gnu-sort-current