Writing simple files to workspace is difficult and by-passes security

[SkybuckFlying]

Step 1. Workspace added:

G:\Junk\test deepseek harness

Step 2. setup ollama

Step 3. load qwen ai model

Step 4. chat with it to write some basic files.

End result is bad:

g:\sandbox\helloworld.pas

written

second test:

g:\workspace\test.txt

written

On windows 11.

In both cases privilege/full access was asked and given, AI fails to understand how to write files to workspace and instead asks privilege escalation leading to files being written in the wrong folders...

Here is the trajectory:

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  | hello ?
  | Current  runtime context. This snapshot supersedes earlier runtime-context  snapshots. Current DSH file policy: workspace-write. Any available  operation enforced by the DSH file sandbox may modify files under the  session workspace: "G:\Junk\test deepseek harness". Some platform  temporary areas may also be writable. Approval policy: ask. Operations  that require approval may ask through the configured answerers; without  an available answerer, the request fails closed.
  | hello ?
  | System Prompt Updated
  | Okay,  the user said "hello ?". Let me check the available functions. There's  the ask_user_question function, which is used to ask the user a  question. Since the user's message is just a greeting, maybe I should  respond with a friendly message. But looking at the tools, there's no  direct way to send a message unless I use a subagent or another  function. Wait, the ask_user_question function is for when I need  confirmation or information from the user. But in this case, the user is  just greeting me. Maybe I sh…
  | ask_user_question{"questions":[{"id":"greeting-response","question":"How can I assist you today?"}]}→{"answers":[{"id":"greeting-response","selected":[],"custom":"hi, how are you doing"}]}
  | Okay,  the user responded to my greeting with "hi, how are you doing". I need  to figure out how to reply. Since they asked how I can assist, maybe I  should acknowledge their response and offer help. Let me check the  available functions again. The ask_user_question was used to get their  input, and now they've provided a custom answer. The next step is to use  that information to guide the conversation. Perhaps I should thank them  for their response and ask how I can assist them further. But I need to  make sure…
  | ask_user_question{"questions":[{"id":"user-need","question":"What specific task or problem would you like assistance with?"}]}→{"answers":[{"id":"user-need","selected":[],"custom":"Nothing, I am just testing to see if you are working ;) :)"}]}
  | Okay,  the user said they're just testing to see if I'm working. I need to  respond appropriately. Since they mentioned they're testing, maybe I  should acknowledge their test and offer help if they need anything else.  Let me check the available functions again. The ask_user_question  function can be used to prompt them again, but maybe a simple response  is better here. The user might not need any further assistance, so I  should keep it friendly and open-ended. Let me make sure to use the  correct tool if needed…
  | ask_user_question{"questions":[{"id":"test-response","question":"Glad  to hear you're testing! If you need any help with tasks or have  questions, feel free to ask. What would you like to do next?"}]}→{"answers":[{"id":"test-response","selected":[]}]}
  | Okay,  the user hasn't provided a specific answer yet. They might be done  testing or just taking their time. Since they haven't selected any  options or given a custom response, I should prompt them again politely.  Let me check the tools available. The
  |  
  | write a delphi hello world program in the current working folder
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write a Delphi "Hello, World" program in the  current working folder. Let me think about how to approach this. First, I  need to recall how Delphi projects are structured. Delphi typically  uses a project file (like a .dpr file) and a form file (like a .dfm) if a  GUI is involved. However, for a simple console application, it might  just need a .dpr file with a main procedure. But the user didn't specify  if it's a console or GUI app. Since they just said "hello world," maybe  a console…
  | so did you write the file yet ?
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write a Delphi Hello World program in the current  working folder and then check if the file was created. Let me break this  down. First, I need to recall how Delphi programs are structured. A  simple Hello World in Delphi typically involves creating a form with a  button that shows a message. But maybe the user just wants a console  application? Wait, Delphi is primarily a GUI framework, but it can have  console apps too. However, the standard Hello World is usually a VCL  application w…
  | write{"content":"program  HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n  Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 = class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n  procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1:  TForm1;\n\nprocedure TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n  ShowMessage('Hello, World!');\nend;\n\nbegin\n Application.Initialize;\n  Application.MainFormOnTaskbar := True;\n Form1 :=  TForm1.Create(Application);\n Form1.Show;\n  Application.Run;\nend.","file_path":"G:\Junk\test deepseek…→error
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write a Delphi Hello World program in the current  working folder and then check if the file was created. Let me start by  understanding the error message I received. The error says, "Error:  invalid escalation: justification is only valid together with  sandbox_permissions." Hmm, that probably means that when I used the  'write' function, I included a 'justification' parameter without also  specifying 'sandbox_permissions', which the system requires. Looking  back at my previous attempt…
  | write{"content":"program  HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n  Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 = class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n  procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1:  TForm1;\n\nprocedure TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n  ShowMessage('Hello, World!');\nend;\n\nbegin\n Application.Initialize;\n  Application.MainFormOnTaskbar := True;\n Form1 :=  TForm1.Create(Application);\n Form1.Show;\n  Application.Run;\nend.","file_path":"G:\Junk\test deepseek…→error
  | Okay,  let's tackle this problem step by step. The user wants me to write a  Delphi Hello World program in the current working folder and then check  if the file was created. First, I need to understand the error messages  I'm getting. The first error was about an invalid escalation because I  provided a justification without sandbox_permissions. I corrected that  by adding sandbox_permissions set to "workspace-write". But now, the new  error says that the sandbox escalation to "workspace-write" isn't  strictly wid…
  | read{"file_path":"G:\Junk\test deepseek harness\HelloWorld.pas"}→FS_NOT_FOUND
  | Okay,  the user is trying to read a file called "HelloWorld.pas" located in  the directory "G:\Junk\test deepseek harness", but the system is  returning an error stating that the file is not found. Let me think  through how to approach this. First, I need to confirm whether the file  actually exists in the specified path. The error message says "not  found," which could mean a few things: the file might not be present,  the path might be incorrect, or there could be a typo in the filename or  directory. Since the u…
  | glob{"pattern":"HelloWorld.pas"}→No files found
  | The file "HelloWorld.pas" was not found in the current directory. Would you like me to create a new file with that name?
  | try writing it to \sandbox\helloworld.pas
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write the Delphi Hello World program to a  different path: \sandbox\helloworld.pas. Let me check the tools  available. The write function requires the file_path and content. The  previous attempt had an error because of the sandbox permissions, but  now the user is suggesting a different path. Wait, the current workspace  is "G:\Junk\test deepseek harness", and the user is asking to write to  "\sandbox\helloworld.pas". Is that inside the workspace? Maybe the  sandbox is a subdirectory. B…
  | write{"file_path":"G:\Junk\test  deepseek harness\sandbox\helloworld.pas","justification":"Creating a  Delphi VCL application file in the sandbox directory to demonstrate a  Hello World program with a button that shows a  message.","content":"program HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n  Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 =  class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender:  TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1: TForm1;\n\nprocedure  TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n Show…→error
  | Okay,  the user is trying to create a Delphi Hello World program and save it  to a specific path. They previously tried writing to "HelloWorld.pas"  but it wasn't found, so they suggested writing to  "\sandbox\helloworld.pas" instead. In the last attempt, I used the write  function with the new file path and a justification. However, the  system returned an error saying that the justification is only valid  with sandbox_permissions. That means I need to include the  sandbox_permissions parameter when making the wri…
  | write{"content":"program  HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n  Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 = class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n  procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1:  TForm1;\n\nprocedure TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n  ShowMessage('Hello, World!');\nend;\n\nbegin\n Application.Initialize;\n  Application.MainFormOnTaskbar := True;\n Form1 :=  TForm1.Create(Application);\n Form1.Show;\n  Application.Run;\nend.","file_path":"G:\Junk\test deepseek…→error
  | Okay,  the user is trying to create a Delphi Hello World program and save it  to a specific path. They previously tried writing to "HelloWorld.pas"  but it wasn't found, so they suggested writing to  "\sandbox\helloworld.pas" instead. In the last attempt, I used the write  function with the new file path and a justification. However, the  system returned an error saying that the justification is only valid  with sandbox_permissions. That means I need to include the  sandbox_permissions parameter when making the wri…
  | write{"justification":"Creating  a Delphi VCL application file in the sandbox directory to demonstrate a  Hello World program with a button that shows a  message.","sandbox_permissions":"workspace-write","content":"program  HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n  Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 = class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n  procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1:  TForm1;\n\nprocedure TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n  ShowMessage('Hello, World!');\n…→error
  | Okay,  the user is trying to create a Delphi Hello World program and save it  to a specific path. They previously tried writing to "HelloWorld.pas"  but it wasn't found, so they suggested writing to  "\sandbox\helloworld.pas" instead. In the last attempt, I used the write  function with the new file path and a justification. However, the  system returned an error saying that the justification is only valid  with sandbox_permissions. That means I need to include the  sandbox_permissions parameter when making the wri…
  | Write  the Delphi Hello World program to the file /sandbox/helloworld.pas. Use  only POSIX-style paths. Do not escalate permissions. Do not attempt to  write outside the sandbox.
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write a Delphi Hello World program to  /sandbox/helloworld.pas using POSIX paths and without escalating  permissions. Let me check the previous attempts. Earlier, I tried using  the write function with the file path "G:\Junk\test deepseek  harness\sandbox\helloworld.pas" and sandbox_permissions set to  "workspace-write", but it kept giving errors about the escalation not  being strictly wider. The user now says not to escalate permissions and  to use POSIX-style paths. Wait, the error wa…
  | write{"content":"program  HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n  Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 = class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n  procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1:  TForm1;\n\nprocedure TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n  ShowMessage('Hello, World!');\nend;\n\nbegin\n Application.Initialize;\n  Application.MainFormOnTaskbar := True;\n Form1 :=  TForm1.Create(Application);\n Form1.Show;\n  Application.Run;\nend.","file_path":"/sandbox/helloworld.pa…→FS_SANDBOX_DENIED
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write a Delphi Hello World program to the file  /sandbox/helloworld.pas using POSIX-style paths without escalating  permissions. But the previous attempt resulted in a sandbox error, and  the system is asking if I want to escalate permissions with a  justification. Wait, the user explicitly said "Do not escalate  permissions." So I need to find a way to write the file without  escalating. The error message says that the current mode is  workspace-write, but access is denied. Maybe the pa…
  | Write  the Delphi Hello World program to the file /sandbox/helloworld.pas. Use  only POSIX-style paths. Do not escalate permissions. Do not convert the  path to a Windows path. Do not attempt to write outside /sandbox/.
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write a Delphi Hello World program to  /sandbox/helloworld.pas. They specified using POSIX-style paths and not  to escalate permissions. Earlier attempts resulted in sandbox access  denied errors. Let me check the tools available. The write function  requires sandbox_permissions if there's a denial. But the user says not  to escalate, which is conflicting. However, the error message suggests  that even with workspace-write, it's denied. Maybe the sandbox doesn't  allow writing to /sandbo…
  | write{"content":"program  HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n  Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 = class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n  procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1:  TForm1;\n\nprocedure TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n  ShowMessage('Hello, World!');\nend;\n\nbegin\n Application.Initialize;\n  Application.MainFormOnTaskbar := True;\n Form1 :=  TForm1.Create(Application);\n Form1.Show;\n  Application.Run;\nend.","file_path":"/sandbox/helloworld.pa…→FS_SANDBOX_DENIED
  | Okay,  let me try to figure out what's going on here. The user provided an  error message: "[sandbox: file access denied under workspace-write  mode]" and mentions that escalation is available by retrying with  sandbox_permissions and a justification. First, I need to understand why  the file access was denied. The error indicates that the operation was  in workspace-write mode, which probably means the system is restricting  certain file operations for safety. The user might be trying to write to  a file or modify…
  | You  may escalate permissions. Retry the write operation with  sandbox_permissions set to "sandbox-write" and include a justification.
  | Okay,  the user wants me to write a Delphi Hello World program to  /sandbox/helloworld.pas. They've tried a few times, but the sandbox is  denying access. The error says file access is denied under  workspace-write mode. The user mentioned that I can escalate  permissions, so I need to figure out the right sandbox_permissions  level. Wait, the available sandbox_permissions options are  "workspace-write" and "danger-full-access". The user suggested  "sandbox-write", but that's not in the enum. Maybe they meant "work…
  | write{"content":"program  HelloWorld;\n\nuses\n Vcl.Forms,\n Vcl.Controls,\n Vcl.ExtCtrls,\n  Vcl.Buttons;\n\ntype\n TForm1 = class(TForm)\n BitBtn1: TBitBtn;\n  procedure BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\n end;\n\nvar\n Form1:  TForm1;\n\nprocedure TForm1.BitBtn1Click(Sender: TObject);\nbegin\n  ShowMessage('Hello, World!');\nend;\n\nbegin\n Application.Initialize;\n  Application.MainFormOnTaskbar := True;\n Form1 :=  TForm1.Create(Application);\n Form1.Show;\n  Application.Run;\nend.","file_path":"/sandbox/helloworld.pa…→<path>G:\sandbox\helloworld.pas</path> <type>file</type> <content> Created file </content>
  | The  Delphi Hello World program has been successfully written to the file  /sandbox/helloworld.pas. Let me know if you need further assistance!
  | write test.txt to workspace, fill it with: hello world
  | Okay,  the user wants me to create a file called test.txt in the workspace and  write "hello world" into it. Let me check the available tools. There's  the 'write' function which creates or replaces a file. The parameters  needed are file_path and content. The user specified the filename as  test.txt and the content as "hello world". Wait, the workspace directory  is probably the current working directory, which in the previous  example was G:\Junk\test deepseek harness. But the user mentioned using  POSIX-style pa…
  | write{"content":"hello world","file_path":"/workspace/test.txt"}→FS_SANDBOX_DENIED
  | Okay,  the user wants me to create a file called test.txt in the workspace and  write "hello world" into it. I tried using the 'write' function with  the file path set to "/workspace/test.txt" and the content as "hello  world". But the system returned an error saying that file access was  denied under workspace-write mode. It also mentioned that escalation is  available if I retry the operation with the appropriate sandbox  permissions and a justification. Hmm, so the initial attempt didn't work  because the sandbo…
  | write{"content":"hello   world","file_path":"/workspace/test.txt","sandbox_permissions":"workspace-write","justification":"Creating  test.txt in the workspace to store the initial content 'hello world'."}→error
  | Okay,  let me try to figure this out. The user wants to create a file called  test.txt in the workspace with the content "hello world". The first  attempt used the 'write' function but was denied access under  workspace-write mode. The system suggested escalating permissions, so I  tried again with sandbox_permissions set to workspace-write and a  justification. But now there's a new error saying that the escalation  isn't strictly wider than the current mode. Wait, maybe the initial mode  was already workspace-wri…
  | write{"content":"hello  world","file_path":"/workspace/test.txt","justification":"Creating  test.txt in the workspace to store the initial content 'hello  world'.","sandbox_permissions":"danger-full-access"}→<path>G:\workspace\test.txt</path> <type>file</type> <content> Created file </content>
  | Okay,  let me recap what's happening here. The user wants to create a file  called test.txt in the workspace with the content "hello world". The  first attempt using the 'write' function was denied under  workspace-write mode. The system suggested esc

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[ylwl1997]

Those files landed on G:\sandbox\helloworld.pas and G:\workspace\test.txt because the model treated /sandbox and /workspace as POSIX aliases and then danger-full-access was approved. Those are not DSH workspace roots. The session workspace is already G:\Junk\test deepseek harness; a normal write with a relative path (HelloWorld.pas) is enough under workspace-write.

Do not approve danger-full-access for a simple create. The earlier invalid escalation: justification is only valid together with sandbox_permissions / “not strictly wider” errors mean the tool retried an escalation it did not need — retry the same relative path with no sandbox_permissions / justification.

Keep dsh web attached so Allow clicks have an answerer (#3851). If G: is Google Drive Desktop, writeFileAtomic can also fail for VFS reasons (#3919) — copy the workspace onto real NTFS first.

[SkybuckFlying]

I will have to slightly disagree, from what I saw the file paths looked like normal file paths, either with forward or backward slashes, maybe both were tried, maybe AI model got confused, I also tried relative paths, none of these seemed to work, leading to privelage escalation which is weird.

I suspect it might be a parsing error inside deepseek harness for different types of slashes/etc.

Also notice how the trajectory is hard to paste/hard to read.

Perhaps add some new lines or include them as well, so it becomes more readable or is this not possible for some reason ?

Very hard to see the actual file paths that were being supplied, so there is a copy & paste problems ?

File paths are getting cut off ....

[weijiafu14]

你贴的 trajectory 里有一条很关键的证据，可能改变这个问题的归属：

Current DSH file policy: workspace-write. Any available operation ... may modify files under the session workspace: "G:\Junk\test deepseek harness"

工作区路径是明确告诉了模型的，就在每轮的运行时上下文里。而文件最后落在了 g:\sandbox\ 和 g:\workspace\——这两个目录名是模型自己编的，不是从任何配置或上下文里来的。也就是说：不是 DSH 把文件写错了地方，是模型没有使用它被告知的工作区路径。

这一点很重要，因为它决定该修什么：

• 如果是 DSH 解析错了路径 → 那是 harness 的 bug；
• 如果是模型忽略上下文里的绝对路径、自己造了一个 → 那是模型遵循指令的能力问题，本地小模型（你用的是 ollama + qwen）在这方面比大模型弱很多。

从你的证据看是后者。验证办法很简单：给它一次明确的绝对路径（"把文件写到 G:\Junk\test deepseek harness\hello.pas"），看它照不照做。照做 = 模型的路径推断问题；不照做 = 才值得当 harness 的 bug 报。

关于 "by-passes security"

你说得对，但因果链是这样的：模型请求提权 → 你批准了 → 提权后沙箱不再限制 → 于是它编出来的路径也能写成功。在 workspace-write 下，那两个文件是写不出去的。

所以最直接的缓解是：这类任务不要批准提权。写工作区内的文件本来就不需要 full access——模型之所以去要，很可能是它先写错了地方被拦，然后把"被拦"理解成"权限不够"，而不是"路径不对"。这个误判在 DSH 社区是一族已知现象（#1069 / #201 / #4412 讲的是这个 sandbox_permissions 字段引发的各种失败形态）。

换一个更强的模型试一次，也能很快区分是模型问题还是 harness 问题——这不是敷衍，是因为你现在这份证据指向的正是模型侧。

利益相关：我维护 pi2dsh，这条回复里没有任何要你装的东西。