13. Plugin Permissions Matrix

1. Goals

Provide a permission–capability–risk–default-policy reference table for reuse by UI copy and validation.

2. Matrix

Permission	Risk	Allowed API / capability	Default policy	Notes
ui.panel	low	Open the plugin panel	Granted at install	Needed by almost all UI plugins
ui.view	low	contributes.views are listed in the work panel and may be opened	Granted at install	Same isolation as a panel window: sandboxed page, per-plugin partition, net.domains egress. Filtered by activation scope
ui.theme	low	contributes.themes CSS is loaded and offered in Settings; runtime pi.themes.upsert / remove / list and pi.app.setTheme (ADR 0260)	Granted at install	CSS is sanitized by the host; it cannot script. Declared assets are served over the host's read-only plugin-asset: scheme. setTheme may only select a built-in preference or a currently registered plugin theme. There is no per-plugin theme count cap
ui.window.appearance	low	contributes.windowAppearance sets the native window background while one of the plugin's themes is selected	Granted at install	#rrggbb / #rrggbbaa only; applied per resolved palette and back to the host default once the theme is gone. macOS keeps vibrancy
clipboard.read	medium	clipboard.readText, clipboard.getHistory	Confirm on first use	May read sensitive information and retained clipboard history
clipboard.write	medium	clipboard.writeText	Confirm on first use	Prevents clipboard pollution
notify	low	ui.notify, ui.getNotificationPermission, ui.requestNotificationPermission, ui.showNativeNotification	Can be granted by default	Native delivery is OS-controlled; avoid notification-spam abuse
fs.read	medium	fs.readText / fs.stat / fs.readRange / fs.readPreview / fs.openDefault / fs.reveal / fs.glob / fs.list / fs.requestDirectory / dropped-file grant	Granted at install, bounded by manifest.fs.read	fs.stat and fs.readRange share the read gate; a dropped-file grant is one-file, read-only, memory-only, and gesture-bound; all file calls remain root- and deny-list-checked
fs.write	high	fs.writeText	Granted at install, bounded by manifest.fs.write	Scope is required; a whole-tree pattern fails validation. Out of scope asks the user
fs.delete	high	fs.remove	Granted at install, bounded by manifest.fs.delete	Two tiers (own / scope), always via the OS trash, non-recursive, rate-braked (§2B)
fs.read.workspace	medium	—	Downgraded on load to fs.read with a whole-tree scope	Legacy name; predates scopes
fs.write.workspace	high	—	Downgraded on load to fs.write with no scope	Legacy name; every write asks the user until the manifest declares scope
fs.delete.workspace	high	—	Downgraded on load to fs.delete with own: true	Legacy name; only the plugin's own output goes without asking
agent.tool.register	high	Register an agent tool	Confirm at install	Tool execution is audited separately
agent.prompt.inject	high	Inject a system prompt; activates contributes.skills	Deny by default / strong confirmation	Easily leads to behavior hijacking
agent.extension	high	Run contributes.agentExtensions modules inside the agent process	Explicit confirmation; local imports and development plugins only in v1.1	Same access as the agent's own tools; the plugin sandbox does not apply (spec 16)
provider.register	high	contributes.providers become rows in the native provider list, owned by the plugin and refreshed from the manifest on load	Explicit confirmation; local imports and development plugins only in v1.1, matching agent.extension	The user path refuses the row (PROVIDER_OWNED_BY_PLUGIN); credentials stay in the Host secret store under the usual provider refs; oauth declarations are not enabled yet
net.fetch	high	net.fetch	Deny by default	Confined to manifest.net.domains; an empty or malformed list means no egress (§2A)
net.websocket	high	pi.net.websocket.connect / send / close (host-owned sockets; at most 4 per plugin, 1 MiB frames)	Deny by default	Confined to manifest.net.domains like net.fetch; a refused host never reaches the transport, and every socket is closed when the plugin unloads, is disabled, or crashes
shell.openExternal	medium	Open external link	Confirm on first use	Prevents phishing links
mcp.server.local	high	Spawn a transport: "stdio" MCP server declared in the manifest	Deny by default	Runs a local executable; its tools reach the agent
mcp.server.remote	high	Connect a transport: "http" MCP server	Deny by default	Sends tool arguments to a third-party endpoint; non-loopback HTTP is unencrypted
background.service	medium	Start contributes.services and keep the plugin process resident	Confirm at install	Supervised with backoff; visible on the Plugins page
bus.publish	medium	bus.publish to declared topics	Confirm at install	Other plugins can act on the message
bus.subscribe	medium	bus.subscribe to declared patterns	Confirm at install	Can observe another plugin's messages
browser.cdp	high	pi.browser.* against the host work-panel guest	Confirm at install	Guest bounds are clamped to the calling plugin view; CDP is allowlisted
desktop.control	high	pi.desktop.listOperations, pi.desktop.invoke, including the reviewed session/collaboration/* operations	Confirm at install	Shared with the local MCP control plane's reviewed operation catalog, except for operations marked plugin-only: the six session/collaboration/* operations reach the plugin gateway but are deliberately absent from the MCP-visible catalog and have no renderer mutation channel; collaboration spawn/send additionally require an active plugin Agent tool invocation, whose source Session/turn/invocation identity is injected by the host; panel cancellation is limited to that plugin's own deliveries; a dangerous operation needs confirm: true from the plugin and the user's answer to a host-owned native dialog that names the catalog operation; the MCP bearer token and Electron channel names are never exposed
ui.microphone	medium	navigator.mediaDevices.getUserMedia({ audio: true }) inside the plugin's isolated panel	Confirm at install	Audio only; camera and every other device permission stay denied; no native handle or host secret reaches the plugin
audio.capture.background	high	pi.audio.getInputDevices, openInput, closeInput, getCaptureState, onInputFrame / offInputFrame (registered in the plugin API and gated by this permission; the two synchronous registration helpers throw the coded refusal)	Deny by default	Host owns the device; PCM16 frames only, no device handle or MediaStream. The host has no device backend yet, so an authorized call is refused with a coded UNSUPPORTED (audited); no device is opened
audio.playback.background	medium	pi.audio.openOutput, writeOutput, stopOutput, closeOutput (registered in the plugin API and gated by this permission)	Confirm at install	Host-owned playback queue, PCM16 only. The host has no device backend yet, so an authorized call is refused with a coded UNSUPPORTED (audited); no device is opened
keyboard.globalShortcut	medium	pi.keyboard.registerGlobalShortcut, unregisterGlobalShortcut, listGlobalShortcuts; contributes.globalShortcuts	Confirm at install	Host owns Electron globalShortcut; a shortcut only runs the plugin's own command; conflicts are refused (SHORTCUT_CONFLICT / SHORTCUT_UNAVAILABLE / INVALID_ACCELERATOR / LIMIT_EXCEEDED, max 8 per plugin); released on unload/disable/crash
models.list	medium	pi.models.list	Confirm at install	Ready provider/model rows only; no secrets
project.create	high	pi.project.create and explicit projectId on session import	Confirm at install	Creates or reuses a durable project row without activating the workspace; imported sessions remain unbound unless the id is supplied
session.read	high	pi.session.getLlmContext	Confirm at install	In-flight tool session only; compaction-aware projection (D019 / D336)
session.import	high	pi.session.import, pi.session.importBatch	Confirm at install	Imports only into the calling plugin's declared session sources; bounded and rate-limited
session.read.own	medium	pi.session.list, pi.session.get, pi.session.listMessages	Confirm at install	Reads only sessions imported by the calling plugin; no cross-plugin access
session.update.own	medium	pi.session.rename	Confirm at install	Renames only the calling plugin's active imported sessions
session.delete.own	high	pi.session.delete	Confirm at install	Trash/purge only the calling plugin's imported sessions; rate-limited
usage.read	medium	pi.usage.listTurns	Confirm at install	Read-only listing of completed-turn facts (per-turn token counters and identifiers, keyset-paginated); no message body and no write path
agent.complete	high	pi.agent.complete	Confirm at install	Host-owned one-shot; spends user quota; includeSessionContext also needs session.read
speech.adapter.register	high	pi.speech.registerAdapter / unregisterAdapter	Confirm at install	Registers a speech protocol. Handles stay in the guest; HTTP plans are executed by the host with the bound provider key and must stay on that origin. Built-in protocol ids are reserved

2A. A permission is the switch; the manifest carries the range

Two capabilities are too coarse to be answered by a name alone, so the name says whether the plugin may act and a manifest field says how far. Both fields are enforced by the host, shown to the user next to the permissions, and validated at install time.

Field	Bounds	Absent or empty means
net.domains	Every host-owned egress path: the panel session, pi.net.fetch, remote HTTP MCP endpoints	No egress at all, whatever net.fetch says
fs.read / fs.write / fs.delete	Which paths that file mode may touch	No standing reach; every access falls to a confirmation

Failing closed on an absent field is what makes the two safe to omit: a manifest that says nothing grants nothing. See 04-plugin-security.md §6 and §8.1, and ADR 0088.

The two are also linked. fs.read may declare the whole tree because a read only becomes a leak when the bytes can leave, and net.domains closes that half. fs.write and fs.delete are dangerous on their own, so a whole-tree pattern (**, **/*, */**, ./*) fails manifest validation for those modes.

2B. Deletion

fs.delete is the one file mode whose damage is not undoable by re-running the plugin, so it carries three bounds the other modes do not:

1. Two tiers. own: true lets a plugin remove files it wrote itself — the host keeps a write ledger in the plugin's data directory — with no scope and no prompt; a file the user has modified since drops out of the ledger. Deleting anything else needs a declared scope, and out-of-scope paths ask the user.
2. The OS trash. Removal goes through shell.trashItem, never rm, and never recursively: a non-empty directory is refused rather than emptied. The host keeps no copy of the user's data to provide this.
3. A rate brake. 50 deletes per rolling 60s per plugin. Past it the user is asked once with the reason given as rate rather than path, because recursive: false bounds one call and not a glob plus a loop.

3. Permission dependencies

• ui.panel is required to load a panel entry
• ui.view is required to contribute work panel views; it is independent of ui.panel, so a plugin may ship docked views without a detached window
• agent.tool.register is required to contribute agentTools
• When fs.write is present, it is recommended to also declare fs.read
• manifest.fs.<mode> requires the matching fs.<mode> permission; a scope nobody can use fails validation rather than being silently ignored
• fs.requestDirectory (the userSelected root) is gated on fs.read; writing or deleting inside the chosen directory still needs fs.write / fs.delete
• A contribution whose permission is missing fails manifest validation (themes, mcpServers, services, bus); skills is the exception and is skipped at load time instead (see 02-plugin-manifest-schema.md §7)
• Lifecycle and state events need no permission: workspace:changed, session:modelChanged, session:turnEnded, and plugin:settingsChanged arrive on the existing plugin event channel, and subscribing to an unknown event name does not error

3A. Plan operating-state rule

Every agentTools contribution is denied in Plan, regardless of this matrix's risk or default policy. agent.tool.register authorizes registration for Agent, not visibility in Plan. The host returns PLUGIN_DISABLED_IN_PLAN for a direct Plan call and records the denial. Plugin tools become eligible only after the same Agent is approved into Agent mode.

4. Permission display copy

English is the primary copy. The zh-CN column holds the localized example strings. A file permission is never shown alone: the declared scope is rendered beside it, so "Modify the files it lists" is followed by the list.

Permission	English copy	zh-CN example
fs.read	Read the files it lists	读取它列出的文件
clipboard.read	Read the current clipboard and retained history	读取当前剪贴板和保留的历史
fs.write	Modify the files it lists	修改它列出的文件
fs.delete	Delete the files it lists, to the trash	删除它列出的文件（进回收站）
notify	Show in-app and native notifications	显示应用内和系统通知
agent.tool.register	Provide executable tools to the AI Agent	向 AI Agent 提供可执行工具
agent.prompt.inject	Adjust agent instructions	调整智能体指令
agent.extension	Run code inside the agent	在 agent 内运行代码
net.fetch	Access the network	访问网络
shell.openExternal	Open external links	打开外部链接
ui.theme	Provide a theme	提供主题
ui.settings	Add a sandboxed Settings entry in Extensions	在“扩展”中添加沙盒设置项
ui.window.appearance	Set the window background	设置窗口背景
mcp.server.local	Run a local MCP server	运行本地 MCP 服务
mcp.server.remote	Reach a remote MCP server	连接远端 MCP 服务
background.service	Keep a background service running	保持后台服务运行
bus.publish	Send messages to other plugins	向其他插件发送消息
bus.subscribe	Receive messages from other plugins	接收其他插件的消息
browser.cdp	Control the work-panel browser	控制工作面板浏览器
models.list	List authenticated models	列出已登录的模型
session.read	Read the current conversation sent to the model	读取当前发给模型的对话
session.import	Import bounded session history into your declared sources	导入受限的会话历史到已声明的数据源
session.read.own	Read sessions imported by this plugin	读取此插件导入的会话
session.update.own	Rename sessions imported by this plugin	重命名此插件导入的会话
session.delete.own	Trash or purge sessions imported by this plugin	将此插件导入的会话移入回收站或清除
usage.read	Read usage statistics	读取用量统计
agent.complete	Run a one-shot completion with your models	用你的模型发起一次补全
speech.adapter.register	Register a speech adapter	注册语音适配器
audio.capture.background	Use the microphone in the background	后台使用麦克风
audio.playback.background	Play audio in the background	后台播放声音
keyboard.globalShortcut	Register system-wide shortcuts	注册系统级快捷键
net.websocket	Open real-time connections	建立实时双向连接

5. Adding permissions on upgrade

If new permissions appear on upgrade:

1. Compute the diff
2. Force user confirmation
3. If not confirmed, cancel the upgrade or disable the new capabilities (canceling the upgrade is recommended)

6. Runtime check pseudocode

assertPermission(pluginId, perm) {
 if (!granted(pluginId, perm)) throw ERROR_PERMISSION_DENIED
}

Every Host API entry point must assert first. A file entry point then passes three more gates, in this order — a later gate can only refuse, never widen:

assertFsAccess(pluginId, mode, requestedPath, sessionId) {
 assertPermission(pluginId, `fs.${mode}`)              // declared AND granted
 full = realpathWithinRoot(root(pluginId, mode, sessionId), requestedPath)
 if (!full) throw NOT_FOUND | INVALID_ARGUMENT         // symlinks resolved first
 if (isDenied(full) || isHostReserved(full)) throw ERROR_PERMISSION_DENIED
 if (!inScope(full, declaredScope(pluginId, mode))) await confirmWithUser(...)
}

The workspace root is the invoking tool session's project, falling back to the visible workspace for a panel call (ADR 0266).

7. Acceptance

1. Unauthorized API calls fail
2. Permission copy is visible in the install UI, and a file permission shows its declared scope alongside
3. Upgrades that add permissions prompt the user
4. A write or delete outside the declared scope prompts, and a denial is audited as PERMISSION_DENIED
5. .env and .git/** stay unreadable under a whole-tree read scope, and do not appear in fs.glob results either
6. A symlink inside the root pointing outside it does not carry an access out
7. A delete lands in the OS trash, refuses a non-empty directory, and is interrupted past 50 removals in a rolling minute
8. A plugin declaring only the legacy fs.*.workspace names loses write and delete reach, and the Plugins page says so