False “workspace folder is the prefix of…” error across mapped network drives (M: vs V:)

Support Bug Reports
,
1

Where does the bug appear (feature/product)?

Cursor IDE

Describe the Bug

I saw that there is constantly “{n} files to analyze” and started digging the output logs. I’m not sure if those are connected.
This is the workspace:

{

    "folders": [

        {

            "path": "."

        },

        {

            "path": "V:/stocks"

        }

    ],

    "settings": {}

}

2026-09-19 02:31:15.076 [error] Workspace folder stocks is the prefix of m:\work\mresearch. We don’t support multiple workspace folders that are subfolders of each other.
2026-09-19 02:31:15.076 [info] Using existing keys for an index
2026-09-19 02:31:15.076 [info] InternalRepoInfo constructor with preferredEmbeddingModel 0
2026-09-19 02:31:15.101 [info] Not creating an indexing watcher: this workspace does not require one.
2026-09-19 02:36:15.091 [info] Relevant feature gate changed; re-evaluating indexing watcher.
2026-09-19 02:36:15.091 [error] Workspace folder stocks is the prefix of m:\work\mresearch. We don’t support multiple workspace folders that are subfolders of each other.
2026-09-19 02:36:15.091 [info] Using existing keys for an index
2026-09-19 02:36:15.091 [info] InternalRepoInfo constructor with preferredEmbeddingModel 0
2026-09-19 02:36:15.119 [info] Not creating an indexing watcher: this workspace does not require one.

Steps to Reproduce

Have two repos in one workspace (probably).

Operating System

Windows 10/11

Version Information

Version: 3.21.13 (user setup)
VS Code Extension API: 1.128.0
Commit: e44a49c17e334d442e58bbde931d791200f014a0
Date: 2026-09-18T06:43:24.799Z
Layout: IDE
Build Type: Stable
Release Track: Nightly
Electron: 42.10.0
Chromium: 148.0.7778.280
Node.js: 24.18.1
V8: 14.8.178.38-electron.0
xterm.js: 6.1.0-beta.291
OS: Windows_NT x64 10.0.19045

Does this stop you from using Cursor

Sometimes - I can sometimes use Cursor

5

image
Btw this keeps rotating forever basically. I’m not sure if it is connected with the problem.

6

Hey @TByte007, thanks for the report.

Those two things are not connected. The Workspace folder stocks is the prefix of m:\work\mresearch line is a false alarm that shows up when a multi-folder workspace has folders on two different drive letters (M: and V: in your case). It is only a log message. It does not affect chat, the agent, or search, and I’ve flagged it to the team so the message stops appearing.

The constant N files to analyze indicator comes from the Python language server (Pyright), not from Cursor’s indexing. It usually keeps re-running when it is set to analyze the whole workspace and files keep changing on disk (data files, generated output, or anything on a network drive that gets touched often). To calm it down:

  1. Open Ctrl + Shift + P > Open VSCode Settings and search for python.analysis.diagnosticMode
  2. Set it to openFilesOnly (this is the default, so if it already says that, skip to step 3).
  3. Search for python.analysis.exclude and add any folders that hold data, output, or a virtual environment (for example **/data/**, **/.venv/**).
  4. Restart Cursor and open the same workspace.

Does the “files to analyze” count now go to zero and stay there?