Trusted Folders

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Overview

• Executing tools that require user approval (shell, edit, write_file) in untrusted folders
• Loading project-level .env files from untrusted folders
• Using aggressive approval modes (YOLO, auto-edit) in untrusted folders

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Enabling Folder Trust

{
  "security": {
    "folderTrust": {
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}

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Trust Levels

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Configuration File

{
  "/Users/username/projects": "TRUST_PARENT",
  "/Users/username/work/client-a": "TRUST_FOLDER",
  "/Users/username/downloads/random-repo": "DO_NOT_TRUST"
}

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File Location

• Default: ~/.qwen/trustedFolders.json
• Override via environment variable:
  export QWEN_CODE_TRUSTED_FOLDERS_PATH=/custom/path/trustedFolders.json
  

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Managing Trust

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Via Interactive Prompt

This folder is not trusted.

Do you trust the authors of the files in this folder?

> Trust Folder
  Trust Parent Folder
  Do Not Trust
  Cancel

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Manually Editing trustedFolders.json

{
  "/home/user/projects": "TRUST_PARENT",
  "/home/user/work/safe-repo": "TRUST_FOLDER",
  "/home/user/Downloads/untrusted-code": "DO_NOT_TRUST"
}

• Use absolute paths
• Paths are case-sensitive
• Use forward slashes (/) on all platforms
• On Windows, use: C:/Users/username/projects (not backslashes)

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Via IDE Integration

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Trust Rules Evaluation

1. IDE Trust (highest priority): If running in an IDE that provides workspace trust, use that value.
2. Explicit DO_NOT_TRUST: If the exact path is marked DO_NOT_TRUST, the folder is untrusted.
3. TRUST_FOLDER: If the exact path is marked TRUST_FOLDER, the folder is trusted.
4. TRUST_PARENT: If any parent directory is marked TRUST_PARENT, the folder is trusted.
5. No matching rule: If no rule matches, the folder is untrusted (when trust is enabled).

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Example Evaluation

{
  "/home/user/projects": "TRUST_PARENT",
  "/home/user/projects/suspicious": "DO_NOT_TRUST"
}

• /home/user/projects/my-app → Trusted (parent is trusted)
• /home/user/projects/another-app → Trusted (parent is trusted)
• /home/user/projects/suspicious → Untrusted (explicitly marked)
• /home/user/Downloads/random → Untrusted (no matching rule)

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Behavior in Untrusted Folders

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Approval Mode Override

# Even with --yolo, will use default mode in untrusted folder
qwen --yolo
# Output: Approval mode overridden to "default" because the current folder is not trusted.

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Tool Execution

• bash / run_shell_command - Always requires approval
• edit - Always requires approval
• write_file - Always requires approval

• read - Works without approval
• glob - Works without approval
• grep - Works without approval
• ls - Works without approval

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Environment Variables

• .qwen/.env in project - Not loaded
• .env in project - Not loaded
• ~/.qwen/.env (user-level) - Always loaded
• ~/.env (home directory) - Always loaded

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Workspace Settings

• .qwen/settings.json in project - Ignored
• ~/.qwen/settings.json (user-level) - Always applied

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Use Cases

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Trust All Personal Projects

{
  "/Users/username/projects": "TRUST_PARENT"
}

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Trust Specific Work Projects

{
  "/Users/username/work/project-a": "TRUST_FOLDER",
  "/Users/username/work/project-b": "TRUST_FOLDER"
}

​

Trust Everything Except Downloads

{
  "/Users/username": "TRUST_PARENT",
  "/Users/username/Downloads": "DO_NOT_TRUST"
}

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Trust Per-Organization

{
  "/Users/username/company-a": "TRUST_PARENT",
  "/Users/username/company-b": "TRUST_PARENT",
  "/Users/username/oss-projects": "TRUST_PARENT"
}

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Security Best Practices

1. Enable folder trust if you work with code from unknown sources.
2. Use TRUST_PARENT for directories where you manage all projects:
   {
     "~/my-projects": "TRUST_PARENT"
   }
   
3. Use DO_NOT_TRUST for directories where you clone external code:
   {
     "~/Downloads": "DO_NOT_TRUST",
     "~/external-repos": "DO_NOT_TRUST"
   }
   
4. Review trust before using YOLO mode - Check if the folder is trusted before enabling auto-approval.
5. Combine with .qwenignore - Use .qwenignore to prevent Qwen Code from reading sensitive files even in trusted folders.

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Checking Trust Status

cd ~/Downloads/unknown-repo
qwen --yolo  # Will show override message if untrusted

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Disabling Folder Trust

{
  "security": {
    "folderTrust": {
      "enabled": false
    }
  }
}

• All folders are treated as trusted
• trustedFolders.json is ignored
• Project .env files are loaded from all directories
• Approval mode settings work as configured

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IDE Integration

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VS Code

• If the workspace is trusted in VS Code, Qwen Code trusts it
• If the workspace is untrusted in VS Code, Qwen Code does not trust it
• IDE trust takes precedence over trustedFolders.json

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Zed

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JetBrains IDEs

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Troubleshooting

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Folder Not Trusted Despite Configuration

1. Check the path in trustedFolders.json is absolute and correct:
   pwd  # Get current directory
   
2. Ensure paths use forward slashes:
   // Correct
   "/Users/username/projects": "TRUST_PARENT"
   
   // Incorrect on Windows
   "C:\\Users\\username\\projects": "TRUST_PARENT"
   
3. Verify JSON syntax is valid:
   cat ~/.qwen/trustedFolders.json | jq
   

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Can’t Load Project .env

1. Check if folder trust is enabled
2. Verify the folder is trusted
3. Move sensitive keys to ~/.qwen/.env (always loaded)

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Tools Always Require Approval

1. Trust the folder in trustedFolders.json
2. Use --approval-mode default explicitly
3. Work with read-only tools that don’t require approval

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See Also

• Settings.json Reference
• Environment Variables
• .qwenignore File