pflow stores configuration in ~/.pflow/. This page covers the settings file structure, environment variables, node filtering, and file locations.
Settings file
pflow stores user configuration in ~/.pflow/settings.json. View current settings with:
Structure
{
"version": "1.0.0",
"registry": {
"nodes": {
"allow": ["*"],
"deny": ["pflow.nodes.git.*", "pflow.nodes.github.*"]
},
"include_test_nodes": false
},
"runtime": {
"template_resolution_mode": "strict"
},
"env": {}
}
Fields
| Field | Default | Description |
|---|
registry.nodes.allow | ["*"] | Patterns for nodes to include |
registry.nodes.deny | ["pflow.nodes.git.*", "pflow.nodes.github.*"] | Patterns for nodes to exclude |
registry.include_test_nodes | false | Show internal test nodes |
runtime.template_resolution_mode | "strict" | "strict" or "permissive" |
env | {} | API keys and environment variables |
Commands
# Initialize settings file
pflow settings init
# Show current settings
pflow settings show
# Reset to defaults
pflow settings reset
Environment variables
API keys
Store API keys in the settings file for security (automatically chmod 600):
pflow settings set-env ANTHROPIC_API_KEY "sk-ant-..."
pflow settings set-env OPENAI_API_KEY "sk-proj-..."
API keys stored via pflow settings set-env are used automatically for workflow inputs and discovery features. Your agent can’t set these for security reasons.
- CLI parameters (
--param key=value)
- Settings file (
~/.pflow/settings.json → env)
- System environment variables
pflow configuration variables
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
PFLOW_INCLUDE_TEST_NODES | false | Show test nodes in registry |
PFLOW_TEMPLATE_RESOLUTION_MODE | strict | strict or permissive |
PFLOW_SHELL_STRICT | false | Block dangerous shell commands |
Trace configuration
Control trace file verbosity:
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
PFLOW_TRACE_PROMPT_MAX | 50000 | Max prompt length in traces |
PFLOW_TRACE_RESPONSE_MAX | 20000 | Max response length in traces |
PFLOW_TRACE_STORE_MAX | 10000 | Max shared store value length |
PFLOW_TRACE_DICT_MAX | 50000 | Max dict size in traces |
PFLOW_TRACE_LLM_CALLS_MAX | 100 | Max LLM calls to track |
Node filtering
Control which nodes are available using allow/deny patterns.
Pattern syntax
pflow uses glob-style patterns (fnmatch):
| Pattern | Matches |
|---|
* | Everything |
pflow.nodes.file.* | All file nodes |
mcp-github-* | All GitHub MCP tools |
shell | Exact match only |
Evaluation order
- Test nodes - Filtered first based on
include_test_nodes
- Deny patterns - If matched, node is excluded
- Allow patterns - If matched, node is included
- Default - Included only if
* is in allow list
Deny patterns take precedence over allow patterns. If a node matches both, it’s excluded.
Commands
# Allow a pattern
pflow settings allow "pflow.nodes.git.*"
# Deny a pattern
pflow settings deny "shell"
# Remove a pattern
pflow settings remove "shell" --deny
# Check if a node would be included
pflow settings check read-file
# Verify filtering took effect
pflow registry list # See all available nodes
pflow registry list github # Filter to specific nodes
Examples
Enable git/github nodes (denied by default):
pflow settings allow "pflow.nodes.git.*"
pflow settings allow "pflow.nodes.github.*"
pflow settings deny "shell"
# First, remove the wildcard
pflow settings remove "*" --allow
# Then add specific patterns
pflow settings allow "pflow.nodes.file.*"
pflow settings allow "llm"
pflow settings allow "http"
File locations
pflow stores all data in ~/.pflow/:
~/.pflow/
├── settings.json # User settings + API keys
├── mcp-servers.json # MCP server configurations
├── registry.json # Node registry cache
├── workflows/ # Saved workflows
├── debug/ # Trace files
└── cache/ # Execution cache
What’s safe to delete
| Path | Safe to Delete | Notes |
|---|
registry.json | Yes | Regenerates on next pflow registry scan |
debug/ | Yes | Debug traces only, can grow large |
cache/ | Yes | Execution cache, regenerates |
settings.json | Caution | Contains API keys, reverts to defaults |
mcp-servers.json | Caution | Removes MCP server configurations |
workflows/ | No | User-created workflows |
MCP server configuration
MCP servers are configured in ~/.pflow/mcp-servers.json. See Adding MCP servers for details.
The file uses the standard MCP configuration format:
{
"mcpServers": {
"github": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@github/mcp-server"],
"env": {
"GITHUB_TOKEN": "${GITHUB_TOKEN}"
}
}
}
}
${VAR}) are resolved from:
- System environment variables
- pflow settings (
pflow settings set-env)
