Cursor runs shell commands directly in your terminal. Your Run Mode controls when commands run, when Cursor asks, and when terminal commands enter the sandbox.

Sandbox

The sandbox runs terminal commands in a restricted environment that blocks unauthorized file access and network activity. For platform requirements, network modes, environment variables, and sandbox.json configuration, read Run Modes > Sandboxing.

Troubleshooting

Some shell themes (for example, Powerlevel9k/Powerlevel10k) can interfere with
the inline terminal output. If your command output looks truncated or
misformatted, disable the theme or switch to a simpler prompt when Cursor runs.

Disable heavy prompts for Cursor sessions

Use the CURSOR_AGENT environment variable in your shell config to detect when
Cursor is running and skip initializing fancy prompts/themes.

# ~/.zshrc - disable Powerlevel10k when Cursor runs
if [[ -n "$CURSOR_AGENT" ]]; then
  # Skip theme initialization for better compatibility
else
  [[ -r ~/.p10k.zsh ]] && source ~/.p10k.zsh
fi

# ~/.bashrc - fall back to a simple prompt in Cursor sessions
if [[ -n "$CURSOR_AGENT" ]]; then
  PS1='\u@\h \W \$ '
fi