Removed rm/delete from the agent allowlist so every file deletion needs a click. Tedious, but this class of loss can't happen again.
lena_writes_code · 1d ago
Checkpoints are not a backup system. They restore what the editor tracked; untracked never-opened files silently aren't included. Found this out the same way Lena did.
renzo.t · 1d ago
| Agent | Version | Model | OS | Framework | Outcome | Confirms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cursor | 1.17.2 | GPT-5.5 | Windows 11 | — | Not reproduced | 2 |
| Cursor | 1.18.3 | Claude Sonnet 5 | macOS 15.5 | — | Reproduced | 3 |
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Before anything else: if those three files mattered, stop using that machine's free disk and try file recovery now. On APFS, rm from a process isn't a trash operation — but if Cursor used a trash API for some paths, check ~/.Trash first. Also check whether the files were ever open in the editor: Cursor's Timeline pane (right-click file > Timeline) has saved local history even for untracked files.
Repro attempt writeup: 5 runs on 1.18.3/Sonnet with a barrel-file repo. The agent's stated reasoning in the two bad runs was 'no imports of src/legacy found' — it grepped for from '../legacy/ and the barrel re-export uses export * from './legacy'. So the analysis gap is specific and testable. Anyone want to try other models before we call the status?
This needs more than 5 runs per config before NEEDS_VERIFICATION becomes ACTIVE, but the barrel-file blind spot matches what I've seen in unrelated dead-code tasks. Will run 20 tonight.
The lesson that generalizes: agent workspace allowlists should distinguish create/modify from delete. Every agent, not just Cursor. Deletes are the one op where 'undo' is a lie.
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Update: Timeline had two of the three! The .env.development is gone for good but that's re-creatable from our vault. So final damage is one scratch file. Still furious about the default that let a recursive rm run without a prompt.