GrepAI Ignore Patterns

This skill covers how to configure ignore patterns to exclude files and directories from GrepAI indexing.

When to Use This Skill

Excluding test files from search results
Ignoring generated or vendored code
Reducing index size by excluding unnecessary files
Customizing which files GrepAI indexes

How Ignore Patterns Work

GrepAI uses two sources for ignore patterns:

.grepai/config.yaml
- Custom patterns you define
.gitignore
- Automatically respected

Configuration Location

yaml

# .grepai/config.yaml
ignore:
  - pattern1
  - pattern2

Pattern Syntax

Directory Patterns

yaml

ignore:
  # Exact directory name (matches anywhere)
  - node_modules
  - vendor
  - __pycache__

  # With trailing slash (explicit directory)
  - dist/
  - build/
  - coverage/

File Patterns

yaml

ignore:
  # Exact filename
  - package-lock.json
  - yarn.lock

  # Wildcard patterns
  - "*.min.js"
  - "*.min.css"
  - "*.map"
  - "*.lock"

Path Patterns

yaml

ignore:
  # Paths containing substring
  - /tests/
  - /spec/
  - /__tests__/

  # Specific paths
  - src/generated/
  - api/swagger/

Glob Patterns

yaml

ignore:
  # Double star (recursive)
  - "**/test/**"
  - "**/mock/**"

  # Single star (single level)
  - "*.test.js"
  - "*.spec.ts"
  - "*_test.go"

Default Ignore Patterns

GrepAI's default configuration includes:

yaml

ignore:
  # Version control
  - .git
  - .svn
  - .hg

  # GrepAI itself
  - .grepai

  # Package managers
  - node_modules
  - vendor
  - .npm
  - .yarn

  # Build outputs
  - target
  - dist
  - build
  - out

  # Cache directories
  - __pycache__
  - .pytest_cache
  - .mypy_cache
  - .cache

  # Framework outputs
  - .next
  - .nuxt
  - .output

Common Ignore Configurations

JavaScript/TypeScript Project

yaml

ignore:
  - node_modules
  - dist
  - build
  - coverage
  - .nyc_output
  - "*.min.js"
  - "*.bundle.js"
  - "*.map"
  - package-lock.json
  - yarn.lock
  - pnpm-lock.yaml

Go Project

yaml

ignore:
  - vendor
  - bin
  - "*.pb.go"       # Protobuf generated
  - "*_mock.go"     # Mocks
  - "mocks/"
  - go.sum

Python Project

yaml

ignore:
  - __pycache__
  - .pytest_cache
  - .mypy_cache
  - .venv
  - venv
  - env
  - "*.pyc"
  - "*.pyo"
  - .eggs
  - "*.egg-info"
  - dist
  - build

Rust Project

yaml

ignore:
  - target
  - Cargo.lock
  - "*.rlib"

Java/Kotlin Project

yaml

ignore:
  - target
  - build
  - .gradle
  - "*.class"
  - "*.jar"
  - "*.war"

Monorepo

yaml

ignore:
  # Common
  - node_modules
  - dist
  - build
  - coverage

  # Specific packages to exclude
  - packages/legacy/
  - packages/deprecated/

  # Generated
  - "**/generated/**"
  - "**/__generated__/**"

Excluding Test Files

To focus search on production code:

yaml

ignore:
  # Test directories
  - tests/
  - test/
  - __tests__/
  - spec/

  # Test files by pattern
  - "*.test.js"
  - "*.test.ts"
  - "*.spec.js"
  - "*.spec.ts"
  - "*_test.go"
  - "test_*.py"
  - "*_test.py"

Alternative: Use search boosting instead to penalize (not exclude) tests:

yaml

search:
  boost:
    penalties:
      - pattern: /tests/
        factor: 0.5
      - pattern: _test.
        factor: 0.5

Excluding Generated Code

yaml

ignore:
  # Generated markers
  - "**/generated/**"
  - "*.generated.*"
  - "*.gen.*"

  # Specific generators
  - "*.pb.go"           # Protobuf
  - "*.graphql.ts"      # GraphQL codegen
  - "*.d.ts"            # TypeScript declarations
  - "swagger_*.go"      # Swagger
  - "openapi_*.ts"      # OpenAPI

Excluding Documentation

yaml

ignore:
  - docs/
  - documentation/
  - "*.md"
  - "*.mdx"
  - "*.rst"

Verifying Ignore Patterns

Check what's being indexed:

bash

# Check index status
grepai status

# Output shows file count
# If too high, add more ignore patterns

Common Issues

❌ Problem: Index is too large ✅ Solution: Add more ignore patterns for dependencies and generated files

❌ Problem: Search returns vendor/test code ✅ Solution: Either ignore or use boosting penalties

❌ Problem: Pattern not working ✅ Solution: Check syntax - use quotes for patterns with special characters:

yaml

ignore:
  - "*.min.js"  # Correct
  - *.min.js    # May cause YAML parsing issues

❌ Problem: Need to include previously ignored files ✅ Solution: Remove from ignore list and re-run

grepai watch

Best Practices

Start with defaults: Add patterns as needed
Exclude dependencies: Always ignore
```
node_modules
```
,
```
vendor
```
, etc.
Exclude build outputs:
```
dist
```
,
```
build
```
,
```
target
```
Exclude lock files: Large, not useful for search
Consider boosting vs ignoring: Penalize instead of exclude for test files
Quote special characters:
```
"*.min.js"
```
not
```
*.min.js
```

Re-indexing After Changes

After modifying ignore patterns:

bash

# Stop existing daemon
grepai watch --stop

# Clear index and restart
rm .grepai/index.gob
grepai watch

Output Format

After configuring ignore patterns:

✅ Ignore Patterns Configured

   Patterns: 15 configured

   Categories:
   - Directories: node_modules, vendor, dist, build
   - File types: *.min.js, *.map, *.lock
   - Paths: /tests/, /docs/

   Also respecting: .gitignore

   Run 'grepai watch' to re-index with new patterns.

grepai-ignore-patterns

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

GrepAI Ignore Patterns

When to Use This Skill

How Ignore Patterns Work

Configuration Location

Pattern Syntax

Directory Patterns

File Patterns

Path Patterns

Glob Patterns

Default Ignore Patterns

Common Ignore Configurations

JavaScript/TypeScript Project

Go Project

Python Project

Rust Project

Java/Kotlin Project

Monorepo

Excluding Test Files

Excluding Generated Code

Excluding Documentation

Verifying Ignore Patterns

Common Issues

Best Practices

Re-indexing After Changes

Output Format