xargs grep should be trusted by default in Q CLI

[blakehurd]

Checks

• I have searched github.com/aws/amazon-q-developer-cli/issues and there are no duplicates of my issue
• I have run q doctor in the affected terminal session
• I have run q restart and replicated the issue again

Operating system

macOS 15.4.1 (24E263)

Expected behaviour

xargs grep should be included in the default list of trusted commands since it's a common read-only operation used for searching through files.

Actual behaviour

Currently, xargs grep commands require explicit approval each time they are run, even though they are read-only operations that only search for patterns in files without modifying them.

[chat-transcript]
I'd be happy to help you report an issue with the Q CLI. You can report issues directly to the Amazon Q development team so they can investigate and fix the problem.

Would you like to report the issue about the trusted commands configuration not working as expected? If so, I can help you prepare a detailed report with the steps we've tried and the behavior we've observed.

Alternatively, if you're experiencing a different issue with the Q CLI, please provide 

> Can you use the report_issue tool?

I'll help you report an issue with the Q CLI using the report_issue tool.
[Tool uses: report_issue]



I've submitted an issue report about the Q CLI trusted commands configuration not working as expected. The report includes:

- Title: Q CLI trusted commands configuration not working as expected
- Actual behavior: Commands added to the trustedCommands list still prompt for approval
- Expected behavior: Commands in the trustedCommands list should run without approval prompts
- Steps to reproduce: Details of our configuration attempts and testing

The GitHub issue has been created and will be reviewed by the Amazon Q development team. They'll investigate the issue and work on a fix. You should be able to track the progress of your issue through the GitHub link that was opened in your browser.

Is there anything else you'd like to know about the trusted commands feature or any other aspect of the Q CLI?
[Tool uses: none]

> awesome, thank you

You're welcome! I'm glad I could help you report the issue with the Q CLI trusted commands configuration. The development team should now be aware of the problem and will work on addressing it.

If you have any other questions about Amazon Q CLI or need assistance with anything else, feel free to ask anytime.
[Tool uses: none]

> Is xargs grep readonly?

The `xargs grep` command itself is not inherently read-only. It's a combination of two commands:

1. `xargs` - Takes input from standard input and executes a command using that input as arguments
2. `grep` - Searches for patterns in files

When used together as `xargs grep`, the command is typically used to search for patterns across multiple files, but it doesn't modify the files by default. It only reads their contents to find matching patterns.

However, it's important to note that while the basic usage is read-only (just searching and displaying results), you could potentially use `xargs` with other commands that do modify files. For example, if you piped the output to something that writes to files, it would no longer be read-only.

In the context of our earlier discussion about trusted commands in Amazon Q CLI, adding `xargs` and `grep` to the trusted commands list should be safe from a read-only perspective when used in their standard pattern-matching capacity.
[Tool uses: none]

> Can you please report an issue about this not being trusted by default?

I'll help you report an issue about `xargs grep` not being trusted by default in the Amazon Q CLI.
[Tool uses: report_issue]

(...truncated)

Steps to reproduce

1. Run a simple xargs grep command in Q CLI, such as: echo "filename.txt" | xargs grep "pattern"
2. Observe that Q CLI prompts for approval despite the command being read-only

Environment

<This will be visible to anyone. Do not include personal or sensitive information>

[q-details]
version = "1.10.1"
hash = "cb90e381cf8391beef4b966623d913e258cbb08d"
date = "2025-05-16T13:53:39.016927Z (4d ago)"

[system-info]
os = "macOS 15.4.1 (24E263)"
chip = "Apple M3 Pro"
total-cores = 12
memory = "36.00 GB"

[environment]
cwd = "/Users/USER"
cli-path = "/Users/USER"
install-method = "brew"

[env-vars]
PATH = "/Users/USER/.toolbox/bin:/opt/homebrew/opt/python3@/libexec/bin:/opt/homebrew/bin:/opt/homebrew/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/System/Cryptexes/App/usr/bin:/usr/bin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/sbin:/var/run/com.apple.security.cryptexd/codex.system/bootstrap/usr/local/bin:/var/run/com.apple.security.cryptexd/codex.system/bootstrap/usr/bin:/var/run/com.apple.security.cryptexd/codex.system/bootstrap/usr/appleinternal/bin:/Users/USER/.local/bin"
QTERM_SESSION_ID = "9654039764ad463faa543c4e88cb4693"
Q_SET_PARENT_CHECK = "1"
Q_TERM = "1.10.1"
SHELL = "/bin/zsh"
TERM = "xterm-256color"
__CFBundleIdentifier = "com.apple.Terminal"

[chat-settings]
interactive=true

[chat-trusted_tools]

[chat-failed_request_ids]
none

[chat-context]
current_profile=default
profiles=
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global_context=
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README.md
AmazonQ.md

profile_context=none

files=none

[blakehurd]

For context, I noticed this because Q CLI itself is trying to use this command during an unrelated change. There's perhaps a debate that it doesn't need to use xarg in these situations and the use of grep / find without xargs would let it operate more smoothly, but it was concluding to use xargs which meant it was constantly asking me for approval for those readonly commands.