rtk-ai/rtk

enhancement: add RTK_DISABLED=1 environment variable to bypass all hooks

Open

#1153 opened on Apr 10, 2026

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 (2 comments) (2 reactions) (0 assignees)Rust (48,085 stars) (2,914 forks)batch import
effort-smallenhancementgood first issue

Description

Problem

AI coding agents (Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, etc.) have no way to temporarily disable the RTK hook without uninstalling it. When an agent needs raw, unfiltered command output -- for debugging, API inspection, or commands RTK does not handle well -- it has no escape hatch.

Use cases

  1. Debugging: Agent needs to see full unfiltered output to diagnose a problem
  2. API inspection: Agent is reading API responses where RTK schema conversion destroys values
  3. Temporary bypass: Agent wants raw `git diff` for a specific file, not the condensed version
  4. Compatibility: Some tools or scripts produce output that RTK filtering corrupts

Proposed solution

Add an `RTK_DISABLED=1` environment variable check in the hook rewrite path. When set:

  • `rtk rewrite ` returns exit code 1 (no RTK equivalent) without doing any rewriting
  • The hook passes the original command through unchanged
  • No tracking or telemetry is affected (those remain active)

Implementation sketch

In `src/hooks/rewrite_cmd.rs`, add at the start of `run()`:

```rust if std::env::var("RTK_DISABLED").unwrap_or_default() == "1" { std::process::exit(1); // No rewrite, passthrough } ```

This mirrors the existing pattern used for `RTK_TELEMETRY_DISABLED` in `src/core/telemetry.rs` (line 26).

Why not just use `exclude_commands`?

`exclude_commands` requires editing a config file and only works for specific commands. `RTK_DISABLED` gives the agent a temporary, session-scoped kill switch that can be toggled per-conversation without file system changes.

Related

  • This complements a potential `--raw` flag for individual commands (separate issue)
  • Similar to how `NODE_ENV`, `DEBUG`, and other env vars provide runtime control

Contributor guide

Tech stack
rust
Domain
clideveloper experience
Issue type
feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
2
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
under 1 hour
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
fresh
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
clear
Prerequisites
Rust programming basics
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
80
Research direction
The implementation should be added at the start of the `run()` function in `src/hooks/rewrite cmd.rs`, following the pattern used for `RTK TELEMETRY DISABLED` in `src/core/telemetry.rs` (line 26). When `RTK DISABLED` is set to '1', `rtk rewrite` should exit with code 1 without rewriting. No tests are mentioned, but a test verifying the environment variable behavior would be beneficial. There are no existing pull requests or assignees, so the issue is open for contribution.