hive.terminal-tools-fs-search

DevOps & Security

Use terminal_rg / terminal_find when you need raw filesystem search outside the project tree — system configs, /var/log, /etc, archive contents — or when files-tools.search_files is too project-scoped. Teaches the rg vs find vs terminal_exec("ls/du/tree") split, common rg flag combos for code/logs/configs, find predicates for mtime/size/type queries, and the rule that for tree views or single-file stat info you should just use terminal_exec instead of inventing a tool. Read before reaching for raw shell to grep or find anything.

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Filesystem search

terminal-tools provides two structured search tools: terminal_rg (ripgrep for content) and terminal_find (find for predicates). Everything else (tree, stat, du) is just terminal_exec.

When to use what

Task	Tool
Find code/text matching a pattern in your project	`files-tools.search_files` (project-aware, ranks by relevance)
Find code/text matching a pattern in `/var/log`, `/etc`, archives, system dirs	`terminal_rg`
Find files matching name/glob/predicate	`terminal_find`
List a directory	`terminal_exec("ls -la /path")`
Tree view	`terminal_exec("tree -L 2 /path")`
Single-path stat	`terminal_exec("stat /path")`
Disk usage	`terminal_exec("du -sh /path")` or `terminal_exec("du -h --max-depth=2 /")`
Count matches across files	`terminal_rg(pattern, count=True via extra_args=["-c"])`

`terminal_rg` — content search

ripgrep is fast, gitignore-aware, and has a deep flag surface. The structured wrapper exposes the most useful flags directly; extra_args covers the rest.

Common patterns

# All Python files containing "TODO"
terminal_rg(pattern="TODO", path=".", type_filter="py")

# Case-insensitive, with context
terminal_rg(pattern="error", path="/var/log", ignore_case=True, context=2)

# Search hidden files (rg ignores them by default)
terminal_rg(pattern="api_key", path="~", hidden=True)

# Don't respect .gitignore (find files git would ignore)
terminal_rg(pattern="generated", path=".", no_ignore=True)

# Multi-line pattern (e.g., function definitions spanning lines)
terminal_rg(pattern=r"def\s+\w+\(.*\n.*\n", path="src", extra_args=["--multiline"])

# Specific filename glob
terminal_rg(pattern="version", path=".", glob="*.toml")

rg flag idioms

Flag	Effect
`-tpy` (`type_filter="py"`)	Only Python files
`-uu`	Don't respect any ignores (incl. `.git/`)
`--multiline` (`extra_args`)	Allow regex spanning lines
`--max-count` (`max_count`)	Stop after N matches per file
`--max-depth` (`max_depth`)	Limit recursion
`-w` (`extra_args`)	Whole word match
`-F` (`extra_args`)	Fixed string (no regex)

See references/ripgrep_cheatsheet.md for the long form.

`terminal_find` — predicate search

find excels at "files matching N criteria". The wrapper surfaces the most common predicates; combine via the structured arguments.

# All .log files modified in the last 7 days, larger than 1MB
terminal_find(path="/var/log", iname="*.log", mtime_days=7, size_kb_min=1024)

# All directories named ".git" (find Git repos under a tree)
terminal_find(path="~/projects", name=".git", type_filter="d")

# Only the top three levels
terminal_find(path="/etc", max_depth=3, type_filter="f")

# Symlinks
terminal_find(path=".", type_filter="l")

See references/find_predicates.md for combinations not directly exposed.

Output truncation

Both tools return truncated: true when their output exceeded the inline cap. For terminal_rg, this means matches were dropped (refine the pattern or narrow the path); for terminal_find, results past max_results (default 1000) are dropped. Tighten predicates rather than raising the cap.

Anti-patterns

Don't terminal_rg your project tree — files-tools.search_files is project-aware and ranks results.
Don't reach for terminal_find to list one directory — terminal_exec("ls -la /path") is shorter.
Don't use terminal_exec("grep ...") when terminal_rg exists — rg is faster, gitignore-aware, and returns structured matches.
Don't use terminal_exec("find ...") to invent your own predicate combinations — use terminal_find and report missing capabilities.