Safe Delete

Safe Delete

Expert on safe file deletion practices using trash instead of rm.

Overview

• Blocks dangerous patterns like rm -rf /, rm -rf ~, sudo rm -rf
• Transforms rm to trash for recoverable deletion
• Uses PreToolUse hooks to intercept Bash commands
• Provides CLAUDE.md instructions so Claude uses trash by default
• Works globally or per-project via plugin installation

How It Works

Two-Layer Protection

1. CLAUDE.md Instructions - Tells Claude to use trash instead of rm
2. PreToolUse Hook - Catches rm commands and either blocks or transforms them

Hook Processing Stages

Stage 1: Block dangerous patterns

• rm -rf /, rm -rf ~, rm -rf ., rm -rf *
• sudo rm -rf (any path)
• --no-preserve-root flag

Stage 2: Transform safe rm to trash

• rm file.txt → trash file.txt
• rm -rf ./build → trash ./build
• rm -r dir/ → trash dir/

Quick Start

# Install trash (macOS)
brew install trash
echo 'export PATH="/opt/homebrew/opt/trash/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshrc

# Install trash (Linux)
pip install trash-cli

Documentation

• Installation - Setup for macOS, Linux, global/per-project
• Dangerous Patterns - Full list of blocked patterns
• Trash Alternatives - trash-cli usage guide
• Configuration - Customizing blocked patterns

Command Examples

# Check if a command would be blocked or transformed
/safe-delete check "rm -rf ./node_modules"

# Convert an rm command to trash
/safe-delete convert "rm -rf ./dist"

# List all blocked patterns
/safe-delete patterns

# Install trash utility
/safe-delete install

Why Use This

Hook Response Examples

// Blocked (dangerous)
{
  "decision": "block",
  "reason": "Blocked dangerous command: 'sudo rm -rf' pattern detected."
}

// Transformed (safe)
{
  "decision": "modify",
  "modifiedToolInput": {
    "command": "trash ./node_modules"
  }
}