safe-rm_skill

Overview

This skill provides a safe-rm wrapper around rm -rf to prevent accidental deletion of critical system, configuration, and project paths. It enforces a dry-run by default and blocks protected locations, requiring an explicit --force to perform removals. The goal is to make destructive file operations deliberate and auditable.

How this skill works

safe-rm inspects target paths before invoking removal: it checks existence, matches against a list of protected system and home config locations, and detects common project markers (like .git or repo root). By default it performs a dry-run showing what would be removed; only when --force is provided and no protection matches will it execute rm -rf. It exits with meaningful codes: 0 for success/dry-run, 1 for protected path, and 2 for missing path.

When to use it

• Any recursive deletion (rm -r / rm -rf)
• Cleaning temporary files or build artifacts
• When removing directories that may contain config or hidden files
• Before running batch delete scripts to verify targets
• When working in repositories where .git or repo root should be preserved

Best practices

• Always run safe-rm without --force first to preview deletions
• Review dry-run output carefully before confirming destructive actions
• Never bypass protections for system or home config paths
• Use safe-rm in automation and CI to reduce catastrophic mistakes
• Keep the protected-paths list updated to reflect your environment

Example use cases

• Safely remove a large build directory after confirming contents: safe-rm /path/to/build
• Clean a temp workspace in CI with a dry-run step, then use --force when approved
• Avoid accidentally deleting your home dotfiles by blocking ~/.ssh and shell rc files
• Protect repository integrity by preventing deletion at repo root or .git
• Use in developer scripts to replace direct rm -rf calls for safer operations