Give -v to verbose, move --version to -V (closes #64)

urfave/cli's built-in version flag claimed -v, so "mfer -v --version"
failed to parse, and -v meant version at the root but verbose on
generate, check, freshen and fetch. Verbose is the more common meaning,
so the root now takes -v and -q too, the version flag takes -V, and a
-v or -q before the subcommand name applies to that subcommand.

User-visible changes: -v alone prints help with verbose logging, not
the version; use -V or --version. "mfer version" prints "mfer version
0.1.0 (...)", the same line as --version, instead of the bare
"0.1.0 (...)".

The error-message tests now send their log lines to io.Discard; they
were landing in other tests' output buffers.

Model: opus-4-8 (implementation); opus-5-5 (rework)

README.md

@@ -417,8 +417,8 @@ proto `go_package` option. Which is canonical?
       matching Scanner
 - [ ] Add `--deterministic` flag or make it default — omit `createdAt`, sort
       files (pending design question answer)
-- [ ] Wire `--version` flag properly (currently only a `version` subcommand
-      exists; top-level `--version` shows urfave/cli generic output)
+- [x] Wire `--version` flag properly: `--version` and `-V` print the same line
+      as the `version` subcommand, and `-v` means verbose
 - [ ] Add retry logic to `fetch` — currently no retries on transient HTTP
       errors; needs exponential backoff
 - [ ] `fetch` command uses bare `http.Get` with no timeout — needs `http.Client`

TODO.md

@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ only thing left of the `chore/align-repo-policies` branch is the list below.
 
 # Completed Steps
 
+- 2026-09-21: fixed the `-v` collision between `--verbose` and `--version`;
+  verbose owns `-v`, and version answers to `--version` and `-V` (#64)
 - 2026-10-03: pinned the CLI error messages by driving the functions that emit
   them in `internal/cli/errmsg_test.go`, and made the freshen mtime-presence
   test distinguish an absent mtime from the epoch (#87)

internal/cli/entry_test.go

@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ const (
 	testManifest    = "/manifest.mf"
 	testFlagBase    = "--base"
 	testFlagNoExtra = "--no-extra-files"
+	testFlagVersion = "--version"
 )
 
 var errSimulatedWrite = errors.New("simulated write failure")
@@ -102,7 +103,7 @@ func TestVersionCommand(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()
 
 	fs := afero.NewMemMapFs()
-	opts := testOpts([]string{testApp, "version"}, fs)
+	opts := testOpts([]string{testApp, cmdVersion}, fs)
 
 	exitCode := runCLI(opts)
 
@@ -113,6 +114,110 @@ func TestVersionCommand(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.Contains(t, stdout, "abc123")
 }
 
+// TestVFlagCollision covers the -v/--verbose vs --version flag interaction
+// (issue #64). Verbose owns -v; version answers to --version and -V. None of
+// these invocations may produce a parser error, and the two ways of asking
+// for the version must print the same thing.
+func TestVFlagCollision(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	// Invocations that must print the version and exit 0.
+	versionCases := map[string][]string{
+		"long version flag":        {testApp, testFlagVersion},
+		"short version flag":       {testApp, "-V"},
+		"verbose then version":     {testApp, "-v", testFlagVersion},
+		"long verbose and version": {testApp, "--verbose", testFlagVersion},
+	}
+
+	for name, args := range versionCases {
+		t.Run(name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			opts := testOpts(args, afero.NewMemMapFs())
+			exitCode := runCLI(opts)
+
+			assert.Equal(t, 0, exitCode, "stderr: %s", testStderr(t, opts))
+			assert.Contains(t, testStdout(t, opts), mfer.Version)
+			assert.NotContains(t, testStderr(t, opts), "two forms of the same flag")
+		})
+	}
+
+	// Invocations that must enable verbose and exit 0 without a parser error.
+	verboseCases := map[string][]string{
+		"short verbose flag": {testApp, "-v"},
+		"long verbose flag":  {testApp, "--verbose"},
+	}
+
+	for name, args := range verboseCases {
+		t.Run(name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			opts := testOpts(args, afero.NewMemMapFs())
+			exitCode := runCLI(opts)
+
+			assert.Equal(t, 0, exitCode, "stderr: %s", testStderr(t, opts))
+			assert.Contains(t, testStdout(t, opts), cmdGenerate,
+				"root should show help listing subcommands")
+			assert.Empty(t, testStderr(t, opts))
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// TestVersionFlagAndCommandMatch asserts that "mfer --version" and
+// "mfer version" produce identical output (issue #64).
+func TestVersionFlagAndCommandMatch(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	flagOpts := testOpts([]string{testApp, testFlagVersion}, afero.NewMemMapFs())
+	require.Equal(t, 0, runCLI(flagOpts))
+
+	cmdOpts := testOpts([]string{testApp, cmdVersion}, afero.NewMemMapFs())
+	require.Equal(t, 0, runCLI(cmdOpts))
+
+	assert.Equal(t, testStdout(t, flagOpts), testStdout(t, cmdOpts))
+}
+
+// TestVerbosityFlagsBeforeSubcommand asserts that -q and -v given before the
+// subcommand name take effect in that subcommand (issue #64).
+func TestVerbosityFlagsBeforeSubcommand(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	t.Run("quiet before fetch hides the banner", func(t *testing.T) {
+		t.Parallel()
+
+		opts := testOpts([]string{testApp, "-q", cmdFetch}, afero.NewMemMapFs())
+
+		assert.Equal(t, 1, runCLI(opts))
+		assert.Contains(t, testStderr(t, opts), errURLRequired.Error())
+		assert.NotContains(t, testStdout(t, opts), banner)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("verbose twice before fetch enables debug logging", func(t *testing.T) {
+		t.Parallel()
+
+		opts := testOpts([]string{testApp, "-v", "-v", cmdFetch}, afero.NewMemMapFs())
+
+		assert.Equal(t, 1, runCLI(opts))
+		assert.Contains(t, testStderr(t, opts), "fetchManifestOperation()")
+	})
+
+	t.Run("quiet before export hides the manifest summary", func(t *testing.T) {
+		t.Parallel()
+
+		fs := afero.NewMemMapFs()
+		manifest := buildTestManifest(t, map[string][]byte{"a.txt": []byte("a")})
+		require.NoError(t, afero.WriteFile(fs, testManifest, manifest, 0o644))
+
+		loud := testOpts([]string{testApp, cmdExport, testManifest}, fs)
+		require.Equal(t, 0, runCLI(loud))
+		assert.Contains(t, testStderr(t, loud), "loaded manifest")
+
+		quiet := testOpts([]string{testApp, "-q", cmdExport, testManifest}, fs)
+		require.Equal(t, 0, runCLI(quiet))
+		assert.NotContains(t, testStderr(t, quiet), "loaded manifest")
+	})
+}
+
 func TestHelpCommand(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()
 

internal/cli/errmsg_test.go

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import (
 	"bytes"
 	"context"
 	"flag"
+	"io"
 	"net/http"
 	"net/http/httptest"
 	"os"
@@ -16,6 +17,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
 	urfcli "github.com/urfave/cli/v2"
+	"sneak.berlin/go/mfer/internal/log"
 	"sneak.berlin/go/mfer/mfer"
 )
 
@@ -36,12 +38,16 @@ const (
 	msgFpB = "BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB"
 )
 
-// runLocked runs fn while holding runMu, so operations that write to the
-// process-global logger do not race the other CLI runs.
+// runLocked runs fn while holding runMu and with the process-global logger
+// pointed at io.Discard, so fn's log lines neither race the other CLI runs
+// nor land in the last run's buffers, which its test may still be reading.
 func runLocked(fn func() error) error {
 	runMu.Lock()
 	defer runMu.Unlock()
 
+	log.SetOutput(io.Discard, io.Discard)
+	log.Init()
+
 	return fn()
 }
 

internal/cli/mfer.go

@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ const (
 	cmdCheck    = "check"
 	cmdExport   = "export"
 	cmdFetch    = "fetch"
+	cmdVersion  = "version"
 
 	flagProgress = "progress"
 
@@ -68,6 +69,12 @@ func (mfa *CLIApp) VersionString() string {
 	return mfer.Version
 }
 
+// printVersion writes the version line shared by the --version flag and the
+// version subcommand, so both produce identical output.
+func (mfa *CLIApp) printVersion() {
+	_, _ = fmt.Fprintf(mfa.Stdout, "%s version %s\n", mfa.appname, mfa.VersionString())
+}
+
 func (mfa *CLIApp) printBanner() {
 	if log.GetLevel() <= log.InfoLevel {
 		_, _ = fmt.Fprintln(mfa.Stdout, banner)
@@ -78,20 +85,34 @@ func (mfa *CLIApp) printBanner() {
 	}
 }
 
+// setVerbosity sets the log level from -v and -q, given before the subcommand
+// name (the root's copies), after it (the subcommand's own copies), or both.
+// urfave/cli reads a flag from the nearest command that defines it, so each
+// command in the lineage is asked. The highest -v count wins rather than the
+// sum, because a subcommand without its own copies reads the root's.
 func (mfa *CLIApp) setVerbosity(c *cli.Context) {
 	_, present := os.LookupEnv("MFER_DEBUG")
 
+	verbosity := 0
+	quiet := false
+
+	for _, ctx := range c.Lineage() {
+		verbosity = max(verbosity, ctx.Count("verbose"))
+		quiet = quiet || ctx.Bool("quiet")
+	}
+
 	switch {
 	case present:
 		log.EnableDebugLogging()
-	case c.Bool("quiet"):
+	case quiet:
 		log.SetLevel(log.ErrorLevel)
 	default:
-		log.SetLevelFromVerbosity(c.Count("verbose"))
+		log.SetLevelFromVerbosity(verbosity)
 	}
 }
 
-// commonFlags returns the flags shared by most commands (-v, -q)
+// commonFlags returns the -v and -q flags taken by the root and by the
+// generate, check, freshen and fetch subcommands.
 func commonFlags() []cli.Flag {
 	return []cli.Flag{
 		&cli.BoolFlag{
@@ -259,6 +280,8 @@ func (mfa *CLIApp) exportCommand() *cli.Command {
 		Usage:     "Export manifest contents as JSON",
 		ArgsUsage: "[manifest file or URL]",
 		Action: func(c *cli.Context) error {
+			mfa.setVerbosity(c)
+
 			return mfa.exportManifestOperation(c)
 		},
 	}
@@ -266,10 +289,10 @@ func (mfa *CLIApp) exportCommand() *cli.Command {
 
 func (mfa *CLIApp) versionCommand() *cli.Command {
 	return &cli.Command{
-		Name:  "version",
+		Name:  cmdVersion,
 		Usage: "Show version",
 		Action: func(_ *cli.Context) error {
-			_, _ = fmt.Fprintln(mfa.Stdout, mfa.VersionString())
+			mfa.printVersion()
 
 			return nil
 		},
@@ -325,6 +348,21 @@ func (mfa *CLIApp) run(args []string) {
 	log.SetOutput(mfa.Stdout, mfa.Stderr)
 	log.Init()
 
+	// -v means verbose, not version. urfave/cli's built-in version flag
+	// claims -v by default, which made "mfer -v --version" fail to parse and
+	// gave -v a different meaning at the root than on the generate, check,
+	// freshen and fetch subcommands, where it means verbose. Verbose is the
+	// more common meaning of -v in tools that offer both, so -v means verbose
+	// at the root too and the version flag takes the capital -V.
+	// VersionFlag and VersionPrinter are urfave/cli package globals; run() is
+	// serialized in tests, so assigning them here is safe.
+	cli.VersionFlag = &cli.BoolFlag{
+		Name:    cmdVersion,
+		Aliases: []string{"V"},
+		Usage:   "print the version",
+	}
+	cli.VersionPrinter = func(_ *cli.Context) { mfa.printVersion() }
+
 	mfa.app = &cli.App{
 		Name:                 mfa.appname,
 		Usage:                "Manifest generator",
@@ -332,11 +370,13 @@ func (mfa *CLIApp) run(args []string) {
 		EnableBashCompletion: true,
 		Writer:               mfa.Stdout,
 		ErrWriter:            mfa.Stderr,
+		Flags:                commonFlags(),
 		Action: func(c *cli.Context) error {
 			if c.Args().Len() > 0 {
 				return fmt.Errorf("%w %q", errUnknownCommand, c.Args().First())
 			}
 
+			mfa.setVerbosity(c)
 			mfa.printBanner()
 
 			return cli.ShowAppHelp(c)