Advanced file and code search tool with comprehensive filtering and matching capabilities. Searches for patterns in files within allowed directories with support for regex patterns, file type filtering, size constraints, date filtering, and content preprocessing. When called without arguments, se...
AI agents call search_files to retrieve information from Project Explorer MCP Server without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This tool retrieves and queries data from the filesystem and codebase without modifying, deleting, or executing anything. It is a pure read operation that searches, filters, and returns information about files and their contents. The low severity reflects minimal risk even in adversarial scenarios, as the tool cannot alter system state or trigger side effects.
From the tool's definition Tool description states it 'Searches for patterns in files' and 'supports excluding comments and string literals for cleaner code searches' with 'configurable sorting and grouping options'.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
Advanced file and code search tool with comprehensive filtering and matching capabilities. Searches for patterns in files within allowed directories with support for regex patterns, file type filtering, size constraints, date filtering, and content preprocessing. When called without arguments, searches for common patterns in the current directory. Supports excluding comments and string literals for cleaner code searches. Results can be formatted as text, JSON, or structured output with configurable sorting and grouping options. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Project Explorer MCP Server MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Project Explorer MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for search_files: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Project Explorer MCP Server. Nothing to install.
search_files is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the search_files rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for search_files. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
search_files is provided by the Project Explorer MCP Server MCP server (mausrundung/mcp-explorer). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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