'Composer 2 Fast' prompting to approve most, if not all, of its internal workings

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1 
Version: 2.6.20 (user setup)
VSCode Version: 1.105.1
Commit: b29eb4ee5f9f6d1cb2afbc09070198d3ea6ad760
Date: 2026-03-17T01:50:02.404Z
Build Type: Stable
Release Track: Default
Electron: 39.8.1
Chromium: 142.0.7444.265
Node.js: 22.22.1
V8: 14.2.231.22-electron.0
OS: Windows_NT x64 10.0.26200

I recently updated Cursor and selected the ‘Composer 2 Fast’ model.

I described a feature I wanted added to my current Node.js project and, after some clarification of requirements, Cursor set about implementing it.

I saw behaviour that I have not seen before.

I was prompted, many times, to Run or Skip what seemed to be the ‘internal workings’ that Cursor required.

This included commands like:

wc -l and tail / sed / od / xxd / tail -c

python -c “…”

python …/_fix_generate_html.py then rm …/_fix_generate_html.py
(Cursor seemed to create a python file to fix a problem it had created, and later delete the python file)

node --check

python << ‘PY’

I looked to see if any Cursor Settings could be causing this behaviour and I saw:

Cursor Settings > Agents > Auto-Run Mode: Ask Every Time

However, I had not changed this setting recently, so I am not sure why this ‘over-zealous’ prompting only kicked in now.

How can I prevent Cursor from prompting me to run commands which seem to be related to its basic functionality?

3

When you first start using Composer 2, a styled toast notification appears asking if you’d like to auto-approve everything going forward. It’s easy enough to click it thinking it’s an announcement, perhaps you did this without realizing it? I know I had to pause when I first read it.

4

That may indeed have occurred.

So, is the solution therefore just to change this setting:

Cursor Settings > Agents > Auto-Run Mode: Use Allowlist

?

5

Yes, although that setting was removed in Cursor 2.0 and replaced with Ask Every Time, Auto-Run in Sandbox and Run Everything. I assume if you are seeing that setting you have enabled the Legacy Terminal Tool.

6

Hey, good request.

@Chris_C is right. If you see the Use Allowlist option, you probably have the Legacy Terminal Tool enabled. That setting was replaced in Cursor 2.0.

In the current version, Auto-Run Mode has three options:

  • Run in Sandbox recommended. Commands run automatically, but in an isolated environment. The agent won’t ask for approval for every small thing, and it still stays safe.
  • Ask Every Time. What you have now. Every command needs approval.
  • Run Everything. Runs everything without asking, not recommended.

What I’d suggest:

  1. Check if Legacy Terminal Tool is enabled in Cursor Settings > Agents, and turn it off if it is. Then you’ll see the current settings.
  2. Set Auto-Run Mode to Run in Sandbox.
  3. One important note. On Windows, Sandbox requires WSL2 to be installed: What is Windows Subsystem for Linux | Microsoft Learn. If you don’t have WSL2, sandbox won’t be available and the agent will fall back to Ask Every Time.

More on the modes: Terminal | Cursor Docs

Let me know if you still have any questions.