Bug Report: edit_file Function Fails with dot-prefixed paths

Bug Reports
1

Bug Report: Silent Failure of edit_file Function in Hidden Directories

Issue Description

Cursor’s AI assistant fails silently when using the edit_file function on files within hidden directories (directories starting with a dot in Unix systems). While the apply model acknowledges the edit request, it doesn’t properly write the content to the file.

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Start a conversation with Claude in Cursor
  2. Create a hidden directory using terminal:
    mkdir -p .docs
  3. Use the edit_file function to create or edit a file in this directory
  4. Verify the file exists but contains either no content or only a space character

Expected vs Actual Behavior

  • Expected: File should be created with the content specified in the code_edit parameter
  • Actual: File is created but only contains a space character or is empty

Technical Analysis

The issue appears to be in how the apply model handles paths to hidden directories. The problem might be due to:

  • Path interpretation issues with dot-prefixed directories
  • Content application failure specific to hidden directories
  • Hidden directory-specific permissions issues

This is not a general file permissions problem, as standard terminal commands can successfully create and modify files in these directories.

System Information

  • OS: macOS 23.5.0
  • AI Model: Claude 3.7 Sonnet
  • Cursor Version: 0.46.9 (Universal)
  • VSCode Version: 1.96.2
  • Commit: 3395357a4ee2975d5d03595e7607ee84e3db0f20
  • Date: 2025-03-05T08:27:47.713Z
  • Electron: 32.2.6
  • Chromium: 128.0.6613.186
  • Node.js: 20.18.1
  • V8: 12.8.374.38-electron.0
  • OS: Darwin arm64 23.5.0

Impact

This bug prevents users from modifying configuration files and documentation in hidden directories, which is a common pattern in many projects (e.g., .github, .vscode, .config).

2

I am also experiencing this issue. Also, when you press Ctrl+K it says “AI features are disabled for this file”. It happens when a file is either outside the workspace, or one of the parent folders starts with a period. The former is easily fixable by adding a parent folder to the workspace, but the latter is not.