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.rooignore Configuration in Roo-Code

What is .rooignore?

A .rooignore file tells Roo which files to ignore when examining your project. This helps Roo focus on relevant files, avoid sensitive information, and reduce token usage. It works like .gitignore but specifically for Roo's operations.

Creating a .rooignore File

  1. Create a file named .rooignore in your project's root directory
  2. Add patterns for files and directories you want Roo to ignore
  3. Save the file - Roo will automatically respect these patterns

Pattern Syntax

.rooignore uses pattern matching similar to .gitignore:

Pattern What It Does
file.txt Ignores a specific file
*.log Ignores all files with the .log extension
node_modules/ Ignores an entire directory
logs/*.txt Ignores all .txt files in the logs directory
**/*.tmp Ignores .tmp files in any directory
!important.log Includes a file that would otherwise be ignored

Common Use Cases

Excluding Large Files

Large files consume lots of tokens and rarely provide useful context:

# Exclude large files
*.mp4
*.zip
*.pdf
data/*.csv

Protecting Sensitive Information

Keep credentials and sensitive data private:

# Exclude sensitive files
.env
secrets/
**/*.key
config/credentials.json

Ignoring Build Artifacts

Build outputs are usually unnecessary:

# Exclude build artifacts
dist/
build/
out/
*.min.js

Excluding Third-Party Code

Third-party code is usually noise for Roo:

# Exclude third-party code
node_modules/
vendor/
bower_components/

Default Ignored Files

Roo automatically ignores these common files and directories, even without a .rooignore file:

  • Version control: .git/, .svn/
  • Package managers: node_modules/, package-lock.json
  • Build outputs: dist/, build/
  • Environment files: .env, .env.*
  • Credentials: **/*.key, **/*.pem
  • IDE files: .vscode/, .idea/
  • Logs: **/*.log, logs/
  • Media files: **/*.mp4, **/*.mp3
  • Binary files: **/*.exe, **/*.dll, **/*.zip

Advanced Usage

Directory-Specific Ignores

You can place .rooignore files in subdirectories to create more specific rules:

project/
├── .rooignore            # Project-wide rules
├── src/
│   └── .rooignore        # Rules specific to src/
└── tests/
    └── .rooignore        # Rules specific to tests/

Rules in subdirectories apply only to files within that directory and its subdirectories.

Using .gitignore Rules

If you don't create a .rooignore file, Roo will also check for a .gitignore file and use those patterns. This gives you a head start if you're already using Git.

Best Practices

  1. Keep It Simple: Start with a minimal .rooignore and add patterns as needed
  2. Be Specific: Use precise patterns rather than overly broad ones
  3. Document Your Choices: Add comments explaining why certain files are ignored
  4. Check Results: Use Roo to list files to verify your patterns work as expected
  5. Balance: Exclude enough to focus Roo, but not so much that it misses context

Real-World Examples

Web Development Project

# Dependencies
node_modules/
bower_components/

# Build outputs
dist/
build/
*.min.js
*.min.css

# Development files
.env
.env.*
config/local.json

# Large media files
public/videos/
public/assets/*.psd

# Keep example files
!public/assets/examples/

Data Science Project

# Large data files
data/*.csv
data/*.parquet
models/*.onnx

# Keep sample data
!data/samples/

# Virtual environments
venv/
.virtualenv/

# Jupyter checkpoints
.ipynb_checkpoints/

# Output files
outputs/
results/*.png

Troubleshooting

Issue Solution
Roo still sees ignored files Ensure your .rooignore file is in the right location
Pattern not working Check syntax; remember to use **/ for matching in all directories
Too many files excluded Use negation patterns (!pattern) to include specific files
Roo missing important context Your patterns might be too broad; make them more specific