`read_file` and `write` tools blocked by `.cursorignore` even when file is empty or deleted

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1

Where does the bug appear (feature/product)?

Cursor IDE

Describe the Bug

Cursor’s read_file and write tools report “Read blocked by cursor ignore” error even when .cursorignore file contains only comments or is completely deleted. Both tools are blocked with the same error message, suggesting blocking occurs before operation type is checked. Terminal commands (cat, grep, echo > file, etc.) work perfectly, indicating this is a Cursor-specific tool issue, not a file permission problem.

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Open a Git repository workspace in Cursor
  2. Create or verify .cursorignore file exists (even if empty or contains only comments)
  3. Attempt to use read_file tool on any file in the repository
  4. Observe the error: “Error: Read blocked by cursor ignore”
  5. Attempt to use write tool to create a file
  6. Observe the same error: “Rejected: Read blocked by cursor ignore”

Terminal commands work fine

$ cat CONVERSATION_CONTEXT.md

File content displays correctly :white_check_mark:

$ echo “test” > .test.txt && cat .test.txt && rm .test.txt

File write/read/delete works :white_check_mark:

But Cursor tools fail

read_file: Error: Read blocked by cursor ignore :cross_mark:

write: Rejected: Read blocked by cursor ignore :cross_mark:

Expected Behavior

  • read_file tool should work when .cursorignore is empty or contains only comments
  • read_file tool should work when .cursorignore file is deleted
  • write tool should work when .cursorignore is empty or contains only comments
  • write tool should work when .cursorignore file is deleted
  • Files should be readable/writable via Cursor tools unless explicitly ignored in .cursorignore

Screenshots / Screen Recordings

Screenshot 2026-01-14 125137.png
Screenshot 2026-01-14 125137.png374×244 8.29 KB

Operating System

Windows 10/11

Current Cursor Version (Menu → About Cursor → Copy)

Version: 2.3.35 (system setup)
VSCode Version: 1.105.1
Commit: cf8353edc265f5e46b798bfb276861d0bf3bf120
Date: 2026-01-13T07:39:18.564Z
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 10.0.26100

For AI issues: which model did you use?

Auto

Does this stop you from using Cursor

No - Cursor works, but with this issue

3

Hey, this is a known issue. The team is aware and working on a fix.

For now, you can try a few things:

  1. Check parent directories for a .cursorignore file. Sometimes it gets picked up from a folder above:

    find .. -name ".cursorignore" -maxdepth 2

  2. Fully restart Cursor. Not just close the window, but quit it completely with Cmd+Q or Alt+F4, then open it again.

  3. Check Cursor Settings > General > Global Cursor Ignore List and make sure there aren’t any patterns that match your files.

Workaround from another user: files are read normally if they’re opened in the editor.

If nothing helps, can you share the contents of your .gitignore? I suspect the issue might be related to how negations are handled.

4

I deleted all the Cursor ignore and cache files, completely shut down Cursor, and then restarted it. That seems to have solved the issue for now.

1 Like