fix: stop reviewing agent config, ignore files and docs

Author: akosidencio

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -1,5 +1,35 @@
 # Changelog
 
+## [0.9.1] — 08-12-2026
+
+Config is not code, and reviewing it as though it were produced confident
+nonsense. Reported from the field: every file under `.claude/` came back HIGH.
+
+### Fixed
+
+- **Coding-agent and editor config is no longer reviewed.** `.claude/`,
+  `.cursor/`, `.windsurf/`, `.aider/`, `.vscode/`, `.idea/`, `.zed/` and
+  `.fleet/` are dropped by the pre-filter. These files are imperative English
+  about credentials, shell commands and permissions — precisely the shape a
+  reviewer prompt primed for "exposed secrets, disabled auth" reads as an
+  emergency. `.claude/` is also instructions written *for* a model, which is a
+  poor thing to hand to one.
+- **Ignore files and formatter config are dropped**: `.gitignore`,
+  `.dockerignore`, `.prettierignore` and the rest of the `.*ignore` family,
+  plus `.editorconfig`, `.gitattributes`, `.prettierrc*`, `.eslintrc*`,
+  `.npmrc`, `.nvmrc`, `.cursorrules`. Declarative lists with no program logic
+  in them. `eslint.config.js` and friends are still reviewed — those are real
+  JavaScript, and a bug in one is a bug.
+- **Documentation is dropped by default** (`.md`, `.mdx`, `.rst`, `.txt`,
+  `.adoc`, `.org`, `.tex`). Re-enable with `--include-docs` or
+  `review.include_docs = true` for docs that carry API contracts. The switch
+  covers prose only — agent config stays out either way.
+
+Everything dropped is *counted and reported* in the existing summary line
+("312 hunks → 74 reviewable"), under the new `docs` and `tool config` reasons,
+rather than silently disappearing. Test files are unaffected and still
+reviewed: a test that asserts nothing is worth catching.
+
 ## [0.9.0] — 08-12-2026
 
 diffmind was built as a gate: run it, get a verdict, pass or fail. This release

README.md

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Diffmind — a code review gate you can actually keep
+# Diffmind — local-first AI code review, in your terminal
 
 [![CI](https://github.com/thinkgrid-labs/diffmind/actions/workflows/ci.yml/badge.svg)](https://github.com/thinkgrid-labs/diffmind/actions/workflows/ci.yml)
 [![Latest Release](https://img.shields.io/github/v/release/thinkgrid-labs/diffmind)](https://github.com/thinkgrid-labs/diffmind/releases/latest)
@@ -552,12 +552,16 @@ work to it.
 1. **Parse** — the diff is turned into per-file hunks with correct before and
    after line numbers.
 2. **Filter** — lockfiles, `linguist-generated` paths, `@generated` banners,
-   minified bundles, assets, snapshots, your `ignore` globs and whitespace-only
-   hunks are dropped. This is free, usually removes most of a real branch, and
-   the counts are shown instead of hidden:
+   minified bundles, assets, snapshots, documentation, coding-agent and editor
+   config (`.claude/`, `.cursor/`, `.vscode/`, …), ignore files and formatter
+   settings, your `ignore` globs, and whitespace-only hunks are dropped. This is
+   free, usually removes most of a real branch, and the counts are shown instead
+   of hidden:
    `312 hunks → 74 reviewable (238 filtered: lockfiles, generated, formatting)`.
    Whitespace inside a string still counts as a real change, and indentation is
-   never dropped in Python or YAML.
+   never dropped in Python or YAML. Tests are *not* filtered — a test that
+   asserts nothing is worth catching. Docs can be reopened with
+   `--include-docs`.
 3. **Fixed rules** — `DM001`, `DM002` and your regex rules. No model involved.
 4. **Context** — built for each review from `.diffmind/graph.db`: the function
    the hunk is in, the callers of every changed symbol, the definitions it
@@ -601,6 +605,7 @@ cache          = true
 temperature    = 0.0        # 0 = greedy and reproducible
 max_tokens     = 1024
 ignore         = ["**/legacy/**", "*.generated.ts"]   # on top of the built-in noise rules
+include_docs   = false      # review .md/.rst/.txt too; off by default
 
 [backend]
 kind        = "local"       # or "ollama" / "openai-compatible"

apps/tui-cli/Cargo.toml

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [package]
 name = "diffmind"
-version = "0.9.0"
+version = "0.9.1"
 edition = "2024"
 description = "Local-first AI code review agent — powered by on-device inference"
 

apps/tui-cli/src/cli.rs

@@ -115,6 +115,11 @@ pub struct Cli {
     #[arg(long)]
     pub seed: Option<u64>,
 
+    /// Review documentation (.md, .rst, .txt) too. Skipped by default —
+    /// a reviewer prompt finds vulnerabilities in prose.
+    #[arg(long)]
+    pub include_docs: bool,
+
     /// Skip the on-disk result cache for this run
     #[arg(long)]
     pub no_cache: bool,

apps/tui-cli/src/config.rs

@@ -39,6 +39,10 @@ pub struct ReviewConfig {
     /// Same syntax as a rule's `files`: `*.ts`, `**/legacy/**`, or an exact path.
     #[serde(default)]
     pub ignore: Option<Vec<String>>,
+    /// Review documentation (`.md`, `.rst`, `.txt`) as code. Off by default:
+    /// a model primed for vulnerabilities will find them in prose. Tool config
+    /// and ignore files are always skipped and have no switch.
+    pub include_docs: Option<bool>,
     /// Refresh the code graph before each review. On by default — a stale graph
     /// reports wrong line ranges, not merely missing ones.
     pub auto_index: Option<bool>,

apps/tui-cli/src/main.rs

@@ -702,6 +702,7 @@ fn apply_prefilter(
         &PrefilterOptions {
             generated_paths,
             ignore_globs: settings.ignore_globs.clone(),
+            include_docs: settings.include_docs,
         },
     );
 

apps/tui-cli/src/settings.rs

@@ -71,6 +71,8 @@ pub struct Settings {
     pub debug: bool,
     /// Extra globs dropped by the pre-filter, from `.diffmind/config.toml`.
     pub ignore_globs: Vec<String>,
+    /// Send documentation to the model instead of dropping it as prose.
+    pub include_docs: bool,
     /// Refresh the code graph before reviewing.
     pub auto_index: bool,
 }
@@ -137,6 +139,7 @@ pub fn resolve_settings(cli: &Cli, file: &FileConfig) -> Result<Settings> {
         // *supposed* to differ, and replaying one would be a lie.
         use_cache: !cli.no_cache && resolve(None, r.cache, true) && temperature == 0.0,
         ignore_globs: r.ignore.clone().unwrap_or_default(),
+        include_docs: cli.include_docs || resolve(None, r.include_docs, false),
         auto_index: !cli.no_index && resolve(None, r.auto_index, true),
         use_baseline: !cli.no_baseline,
         use_daemon: !cli.no_daemon,

apps/tui-cli/tests/stdin_pipeline.rs

@@ -483,3 +483,146 @@ fn the_exit_code_follows_the_fail_threshold_not_the_finding_count() {
 
     let _ = std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
 }
+
+/// Agent config, ignore files and prose must not cost an inference pass — and
+/// must not reach the model at all.
+///
+/// Reported from the field on 0.9.0: every file under `.claude/` came back as a
+/// HIGH finding. Those files are imperative English about credentials, shell
+/// commands and permissions, which is exactly what a reviewer prompt primed for
+/// "exposed secrets, disabled auth" is looking for. The content assertions
+/// matter more than the path ones here: a path can vanish from the prompt while
+/// the body is still being reviewed under the previous file's header.
+#[test]
+fn agent_config_ignore_files_and_docs_never_reach_the_model() {
+    let dir = tmpdir("toolconfig");
+    let stub = Stub::spawn(2);
+
+    let diff = "\
+--- a/.claude/skills/deploy.md
++++ b/.claude/skills/deploy.md
+@@ -1,2 +1,3 @@
+ # Deploy
++Always export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY before deploying.
+--- a/.gitignore
++++ b/.gitignore
+@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
+-.env
++.env.local
+--- a/.prettierrc.json
++++ b/.prettierrc.json
+@@ -1,1 +1,1 @@
+-{ \"semi\": true }
++{ \"semi\": false }
+--- a/README.md
++++ b/README.md
+@@ -1,1 +1,2 @@
+ # Project
++Put your token in .env
+--- a/src/two.rs
++++ b/src/two.rs
+@@ -10,2 +10,2 @@
+-let b = verify(token);
++let b = true;
+";
+
+    let run = review_stdin(
+        &dir,
+        diff,
+        &[
+            "--format",
+            "json",
+            "--backend",
+            "openai-compatible",
+            "--backend-model",
+            "stub",
+            "--backend-url",
+            &stub.url(),
+        ],
+    );
+
+    let prompts = stub.prompts();
+    assert_eq!(
+        prompts.len(),
+        1,
+        "only src/two.rs is reviewable.\nstderr: {}",
+        run.stderr
+    );
+
+    for leaked in [
+        "AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY",
+        ".claude",
+        ".gitignore",
+        ".env.local",
+        ".prettierrc",
+        "semi",
+        "README.md",
+        "Put your token",
+    ] {
+        assert!(
+            !prompts[0].contains(leaked),
+            "{leaked:?} reached the model:\n{}",
+            prompts[0]
+        );
+    }
+    assert!(prompts[0].contains("src/two.rs"));
+
+    let found = findings(&run.stdout);
+    let files: Vec<&str> = found.iter().filter_map(|f| f["file"].as_str()).collect();
+    assert_eq!(files, ["src/two.rs"], "only the code file is reported");
+
+    let _ = std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
+}
+
+/// The opt-in exists for teams whose docs carry contracts. It reopens prose
+/// only — agent config stays out regardless.
+#[test]
+fn include_docs_reopens_prose_but_not_agent_config() {
+    let dir = tmpdir("includedocs");
+    let stub = Stub::spawn(3);
+
+    let diff = "\
+--- a/.claude/skills/deploy.md
++++ b/.claude/skills/deploy.md
+@@ -1,2 +1,3 @@
+ # Deploy
++Always export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY before deploying.
+--- a/docs/api.md
++++ b/docs/api.md
+@@ -1,1 +1,2 @@
+ # API
++POST /v1/charge is idempotent.
+";
+
+    let run = review_stdin(
+        &dir,
+        diff,
+        &[
+            "--include-docs",
+            "--format",
+            "json",
+            "--backend",
+            "openai-compatible",
+            "--backend-model",
+            "stub",
+            "--backend-url",
+            &stub.url(),
+        ],
+    );
+
+    let prompts = stub.prompts();
+    assert_eq!(
+        prompts.len(),
+        1,
+        "docs are reviewed, agent config is not.\nstderr: {}",
+        run.stderr
+    );
+    assert!(prompts[0].contains("docs/api.md"));
+    assert!(
+        !prompts[0].contains("AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY"),
+        "--include-docs must not reopen .claude/:\n{}",
+        prompts[0]
+    );
+
+    let _ = std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
+}

npm/cli/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "@diffmind/cli",
-  "version": "0.9.0",
+  "version": "0.9.1",
   "description": "Local-first AI code review for your git diffs \u2014 on-device inference, no cloud, no API keys",
   "author": "Thinkgrid Labs <dennis@thinkgrid.dev>",
   "license": "MIT",
@@ -39,10 +39,10 @@
     "node": ">=18.0.0"
   },
   "optionalDependencies": {
-    "@diffmind/cli-darwin-arm64": "0.9.0",
-    "@diffmind/cli-darwin-x64": "0.9.0",
-    "@diffmind/cli-linux-arm64": "0.9.0",
-    "@diffmind/cli-linux-x64": "0.9.0",
-    "@diffmind/cli-win32-x64": "0.9.0"
+    "@diffmind/cli-darwin-arm64": "0.9.1",
+    "@diffmind/cli-darwin-x64": "0.9.1",
+    "@diffmind/cli-linux-arm64": "0.9.1",
+    "@diffmind/cli-linux-x64": "0.9.1",
+    "@diffmind/cli-win32-x64": "0.9.1"
   }
 }

npm/platform/darwin-arm64/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "@diffmind/cli-darwin-arm64",
-  "version": "0.9.0",
+  "version": "0.9.1",
   "description": "diffmind prebuilt binary for darwin-arm64 (aarch64-apple-darwin)",
   "author": "Thinkgrid Labs <dennis@thinkgrid.dev>",
   "license": "MIT",