Getting it into your agent
One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.
npx agentmods add rules/bybren-llc/safe-agentic-workflow/30-background-agentsgit clone --depth 1 https://github.com/bybren-llc/safe-agentic-workflowWrote this? Show the measurements
A badge with what this costs and how it scanned, read live from this page, so it follows the numbers instead of freezing them. Markdown for a README, HTML for a documentation site or a project page.
[](https://agentmods.dev/rules/bybren-llc/safe-agentic-workflow/30-background-agents)<a href="https://agentmods.dev/rules/bybren-llc/safe-agentic-workflow/30-background-agents"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/rules/bybren-llc/safe-agentic-workflow/30-background-agents.svg" alt="Measured on agentmods" height="20"></a>What it costs to keep this loaded
Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.
| Model | Per session | Once invoked |
|---|---|---|
| Fable 5.1 | $0.00016 | $0.00689 |
| Opus 5 | $0.00008 | $0.00345 |
| Sonnet 5 | $0.00003 | $0.00138 |
| Haiku 4.5 | $0.00002 | $0.00069 |
Grade A, and why
30-background-agents scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 3d ago.
A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.
Nothing flagged
None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.
Copies of this mod
1 near-identical copy found in the catalogue:
- 30-background-agents — 91% identical, 12 lines differ
How it starts
The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 75 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.
Background Agent Guidelines
Cursor Background Agents run long tasks autonomously in isolated Ubuntu VMs with internet access. They clone the repo from GitHub, work on a separate branch, and open PRs when complete.
How Background Agents Work
- Each background agent runs in an isolated Ubuntu VM provisioned by Cursor
- The agent clones the repository from GitHub (it does NOT use your local checkout)
- It works on a dedicated branch and can commit, push, and open pull requests
- You are notified when the task completes or if the agent needs input
- Multiple background agents can run in parallel on different tasks
SAFe Gate Chain Compliance
Background agents MUST follow the same SAFe workflow as interactive sessions:
- Stop-the-Line Gate: Verify AC/DoD exists before starting work
- Pattern Discovery: Search
patterns_library/before implementing - Commit Format: Use SAFe format
type(scope): description [{{TICKET_PREFIX}}-XXX] - Branch Naming: Use
{{TICKET_PREFIX}}-{number}-{description} - Exit States: Declare the correct exit state when complete
PR Creation from Background Agents
When a background agent opens a PR:
- Reference the Linear ticket in the PR title:
feat(scope): description [{{TICKET_PREFIX}}-XXX] - Follow the PR template from
CONTRIBUTING.md - Include a test plan in the PR body
- Tag appropriate reviewers per the 3-stage review process
- The PR still requires QAS validation and HITL merge authority
Best Practices
- Assign one ticket per background agent for clear scope
- Provide the full spec path:
specs/{{TICKET_PREFIX}}-XXX-feature-spec.md - Reference the agent role: "Act as the BE Developer" or "Act as the FE Developer"
- Include validation commands the agent should run before opening the PR
- Monitor agent progress via Cursor's background agent dashboard
Limitations
- Background agents cannot access your local filesystem or environment variables
- They start fresh from the GitHub remote each time
- They cannot interact with local Docker containers or databases
- Session state does not persist between background agent runs
- They inherit repository-level Cursor rules but not user-level settings
What this file has done since we first saw it
Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.
- 3d ago First seen · 75 lines · 16 tokens per session scan A c8bc1a5e3437
30-background-agents is a cursor rule published in the GitHub repository bybren-llc/safe-agentic-workflow (406 stars, last pushed 1mo ago), licensed MIT. It adds 16 tokens to every session and 689 once invoked, about $0.0001 per session on Opus 5. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-09-03.
Other cursor rules, from other repositories
no-auto-commit
Never commit or push without explicit user instruction.
pr-standards
Git Commit & PR Standards for AI-Assisted Development.
commit-sponsors
Every git commit message must acknowledge BetterDesk supporters.
git-discipline
Commit, push, and branching rules. Owns ALL git behavior; other files state only their deviations.
git
Cursor rule "git" from duongductrong/cursor-kit, covering git conventions, commit messages, types, subject rules and examples.
dev-guidelines
Cursor rule "dev-guidelines" from Hahaxiong838383/open-feishu-mcp-server, covering 项目开发规范, 仓库信息, 开发流程, issue 管理 and 分支策略.