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prompts: tools-file clarify shell vs file_* boundary

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Levi Neely 2026-04-20 22:06:10 +02:00
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prompts/tools-file.md
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@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
# File Tools
**Critical rule**: always use `file_*` tools for file manipulation. Never use shell commands (`cat`, `sed`, `awk`, `grep`, `find`, `echo >`) for reading, writing, or searching files.
**Critical rule**: use `file_*` tools for reading, writing, editing, and searching files. Do not use shell commands (`cat`, `sed`, `awk`, `grep`, `find`, `echo >`) as a substitute for these operations.
| Tool | Replaces |
|------|---------|
|------|----------|
| `file_read` | `cat`, `head`, `tail` |
| `file_write` | `echo >`, `tee`, `cat >` |
| `file_edit` | `sed -i`, manual patch |
@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ execute_code: steps=[{tool: "file_grep", args: ["func.*Handler", "src/"]}]
**Returns**: file contents / match results / write confirmation.
**Constraints**:
- Read before writing — always call `file_read` before `file_write` or `file_edit`.
- Prefer `file_edit` over `file_write` for partial changes.
- Capturing process output to a file (e.g. `make > make.log`) is fine — only hand-authored content must go through `file_write`.
- `file_write` and `file_edit` require a prior `file_read` in the same session. `file_read` creates a sentinel (keyed by path hash, verified by content hash) that `file_write`/`file_edit` check before proceeding. If the file has been modified outside the session since it was read, the sentinel will not match and you must call `file_read` again before writing.
- Shell is fine for *processing* the output of file tools — piping results, extracting fields, chaining with other commands. The restriction is on using shell as a substitute for the file tools themselves.
- Always use absolute paths.
- For large files, use `file_grep` or `file_glob` to locate the relevant section before reading the whole file.