I'm a pretty security-minded guy, but my index finger was starting to hurt from approving so many permission prompts during AI coding sessions. The thing is, I don't want to give up that control — not when the agent is running on my actual machine with access to my credentials, my SSH keys, my git config. One bad command and it could:

- Force-push to the wrong branch
- Delete files outside the project
- Leak secrets from environment variables
- Install something malicious
- Push code MY_SUPER_SECRET_DIARY.md to a public repo

So I built trusty-cage, an open-source CLI tool that makes the whole problem go away. It creates fully isolated Docker containers for AI coding agents like Claude Code. The agent gets everything it needs — a cloned repo, Neovim, tmux, Python, Node.js, even your personal dotfiles — but zero access to your credentials, SSH keys, or git remotes. None of those risks apply because the container simply doesn't have the things that make them possible.

With trusty-cage, the container IS the blast radius. The agent can install packages, rewrite files, run builds — whatever it wants. When it's done, you export the work back to your host, review the diff, and push on your own terms. The human stays in the loop for everything that touches a remote.

How it works:

- `pip install trusty-cage`
- `tc create https://github.com/you/your-repo`
- You're dropped into a tmux session with Neovim + Claude Code ready to go
- <Go Full Cowboy Here>
- `tc export your-repo` when you're ready to bring the work back

I just used it to bootstrap an entire Obsidian plugin from scratch. I gave Claude Code a prompt, walked away, and came back to a bunch of code ready to test: new TypeScript files, API client, settings UI, the whole thing. Exported, reviewed, pushed. No anxiety.

My index finger feels better already

It's early (v0.2.1), tested on macOS (OrbStack/Docker Desktop) but should work on any platform with Docker, and I'd love to have people kick the tires. Try it on a real project and let me know what breaks.

GitHub: https://github.com/areese801/trusty-cage
PyPI: https://pypi.org/project/trusty-cage/

#opensource #ai #claudecode #devtools #python #docker
