Appendix
Cheatsheet · Windsurf
Structural reference, not a tutorial — dense, lookup-first. Windsurf is IDE-first, like Cursor; confirm against the live docs when something here feels…
Structural reference, not a tutorial — dense, lookup-first. Windsurf is IDE-first, like Cursor; confirm against the live docs when something here feels stale.
Entry points
| Surface | Does |
|---|---|
| Windsurf IDE — Cascade | the in-editor agentic session; reads the workspace, proposes and applies multi-file changes |
| Cascade's terminal integration | runs shell commands as part of a Cascade turn, subject to the same approval settings as file edits |
Config file shapes
| File | Role |
|---|---|
.windsurfrules (workspace) or global rules in settings | the rules file — context layer, same role as CLAUDE.md/AGENTS.md |
| MCP config (IDE settings) | connector declarations, where supported |
The loop primitives
Windsurf has no first-class unattended-schedule primitive at the time of writing — the heartbeat, if you build one, lives entirely outside the IDE:
| Mechanism | Shape |
|---|---|
| Cascade session, driven interactively | not a loop by itself — this is the "prompting" side of Step 1 unless you wrap it |
| CI/cron calling an equivalent CLI entry point (where offered) | the unattended-schedule shape, hosted outside the IDE |
| A capped, externally-driven wrapper | conditional/run-until-done, same pattern as the other IDE-first tool in this matrix |
Permissions & harness guarantees
| Directive | Effect |
|---|---|
| Cascade's write/run approval mode | whether file edits and terminal commands apply automatically or wait for a click — the IDE's version of the autonomy ladder |
| Turbo/auto-run settings (naming varies by release) | broadens what Cascade can do without per-action confirmation — treat any "auto" toggle exactly like an L2/L3 promotion decision, not a convenience default |
Gotchas
.windsurfrulesis context, not enforcement — the same "request vs. guarantee" caveat as every rules file in this cheatsheet series; real guarantees need an approval-mode or permission setting behind them.- Because there's no built-in unattended scheduler, the temptation is to leave an "auto-run everything" toggle on and treat the IDE session itself as unattended — resist it; an open IDE session with auto-run on is functionally an L3 loop with no spine, no cap, and no log, which is exactly the shape safety.md warns against.
- Verify current MCP and scheduling support before designing around it — this is one of the faster-moving tools in the matrix.
Sources: this cheatsheet is original reference material for this course, written per the attribution policy's rule that tool mechanics are framed as pointers to live documentation rather than authoritative references. Live reference: docs.windsurf.com. Cross-referenced against this course's tool-agnostic rules in safety.md. Full attribution: resources/sources.md.