Simplify command denylist/whitelist, make them useful and clear how they work

Feature Requests
1

I don’t know how they work and couldn’t find out How does command allowlist/denylist really work? - #5

tl;dr Here’s a refined proposal for a better Cursor command allowlist/denylist system, structured clearly for feedback or discussion:

  1. Add simple wildcard matcher like grep *
  2. First run command throu the denylist matchers
  3. Then run it through whitelist matcher

Give fine-grained control to power users instead of the current blckbox logic that yields different result in different chats for unknown reasons.

Here is a GPT refined description:

:white_check_mark: Goal

Make Cursor commands predictable and transparent by replacing black-box behavior with user-controllable matching logic.

:wrench: Proposed Matching Logic

A simple and powerful 3-step recipe to process command execution permissions:

1. Add Simple Wildcard Matchers

Support shell-like pattern matchers (e.g. *, ?) similar to how grep or .gitignore works.

  • Example patterns:
    • rm *
    • docker compose *
    • git push origin main

This allows intuitive, broad or narrow command patterning.

2. Run Through Denylist First

  • If the command matches any denylist pattern , it is rejected immediately .
  • Use cases:
    • Prevent rm *
    • Block risky patterns like curl * | sh
    • Disable all unknown bash functions with a pattern like bash *

This gives users a first line of defense against harmful commands.

3. Then Run Through Allowlist

  • If the command is not denied, then check whether it matches any allowlist pattern.
  • If it matches → allow execution.
  • If not → deny by default .

This makes the system explicitly opt-in for commands, enabling:

  • Fine-grained permission control
  • Clear developer intent
  • Reduced surprises across chats

:brain: Why This Is Better

  • Predictable: Order of operations is consistent and transparent.
  • Debuggable: Power users can see why a command passed or failed.
  • Customizable: Tailor patterns to your workflow or team policy.
  • Consistent: Eliminates inconsistent behavior across chats/sessions.

:memo: Example

denylist:
  - "rm *"
  - "curl * | sh"

allowlist:
  - "git *"
  - "ls *"
  - "docker compose *"

Result:

  • :white_check_mark: git push origin main → allowed
  • :cross_mark: rm -rf . → blocked by denylist
  • :cross_mark: docker system prune → not allowed (not on allowlist)
  • :white_check_mark: docker compose up → allowed

:puzzle_piece: Final Note

Power users will always want control. Give them a clear, composable mechanism instead of opaque rules that differ per chat.

This system is simple to understand, yet expressive enough for real-world use.

2

agreed, i still dont understand if even possible to for example deny all commands or what if i dont put in anything in both fields?

3

I think you can disable the commands - it was the YOLO mode. I don’t even want to test it.

I have an enormous list of whitelist commands and a small list of deny commands, and it sometimes works.

Sometimes I have to be approving all whitelisted commands no matter what I put there, and occasionally it will run through deny commands (although this is thankfully rare, but I also include deny ones in rules and many other places lol).

It’s a freaking blackbox that no one knows how it works :man_shrugging:t2:

4

i tested it and it does not seem to work, that is the problem..

5

The best would be if the commands can be added to the allow / deny list directly from the chat itself, when prompted to run, skip or explain how to do differently then there could be an dialogue which can add it to the settings to either always run, or always run with parameters, or always run in this specific project, etc