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permission: broad deny overrides specific allow via findLast() semantics #37935
Description
Description
When a broad deny rule (e.g., $HOME/* → deny) appears in the same ruleset as a more specific allow (e.g., $HOME/utilities/* → allow), the evaluate() function uses findLast() which picks the last matching rule — regardless of pattern specificity. The broad deny silently overrides the specific allow, making it impossible to use the pattern "deny everything under a parent path except specific subdirectories."
This affects both V1 (packages/opencode/src/permission/index.ts) and V2 (packages/core/src/permission.ts) permission evaluation, and also means any "always" saved approvals under a broadly denied parent are effectively dead code.
Plugins
None
OpenCode version
dev branch (source)
Steps to reproduce
- Configure opencode.jsonc with:
"external_directory": { "$HOME/utilities/*": "allow", "$HOME/*": "deny" } - Try accessing a file under
/home/m/Projects/tools/paper-making-system/ - Access is denied — the
$HOME/*deny wins because it appears later in the ruleset
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Operating System
Linux
Terminal
N/A (configuration issue)
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github-actions commentedon Jul 20, 2026
This issue might be a duplicate of existing issues. Please check:
*Overwriting Lower Permissions — same root cause: a broad wildcard deny overrides a more specific allow rulefindLast()/ordering semantics problempermission.bashpattern maps: "*": "deny" fallback removes the bash tool from all agents; deny patterns under an allow fallback are ignored #36765:permission.bashpattern maps:"*": "deny"fallback removes the bash tool; deny patterns under an allow fallback are ignored — same family of ordering/specificity bugsIf your issue is distinct (e.g. you've identified a specific new code path or regression), please clarify the differences.
neriousy commentedon Oct 22, 2026
This is how V2 is designed to work: the last matching rule wins (see the permissions docs). Put the broad rule first and the exception after it, e.g. "$HOME/": "deny" and then "$HOME/utilities/": "allow". A PR switching to most-specific-wins (#37936) was closed without merging.