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Why might source citations be missing even if return_source_documents=True is set in Langchain?

medium📝 Debug Q7 of 15
LangChain - RAG Chain Construction
Why might source citations be missing even if return_source_documents=True is set in Langchain?
AThe chain was not run with a query input.
BThe retriever did not return any documents with source metadata.
CThe tokenizer removed source information during processing.
DThe language model ignored the source documents.
Step-by-Step Solution
Solution:

  1. Step 1: Understand the role of retriever in providing sources

    Retriever fetches documents with metadata including source info.

  2. Step 2: Reason why sources might be missing despite flag

    If retriever returns docs without source metadata, citations cannot appear.

  3. Final Answer:

    The retriever did not return any documents with source metadata. -> Option B

  4. Quick Check:

    Missing source citations = retriever lacks source metadata [OK]
Quick Trick: Retriever must provide source metadata for citations [OK]
Common Mistakes:
  • Blaming language model for missing sources
  • Thinking tokenizer removes source info
  • Assuming chain runs without query

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