Configuration

Misar Code behavior is controlled through VS Code settings, the active permission mode, your chosen AI persona, and per-project rules in .misar/MISAR.md.

Permission Modes

Permission modes control how much autonomy Misar Code has when taking actions in your workspace.

| Mode | Behavior | |------|----------| | default | Asks for confirmation before dangerous or destructive operations (file deletion, running shell commands, git push) | | acceptEdits | Auto-accepts all file edits without prompting; still asks for shell commands | | plan | Plans tasks and describes what it would do, but executes nothing — no files written, no commands run | | bypassPermissions | Skips all confirmation prompts; all tools run without approval | | explore | Fully read-only: all write tools (edit, create, delete, run_command, git write ops) are blocked |

Set the permission mode in settings:

Cmd+, → search "misar.permissionMode"

Or switch modes mid-session using the slash commands /explore (enter read-only) and /plan (enter plan-only mode).

Pattern-Based Permission Grants

For fine-grained control, you can pre-approve specific tool calls using glob patterns in the misarCode.alwaysAllowed setting. This avoids repeated prompts for safe, routine operations.

{
  "misarCode.alwaysAllowed": [
    "run_command:git *",
    "run_command:npm test",
    "read_file:src/**",
    "glob:**/*.ts"
  ]
}

Pattern format: tool_name:argument_glob. The argument is matched against the first argument passed to the tool. Standard glob syntax applies (*, **, ?, {a,b}).

AI Personas

Personas adjust the agent's communication style and focus. Select the one that matches your current task.

| Persona | Best For | |---------|----------| | default | General-purpose coding assistance | | senior_dev | Production-quality output with trade-off analysis and architecture awareness | | code_reviewer | Finding bugs, security issues, and code quality problems | | tutor | Step-by-step explanations — good for learning unfamiliar code | | architect | System design, module boundaries, and scalability decisions | | quick | Minimal output, just the code — no explanations |

Set your default persona in settings:

Cmd+, → search "misar.persona"

Switch personas mid-session by typing /persona <name> in the chat input.

Key Settings

| Setting | Default | Description | |---------|---------|-------------| | misar.apiKey | — | Your Misar API key | | misar.apiBaseUrl | https://api.misar.dev | API endpoint | | misar.autoAcceptChanges | false | Auto-apply file edits | | misar.showDetailedProgress | true | Per-tool progress in sidebar | | misarCode.codeLens | true | CodeLens actions above symbols | | misar.inlineCompletions | true | Inline completions as you type | | misar.persona | default | Active AI persona | | misar.systemPrompt | — | Extra instructions appended to every request | | misarCode.inlineEditMode | diff | diff shows preview; direct applies immediately | | misarCode.restoreSessionHours | 24 | Hours of conversation history to restore | | misarCode.autoContext | true | Include open editor files in agent context | | misarCode.alwaysAllowed | [] | Pattern-based pre-approved tool calls |

Project Rules — MISAR.md

The .misar/MISAR.md file in your project root is loaded into every agent session as project-level context. Use it to tell the agent about your codebase conventions, patterns to follow, and constraints to respect.

Example:

# Project Rules

## Stack
- Next.js 15 App Router, TypeScript strict mode
- Tailwind CSS for styling — no inline styles
- Zod for all input validation

## Conventions
- Component files: PascalCase in `src/components/`
- API routes: kebab-case in `src/app/api/`
- Never use `as any` — fix the root type instead

## Testing
- Vitest for unit tests, Playwright for E2E
- Every new utility function needs a unit test

A global rules file at ~/.misar/MISAR.md applies across all projects. Project-level rules override global ones where they conflict.

Hooks

Lifecycle hooks are shell scripts placed in .misar/hooks/:

| File | Runs | |------|------| | session-start.sh | Once when a new chat session begins | | pre-tool-use.sh | Before every tool call; receives tool name and args via env vars | | post-tool-use.sh | After every tool call; receives tool name, args, and result |

Example pre-tool-use.sh that blocks git push on the main branch:

#!/bin/bash
if [ "$MISAR_TOOL_NAME" = "git_push" ] && echo "$MISAR_TOOL_ARGS" | grep -q '"branch":"main"'; then
  echo "Blocked: direct push to main is not allowed"
  exit 1
fi

Make hook scripts executable: chmod +x .misar/hooks/*.sh