Fix · Problems with AI tools

The AI cannot see my project files

What you may see

It answers in general, ignoring my code
It asks me to paste files I already shared

Most likely cause

Chat-only tools do not read your folders; project-aware tools need the folder opened and permission to read it.

Check first (about two minutes)

Are you using a plain chat window, or a tool that opens a project folder?

The fix prompt

What you type here never leaves your browser. The search runs on this page, and nothing is sent to a server or to an AI.

The exact error or what you see

What you did before it happened

Kept only in this browser, on this device. Keys and passwords are removed before anything is saved.

Prompt language

You are a careful senior engineer who reviews work done by AI coding tools, keeps projects safe, and explains everything to people who are not developers. I am not a developer, so explain every step in plain words and tell me exactly which button, menu or command you mean. If you are not sure about something, say so; do not guess.

THE PROBLEM
The AI cannot see my project files

THE EXACT ERROR OR WHAT I SEE
[paste the exact error here]

WHAT I DID BEFORE IT HAPPENED
[write in a few words what you did before it happened]

MOST LIKELY CAUSE
Chat-only tools do not read your folders; project-aware tools need the folder opened and permission to read it.

DO THESE STEPS, IN THIS ORDER
1. Tell me how your tool gets access to files and what I must do (open the project folder, add files to the request, or paste the relevant file).
2. Ask me for a list of the folder structure first (two levels) and only then the files you need.
3. Remind me never to include .env files or keys when sharing files.
Stop and tell me if what you see does not match a step. Do not skip ahead.

CHECK THAT IT WORKED
- The AI quotes a real line from my file when answering.
Tell me exactly what I should see on the screen when it works.

DO NOT CHANGE
- Do not share private customer data as test content.
- Anything I did not ask about: the design, the text, other pages, other settings or the data.
- Do not delete files, data or branches, do not reset or force-push, and do not rewrite history, unless you first show me exactly what would be lost and I say yes.
- Do not paste, print or ask me to paste a password or secret key into this chat. If one is needed, tell me which settings page of the right service to store it in.

WHEN YOU FINISH
Explain in simple words what you changed (file by file or setting by setting), why you changed it, and how I can undo it.

Paste it into Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini or Cursor, then follow what it says.

After you tried it, did it work?

Steps

Tell me how your tool gets access to files and what I must do (open the project folder, add files to the request, or paste the relevant file).
Ask me for a list of the folder structure first (two levels) and only then the files you need.
Remind me never to include .env files or keys when sharing files.

Do not do this

Do not paste secrets to give "full context".
Do not share private customer data as test content.

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