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Nicky LeachandPaperclip fdb9a4880d fix(security): route paperclipai CLI guidance through safe npx form (CWE-78) (#11400)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work
> - Paperclip provides CLI commands and guidance for operators and
agents
> - The `pnpm paperclipai` script can pass argument values through a
shell
> - Shell re-parsing can execute command substitutions inside quoted
values
> - This pull request routes guidance through inert-argv `npx
paperclipai` commands and adds regression coverage
> - The benefit is safer operator guidance across documentation and
runtime hints

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

This pull request fixes a command-injection-class defect in Paperclip
CLI guidance.

**What happened?**

The `pnpm paperclipai <sub> --flag "$VALUE"` form can re-parse argument
values through a shell. A command substitution inside a quoted value can
execute on the host.

**Expected behavior**

Paperclip guidance must pass CLI values as inert argument values.
Host-derived values must not appear in copyable commands.

**Steps to reproduce**

1. Run a Paperclip guidance command that uses the `pnpm paperclipai`
script.
2. Provide a quoted value that contains a command substitution.
3. Observe that the shell can evaluate the substitution before the CLI
starts.
4. Compare the result with the `npx paperclipai` form.

**Paperclip version or commit**

`5670984b75d109950c968542a0111ebb6967f4da`

**Deployment mode**

All deployment modes that show or use the affected CLI guidance.

**Installation method**

Built from source and installed CLI guidance.

**Agent adapter(s) involved**

Not adapter-specific (core bug).

**Database mode**

Not database-related.

**Access context**

Both.

**Additional context**

The earlier merged PR
[#11343](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/pull/11343) used the
unsafe `pnpm exec paperclipai` form. This fresh PR replaces that
guidance with the safe `npx paperclipai` form.

## What Changed

- Standardize documentation and runtime hints on `npx paperclipai`.
- Remove the broken `pnpm exec paperclipai` guidance.
- Use a static `<host>` placeholder in private-hostname guidance.
- Add regression tests for unsafe forms, continued lines, static hosts,
and offline guidance.

## Verification

- `git diff --check
origin/master...origin/fix/paperclipai-cli-npx-safe-invocation` passes.
- The branch adds `server/src/__tests__/cli-invocation-safety.test.ts`
and updates private-hostname tests.
- CI must run the new tests, typecheck, lint, and build checks.
- Local Vitest execution was not available because this worktree has no
installed Vitest binary.

## Risks

- The change affects operator and agent documentation text.
- The runtime hints now show `<host>` instead of a request-derived host
value.
- No database schema or migration changes exist.
- CI will detect any missed unsafe invocation or type error.

## Model Used

OpenAI GPT-5, exact model ID `gpt-5`, with tool use and code-review
assistance. The model used repository inspection, Git operations, and PR
preparation.

## Checklist

- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either (a) linked existing issues with `Fixes: #` / `Closes
#` / `Refs #` OR (b) described the issue in-PR following the relevant
issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links (only public GitHub `#NNN` / `github.com/paperclipai/paperclip`
URLs)
- [x] My branch name describes the change (e.g. `docs/...`, `fix/...`)
and contains no internal Paperclip ticket id or instance-derived details
- [x] CI ran the test suites and they pass; local test execution was
unavailable in this worktree
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [x] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [x] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [x] I addressed all Greptile and reviewer comments before requesting
merge

---------

Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
2026-08-14 22:11:16 -07:00

4.0 KiB

Manual smoke test — @paperclipai/plugin-kubernetes

Manual sanity check that the plugin works end-to-end against a real paperclip-server instance and a real Kubernetes cluster (kind for local dev). Future work may automate this in CI.

Prerequisites

  • A running kind cluster:
    kind create cluster --name paperclip
    
  • kubectl --context kind-paperclip get nodes returns a node in Ready state.

Steps

1. Build the plugin

cd packages/plugins/sandbox-providers/kubernetes
pnpm install --ignore-workspace
pnpm build

Expected: dist/ populated with compiled .js and .d.ts files. No errors.

2. Start paperclip-server in dev mode

In a separate terminal:

cd /path/to/paperclip
export PAPERCLIP_HOME=/tmp/paperclip-smoke
export PAPERCLIP_INSTANCE_ID=smoke
export PAPERCLIP_DEPLOYMENT_MODE=local_trusted
pnpm --filter @paperclipai/server dev

Wait for Server listening on 127.0.0.1:3100.

3. Install the plugin via the CLI

npx paperclipai plugin install \
  --local /path/to/paperclip/packages/plugins/sandbox-providers/kubernetes \
  --api-base http://127.0.0.1:3100

Expected: ✓ Installed paperclip.kubernetes-sandbox-provider v0.1.0 (ready).

4. Create a company and a kubernetes sandbox environment

CO_ID=$(curl -s -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name":"SmokeCo"}' \
  http://127.0.0.1:3100/api/companies | jq -r '.id')

KUBECONFIG_CONTENT=$(cat ~/.kube/config | jq -Rs .)

curl -s -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{
    \"name\": \"k8s-sandbox\",
    \"driver\": \"sandbox\",
    \"config\": {
      \"provider\": \"kubernetes\",
      \"kubeconfig\": $KUBECONFIG_CONTENT,
      \"companySlug\": \"smoke\",
      \"adapterType\": \"claude_local\",
      \"imageAllowList\": [\"ghcr.io/paperclipai/agent-runtime-claude:v1\"]
    }
  }" \
  http://127.0.0.1:3100/api/companies/$CO_ID/environments | jq

Expected: HTTP 201 with the new environment row.

5. Probe the environment

ENV_ID=$(curl -s http://127.0.0.1:3100/api/companies/$CO_ID/environments | jq -r '.[0].id')
curl -s -X POST -d '{}' -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  http://127.0.0.1:3100/api/environments/$ENV_ID/probe | jq

Expected: {"ok": true, ...} with a summary mentioning the tenant namespace (paperclip-smoke). On first probe the namespace may not yet exist — the plugin treats a 404 on listNamespacedPod as a successful reachability check.

6. Trigger an agent run

Use the UI or the API to dispatch a run against the k8s-sandbox environment. The plugin's onEnvironmentAcquireLease will:

  1. ensureTenant — provision the paperclip-smoke namespace, SA, Role, RoleBinding, ResourceQuota, LimitRange, NetworkPolicies
  2. buildJobManifest — render the security-hardened Job manifest
  3. createJob — submit to batch/v1
  4. createPerRunSecret — owned by the Job for cascade-delete

7. Verify the tenant resources

kubectl --context kind-paperclip get namespace paperclip-smoke
kubectl --context kind-paperclip get all,networkpolicy,resourcequota,limitrange,sa,role,rolebinding -n paperclip-smoke

Expected:

  • Namespace paperclip-smoke exists with PSS labels (pod-security.kubernetes.io/enforce=restricted)
  • ServiceAccount paperclip-tenant-sa
  • Role paperclip-tenant-role, RoleBinding paperclip-tenant-rb
  • ResourceQuota paperclip-quota, LimitRange paperclip-limits
  • NetworkPolicies paperclip-deny-all + paperclip-egress-allow
  • Job pc-{ulid} and its child Pod
  • Secret pc-{ulid}-env with ownerReferences pointing at the Job

8. Tear down

kubectl --context kind-paperclip delete namespace paperclip-smoke
kill %1  # paperclip-server

9. Document the result

In the PR description (or appended to this file as a dated section), record:

  • Date + git SHA
  • kubectl version server version
  • Output of kubectl get all -n paperclip-smoke after step 6
  • Probe response from step 5
  • Time-to-acquire-lease (target: <30s on kind for a cold tenant)