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fix(kubectl): recognize absolute Windows paths #132592

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@adalinesimonian adalinesimonian commented Jun 27, 2025 •
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What type of PR is this?

/kind bug

What this PR does / why we need it:

This PR fixes a bug where kubectl cp would incorrectly interpret Windows absolute paths as pod specifications. Before this change, paths like C:\temp\file.txt would be parsed as a pod named C with file path \temp\file.txt because the colon character was used as a delimiter to separate pod specifications from file paths.

The fix adds Windows-specific path detection that checks for the Windows absolute path pattern before attempting to parse pod specifications. This ensures that Windows users can use absolute paths with kubectl cp without running into parsing errors.

Which issue(s) this PR is related to:

Fixes #101985

Special notes for your reviewer:

  • The fix is Windows-specific and only activates when runtime.GOOS == "windows".
  • I added test coverage for Windows path scenarios, but the new tests only run on Windows.
  • I've done my best to maintain backward compatibility and not affect Unix/Linux path handling.
  • All existing tests continue to pass, and new Windows-specific tests have been added. The rest of the tests in staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/ now pass on Windows after these changes.

Besides the above, just a disclaimer that I am completely new to contributing to this repository. I don't have a good mental model of how all of the pieces fit together here. Though, I've done my best to try, and I am happy for any feedback or guidance.

Does this PR introduce a user-facing change?

kubectl cp now correctly handles Windows absolute paths, such as C:\path\to\file, instead of incorrectly interpreting them as pod specifications.

Additional documentation e.g., KEPs (Kubernetes Enhancement Proposals), usage docs, etc.:

N/A

@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot added release-note Denotes a PR that will be considered when it comes time to generate release notes. do-not-merge/invalid-commit-message Indicates that a PR should not merge because it has an invalid commit message. size/L Denotes a PR that changes 100-499 lines, ignoring generated files. labels Jun 27, 2025
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linux-foundation-easycla bot commented Jun 27, 2025 •
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CLA Signed

The committers listed above are authorized under a signed CLA.

  • ✅ login: adalinesimonian / name: Adaline Valentina Simonian (f785bce)

@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot added the do-not-merge/needs-kind Indicates a PR lacks a `kind/foo` label and requires one. label Jun 27, 2025
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Welcome @adalinesimonian!

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@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot added do-not-merge/needs-sig Indicates an issue or PR lacks a `sig/foo` label and requires one. cncf-cla: no Indicates the PR's author has not signed the CNCF CLA. needs-triage Indicates an issue or PR lacks a `triage/foo` label and requires one. needs-ok-to-test Indicates a PR that requires an org member to verify it is safe to test. labels Jun 27, 2025
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This issue is currently awaiting triage.

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Hi @adalinesimonian. Thanks for your PR.

I'm waiting for a kubernetes member to verify that this patch is reasonable to test. If it is, they should reply with /ok-to-test on its own line. Until that is done, I will not automatically test new commits in this PR, but the usual testing commands by org members will still work. Regular contributors should join the org to skip this step.

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@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot added the needs-priority Indicates a PR lacks a `priority/foo` label and requires one. label Jun 27, 2025
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[APPROVALNOTIFIER] This PR is NOT APPROVED

This pull-request has been approved by: adalinesimonian
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@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot requested review from ardaguclu and seans3 June 27, 2025 23:59
@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot added area/kubectl sig/cli Categorizes an issue or PR as relevant to SIG CLI. and removed do-not-merge/needs-sig Indicates an issue or PR lacks a `sig/foo` label and requires one. labels Jun 27, 2025
@github-project-automation github-project-automation bot moved this to Needs Triage in SIG CLI Jun 27, 2025
@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot added cncf-cla: yes Indicates the PR's author has signed the CNCF CLA. and removed cncf-cla: no Indicates the PR's author has not signed the CNCF CLA. labels Jun 28, 2025
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/kind bug

@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot added kind/bug Categorizes issue or PR as related to a bug. and removed do-not-merge/needs-kind Indicates a PR lacks a `kind/foo` label and requires one. labels Jun 28, 2025
@adalinesimonian
fix(kubectl): recognize absolute Windows paths
f785bce 
Fixes issue 101985

Before this change, kubectl cp would misinterpret Windows absolute paths
like "C:\temp\file.txt" as pod specifications because it would split on
the colon character, treating "C" as a pod name and  "\temp\file.txt" as
the file path.

This fix adds Windows path detection in extractFileSpec() by checking
for the pattern [drive letter]:[backslash or forward slash] before
attempting to parse pod specifications. It also adjusts path handling to
properly handle Windows drive letters in tar operations, and all tests
at staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/ now pass on Windows systems.

Changes made:

- Added isWindowsAbsolutePath() to detect Windows absolute paths
- Added stripWindowsDriveLetter() to strip the drive letter from Windows
  paths for consistent processing
- Modified extractFileSpec() to check for Windows paths first when
  running on Windows
- Modified stripPathShortcuts() to handle Windows path separators
- Added test coverage for Windows path handling
@adalinesimonian adalinesimonian force-pushed the fix-101985-kubectl-absolute-windows-paths branch from 7bf1a4b to f785bce Compare June 28, 2025 00:13
@k8s-ci-robot k8s-ci-robot removed the do-not-merge/invalid-commit-message Indicates that a PR should not merge because it has an invalid commit message. label Jun 28, 2025
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@ardaguclu ardaguclu Awaiting requested review from ardaguclu

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Successfully merging this pull request may close these issues.

kubectl cp command fails when passing full Windows path such as c:\Temp\foobar.txt
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