Configuration

Sweep reads JSON from .sweeprc; no extension or YAML configuration is implied.

sweep init looks before it writes. It scans the folder (read-only), shows the built-in artifacts it found and any opt-in names such as dist, .venv or coverage, and in a terminal asks about each opt-in name. The file records only your answers. Without a terminal, opt-in names are reported and left off. sweep init --dry-run prints the file instead of writing it, and an existing .sweeprc is never replaced without --force.

Or write one by hand:

{
  "patterns": ["dist"],
  "disabledPatterns": [".turbo"],
  "ignore": ["packages/vendor-patched"],
  "maxSizeGB": null,
  "depth": -1
}

dist is opt-in and remains dangerous because the name can contain authored work. Do not add broad patterns such as * unless you understand every possible match.

Use a number such as 600 to cap the reviewed selection at 600 GiB. null explicitly disables an inherited byte cap; 0 permits only zero-byte selections. Existing numeric caps remain effective. Override one run with sweep ui . --max-size-gb 600 or deliberately use --max-size-gb none. An uncapped run still confirms the exact selection and enforces path, identity, mount and resource guards. Dry-run previews never require a byte-cap override.

maxSizeGB is a deletion policy, not a scan memory limit. Resource-budget counters are not individual CLI flags or .sweeprc fields. Use --resource-profile low-memory for smaller discovery and sizing allowances. This controls logical admission; it does not cap the process RSS or UI memory.

Resolution orderCopy Anchor Link

For scalar settings, highest priority wins:

1. Command-line options.
2. Explicit --config file, when supplied.
3. Nearest project .sweeprc found by walking upward from the scan target, when no explicit --config file is supplied.
4. Global config.
5. Built-in defaults.

An explicit --config replaces the project-file layer; it does not add another layer above the nearest .sweeprc. Global settings and built-in defaults still apply. Pattern and ignore arrays merge and deduplicate across applicable layers; disabled patterns are subtracted afterward. Scanning a nested project can inherit an ancestor's config. Use sweep doctor . to investigate unexpected behavior.

Global config is ~/.config/sweep/config.json on Linux/macOS, honoring XDG_CONFIG_HOME, and %APPDATA%\sweep\config.json on Windows. SWEEP_CONFIG_DIR overrides the config directory and also determines history storage. Use it for isolated automation.

On Linux/macOS, automatically discovered project and global config files must be owned by the running user. This prevents another user's ancestor .sweeprc from silently changing the selection policy. For a shared file you have reviewed, pass --config PATH explicitly. Configs must be bounded regular JSON objects; the same 1 MiB read limit applies to the UI pattern editor. Unknown fields and non-object JSON are rejected. A misspelled ceiling cannot silently fall back to an uncapped run.

Match rulesCopy Anchor Link

Patterns match entry names, not full paths. * matches zero or more characters; ? matches one character. For example, *.tsbuildinfo matches tsconfig.tsbuildinfo. This is not shell brace expansion or a recursive ** path-glob interface.

Use an ignore prefix such as packages/vendor-patched to exclude a subtree; a trailing slash is normalized. Preview any new pattern with sweep scan . and inspect the resulting paths before cleanup.

In the UI, p opens the catalog. Names focus a pattern; its checkbox toggles it. Choose Details to read a long pattern, Add to enter one, or Save (w) to save your edits to .sweeprc. If the file exists, Sweep asks you to review the pattern changes before saving. W opens the same review. Other settings, such as ignores, scan depth and byte limits, are kept. A new nested config also keeps settings inherited from its nearest ancestor project config, which remains unchanged. If another editor changes the file after review, Sweep refuses the save; review it again. This check does not lock the file against an editor racing the final replacement.