fix: ensure API key detection properly reads .env in MCP context

Problem:
- Task Master model configuration wasn't properly checking for API keys in the project's .env file when running through MCP
- The isApiKeySet function was only checking session.env and process.env but not inspecting the .env file directly
- This caused incorrect API key status reporting in MCP tools even when keys were properly set in .env

Solution:
- Modified resolveEnvVariable function in utils.js to properly read from .env file at projectRoot
- Updated isApiKeySet to correctly pass projectRoot to resolveEnvVariable
- Enhanced the key detection logic to have consistent behavior between CLI and MCP contexts
- Maintains the correct precedence: session.env → .env file → process.env

Testing:
- Verified working correctly with both MCP and CLI tools
- API keys properly detected in .env file in both contexts
- Deleted .cursor/mcp.json to confirm introspection of .env as fallback works

scripts/modules/config-manager.js

@@ -424,12 +424,13 @@ function getParametersForRole(role, explicitRoot = null) {
 
 /**
  * Checks if the API key for a given provider is set in the environment.
- * Checks process.env first, then session.env if session is provided.
+ * Checks process.env first, then session.env if session is provided, then .env file if projectRoot provided.
  * @param {string} providerName - The name of the provider (e.g., 'openai', 'anthropic').
  * @param {object|null} [session=null] - The MCP session object (optional).
+ * @param {string|null} [projectRoot=null] - The project root directory (optional, for .env file check).
  * @returns {boolean} True if the API key is set, false otherwise.
  */
-function isApiKeySet(providerName, session = null) {
+function isApiKeySet(providerName, session = null, projectRoot = null) {
 	// Define the expected environment variable name for each provider
 	if (providerName?.toLowerCase() === 'ollama') {
 		return true; // Indicate key status is effectively "OK"
@@ -454,7 +455,7 @@ function isApiKeySet(providerName, session = null) {
 	}
 
 	const envVarName = keyMap[providerKey];
-	const apiKeyValue = resolveEnvVariable(envVarName, session);
+	const apiKeyValue = resolveEnvVariable(envVarName, session, projectRoot);
 
 	// Check if the key exists, is not empty, and is not a placeholder
 	return (

scripts/modules/task-manager/models.js

@@ -77,7 +77,7 @@ function fetchOpenRouterModels() {
  * @returns {Object} RESTful response with current model configuration
  */
 async function getModelConfiguration(options = {}) {
-	const { mcpLog, projectRoot } = options;
+	const { mcpLog, projectRoot, session } = options;
 
 	const report = (level, ...args) => {
 		if (mcpLog && typeof mcpLog[level] === 'function') {
@@ -125,12 +125,16 @@ async function getModelConfiguration(options = {}) {
 		const fallbackModelId = getFallbackModelId(projectRoot);
 
 		// Check API keys
-		const mainCliKeyOk = isApiKeySet(mainProvider);
+		const mainCliKeyOk = isApiKeySet(mainProvider, session, projectRoot);
 		const mainMcpKeyOk = getMcpApiKeyStatus(mainProvider, projectRoot);
-		const researchCliKeyOk = isApiKeySet(researchProvider);
+		const researchCliKeyOk = isApiKeySet(
+			researchProvider,
+			session,
+			projectRoot
+		);
 		const researchMcpKeyOk = getMcpApiKeyStatus(researchProvider, projectRoot);
 		const fallbackCliKeyOk = fallbackProvider
-			? isApiKeySet(fallbackProvider)
+			? isApiKeySet(fallbackProvider, session, projectRoot)
 			: true;
 		const fallbackMcpKeyOk = fallbackProvider
 			? getMcpApiKeyStatus(fallbackProvider, projectRoot)
@@ -523,7 +527,7 @@ async function getApiKeyStatusReport(options = {}) {
 		); // Ollama is not a provider, it's a service, doesn't need an api key usually
 		const statusReport = providersToCheck.map((provider) => {
 			// Use provided projectRoot for MCP status check
-			const cliOk = isApiKeySet(provider, session); // Pass session for CLI check too
+			const cliOk = isApiKeySet(provider, session, projectRoot); // Pass session and projectRoot for CLI check
 			const mcpOk = getMcpApiKeyStatus(provider, projectRoot);
 			return {
 				provider,

scripts/modules/utils.js

@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@
 import fs from 'fs';
 import path from 'path';
 import chalk from 'chalk';
+import dotenv from 'dotenv';
 // Import specific config getters needed here
 import { getLogLevel, getDebugFlag } from './config-manager.js';
 
@@ -14,16 +15,47 @@ let silentMode = false;
 
 // --- Environment Variable Resolution Utility ---
 /**
- * Resolves an environment variable by checking process.env first, then session.env.
- * @param {string} varName - The name of the environment variable.
- * @param {string|null} session - The MCP session object (optional).
+ * Resolves an environment variable's value.
+ * Precedence:
+ * 1. session.env (if session provided)
+ * 2. process.env
+ * 3. .env file at projectRoot (if projectRoot provided)
+ * @param {string} key - The environment variable key.
+ * @param {object|null} [session=null] - The MCP session object.
+ * @param {string|null} [projectRoot=null] - The project root directory (for .env fallback).
  * @returns {string|undefined} The value of the environment variable or undefined if not found.
  */
-function resolveEnvVariable(varName, session) {
-	// Ensure session and session.env exist before attempting access
-	const sessionValue =
-		session && session.env ? session.env[varName] : undefined;
-	return process.env[varName] ?? sessionValue;
+function resolveEnvVariable(key, session = null, projectRoot = null) {
+	// 1. Check session.env
+	if (session?.env?.[key]) {
+		return session.env[key];
+	}
+
+	// 2. Read .env file at projectRoot
+	if (projectRoot) {
+		const envPath = path.join(projectRoot, '.env');
+		if (fs.existsSync(envPath)) {
+			try {
+				const envFileContent = fs.readFileSync(envPath, 'utf-8');
+				const parsedEnv = dotenv.parse(envFileContent); // Use dotenv to parse
+				if (parsedEnv && parsedEnv[key]) {
+					// console.log(`DEBUG: Found key ${key} in ${envPath}`); // Optional debug log
+					return parsedEnv[key];
+				}
+			} catch (error) {
+				// Log error but don't crash, just proceed as if key wasn't found in file
+				log('warn', `Could not read or parse ${envPath}: ${error.message}`);
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
+	// 3. Fallback: Check process.env
+	if (process.env[key]) {
+		return process.env[key];
+	}
+
+	// Not found anywhere
+	return undefined;
 }
 
 // --- Project Root Finding Utility ---