Agent ignoring rules

Where does the bug appear (feature/product)?

Cursor IDE

Describe the Bug

I add rules that are never read by the agent (using Opus 4.5), this is what the agent says:

You can’t force me to read them. They’re in the right place. I should read them automatically.
When I don’t follow them, call me out like you’re doing now. That’s the only enforcement mechanism.

It’s frustrating and defeats the point of having the rules in the first place.

Steps to Reproduce

Write rules and see them ignored after no more than 10 minutes

Expected Behavior

The agent should read the rules

Operating System

Windows 10/11

Current Cursor Version (Menu → About Cursor → Copy)

Version: 2.3.34 (user setup)
VSCode Version: 1.105.1
Commit: 643ba67cd252e2888e296dd0cf34a0c5d7625b90
Date: 2026-01-10T21:17:10.428Z
Electron: 37.7.0
Chromium: 138.0.7204.251
Node.js: 22.20.0
V8: 13.8.258.32-electron.0
OS: Windows_NT x64 10.0.26200

For AI issues: which model did you use?

Opus 4.5

Does this stop you from using Cursor

No - Cursor works, but with this issue

Hey, thanks for the report. This is a known issue: sometimes the agent ignores rules even with alwaysApply: true. The team is working on improving how well it follows boundaries and instructions.

To pass this to engineering, we need a bit more info:

  • Where are your rules stored, in .cursorrules or in .cursor/rules/?
  • How big are the rules files, about how many lines?
  • Can you share an example of a specific rule that gets ignored?
  • The Request ID for the chat where this happened (Chat menu > Copy Request ID)

Workarounds that help other users:

  1. Explicit mention: At the start of the chat, mention the rules with @, like @my-rule.md. This forces them into context.

  2. User Rules: Copy the critical instructions into Settings > Rules > User Rules. These apply globally and tend to be more reliable.

  3. Concrete examples: Instead of general wording, give step by step instructions with code examples.

  4. Rules size: Keep each rule under 500 lines. Split large ones into multiple files.

Thanks for the quick reply,
the rules are stored in .cursor/rules/
one file around 350 lines

Ignored rules included:

1. **NO HARDCODING** - Do NOT hardcode values unless specifically approved
2. **ALWAYS READ THE CODE** - Before making ANY change, read the actual code first. No assumptions, no guessing.

MANDATORY: Read Before ANY Implementation

Before writing ANY code, you MUST:

1. **Read `ARCHITECTURE.md`** in the project root - it contains ALL architectural rules

2. **Search the codebase** for existing systems that do what you’re about to implement

3. **Reuse existing patterns** - do NOT reinvent systems that already exist

  1. **Compile after each change** - Don’t accumulate errors

2. **Test critical logic immediately** - Write unit tests for:

  • New operations (test `evaluate()` and `generateGLSL()`)

  • Graph compilation (verify GLSL output is valid)

  • Serialization (round-trip test: save → load → compare)

3. **Run the application** - Visual verification catches what tests miss

4. **Check logs for errors** - Many failures show in console before visual symptoms

NO SHORTCUTS - Implement It Properly

**When asked to implement a feature, IMPLEMENT IT FULLY. Do not:**

1. **Revert to simpler behavior** - If the user asks for X, don’t give them “simple X” or “X without the hard parts”

2. **Leave it for “later”** - Don’t say “when your shader is ready” or “in the future” - implement it NOW

3. **Give up at the first obstacle** - If something breaks, FIX IT, don’t remove the feature

4. **Offer partial solutions** - Complete the entire task, including all necessary changes across all files

5. **Punt to the user** - Don’t tell them to “add this code to your shader” - add it yourself

**When something breaks after your change:**

- Debug and fix it properly

- Trace through the entire system to understand why

- Make changes in ALL necessary files (shaders, C++, graphs, etc.)

- Test mentally that the solution is complete

DEBUGGING - Read The Code, Don’t Spam Logs

**When debugging an issue:**

1. **READ THE CODE FIRST** - Trace through the logic by actually reading the source files

2. **Understand the full flow** - Map out the entire call chain before making changes

3. **NO ENDLESS CONSOLE OUTPUT** - Don’t add `std::cout` or debug prints as your first approach

4. **Find the root cause** - Don’t just treat symptoms, find WHY it’s broken

5. **ONE FIX AT A TIME** - Make a fix, verify it works, then move on

I mean from my experience, this has always been a thing. I have like 10 lines in .cursorrules and it literally has never once followed a single rule. Theres one that says, don’t add comments ever. It adds comments on every single line pretty much. Its been like this always by the way, i gave up on rules forever ago.

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