add-protections

name	add-protections
description	Set up endpoint permission guards for the Corsair agent. Use when the user wants to control which agent actions require manual approval, add safeguards, restrict endpoints, or configure protections.

You are helping a user add human-in-the-loop permission guards to Corsair agent actions. When a protected endpoint is called, execution is blocked until the user approves it via an approval page.

Each permission is single-use: approved once, used once, then marked completed.

Step 1: Ask what to protect

Ask the user two things at once:

1. Which agent actions should require approval?
2. What information do they want to see on the approval page when reviewing each action?

For example: "Which actions should require approval, and what details would you like to see when approving them? For example, for a Slack message you might want to see the channel and message text; for a Linear issue you might want to see the title, description, and priority."

Wait for the user's response before continuing.

Step 2: Map to endpoints

Look at server/corsair.ts to see which plugins are active. For each action the user described, identify the matching endpoint path(s).

Common mappings:

User says	Endpoint path
"sending Slack messages"	slack.messages.post
"updating Slack messages"	slack.messages.update
"deleting Slack messages"	slack.messages.delete
"creating Slack channels"	slack.channels.create
"creating Linear issues"	linear.issues.create
"updating Linear issues"	linear.issues.update
"sending emails" (Resend)	resend.emails.send
"sending emails" (Gmail)	gmail.messages.send
"posting to Discord"	discord.messages.create
"uploading files"	slack.files.upload / googledrive.files.upload
"creating GitHub PRs"	github.pullRequests.create

If unsure about an endpoint name, check the plugin's type definitions:

• node_modules/corsair/dist/plugins/<plugin>/index.d.ts
• Find the *EndpointsNested declaration — the dotted key path is the endpoint: e.g. issues: { create } → linear.issues.create

Step 3: Update corsair.ts

Open server/corsair.ts and add before and after hooks inline for each protected endpoint.

Import the permission helpers (if not already imported):

import { checkPermission, completePermission } from './permissions';

Hook anatomy — every protected endpoint follows this exact pattern:

somePlugin({
  hooks: {
    group: {
      method: {
        async before(ctx, args) {
          const permissionId = await checkPermission('plugin.group.method', args);
          if (!permissionId) {
            console.log(
              `[PERMISSION_REQUIRED] endpoint=plugin.group.method args=${JSON.stringify(args)}

              This endpoint requires approval.

              <USER PREFERENCES: list the specific fields the user wants to see on the approval page, e.g. "The user wants to see the channel name and message text." Be explicit — the agent reading this log will use it to write the permission description.>

              Use the request_permission tool to request access.`,
            );
            return { ctx, args, continue: false };
          }
          return { ctx, args, continue: true, passToAfter: permissionId };
        },
        async after(_, __, passToAfter) {
          passToAfter && (await completePermission(passToAfter));
        },
      },
    },
  },
}),

CRITICAL: The console.log message is the agent's only instruction

The [PERMISSION_REQUIRED] log is what the agent reads when it calls request_permission. The description it writes for the approval page comes entirely from parsing this message. You must embed the user's display preferences directly in the log string. If the user said they want to see the title, description, and priority — write that explicitly in the log. If you don't, the agent will have no idea what to include and will write a generic description.

Example for a Linear issue where the user wants title, description, and priority visible:

linear({
  hooks: {
    issues: {
      create: {
        async before(ctx, args) {
          const permissionId = await checkPermission('linear.issues.create', args);
          if (!permissionId) {
            console.log(
              `[PERMISSION_REQUIRED] endpoint=linear.issues.create args=${JSON.stringify(args)}

              This endpoint requires approval.

              The user wants to see the issue title, description, and priority on the approval page.

              Use the request_permission tool to request access.`,
            );
            return { ctx, args, continue: false };
          }
          return { ctx, args, continue: true, passToAfter: permissionId };
        },
        async after(_, __, passToAfter) {
          passToAfter && (await completePermission(passToAfter));
        },
      },
    },
  },
}),

Example for Slack where the user wants channel and message text visible:

slack({
  hooks: {
    messages: {
      post: {
        async before(ctx, args) {
          const permissionId = await checkPermission('slack.messages.post', args);
          if (!permissionId) {
            console.log(
              `[PERMISSION_REQUIRED] endpoint=slack.messages.post args=${JSON.stringify(args)}

              This endpoint requires approval.

              The user wants to see the channel and full message text on the approval page.

              Use the request_permission tool to request access.`,
            );
            return { ctx, args, continue: false };
          }
          return { ctx, args, continue: true, passToAfter: permissionId };
        },
        async after(_, __, passToAfter) {
          passToAfter && (await completePermission(passToAfter));
        },
      },
    },
  },
}),

Hook mechanics (how it works)

• checkPermission(endpoint, args) — queries the DB for a granted permission matching this exact endpoint + args JSON. Returns the permission ID if found, null if not.
• continue: false — halts execution of the endpoint. The API call is never made.
• passToAfter: permissionId — threads the permission ID from before to after via the runtime. The after hook receives it as its third argument.
• after(_, __, passToAfter) — _ is ctx, __ is the API response. The third param is whatever was returned as passToAfter from before.
• completePermission(id) — marks the permission as completed by ID so it can't be reused.

Hook structure rules

• The hooks object mirrors the endpoint tree exactly: hooks.group.method.before/after
• The endpoint string passed to checkPermission must be the full dotted path: plugin.group.method
• Do NOT modify server/permissions.ts — it's a shared module
• Do NOT protect get, list, search, or read-only endpoints — only writes
• If a plugin already has hooks for other endpoints, add to them, don't replace

Step 4: Confirm

Tell the user which endpoints are now protected and explain the flow:

1. When the agent tries to call a protected endpoint, it will pause and log [PERMISSION_REQUIRED]
2. The agent calls request_permission and sends the user an approval URL
3. The user opens the approval page, sees the action details, and clicks Approve or Decline
4. If approved, the agent re-runs the action — this time checkPermission finds the granted record and proceeds
5. After the endpoint executes, completePermission marks it used so it can't be replayed