dsh-paste-path

A DSH (DeepSeek Harness) plugin: copy a file in Windows Explorer, paste it into the DSH chat input, and its real absolute path is inserted automatically — the Codex-style file reference flow, without leaving the browser.

⚠️ This is NOT an npm package. You cannot npm install it, and it cannot be mounted in cordis.yml. The two files under plugin/ are function bodies for DSH's cordis_define tool (a dynamic Cordis plugin). To install, follow Install & use below.

Why this exists

Browsers never expose the real absolute path of a pasted file — clipboardData.files[].name only gives the basename, by security design. Codex can show full paths because it runs in a terminal, not a browser.

This plugin works around that with a simple trick: at paste time, the host half reads the Windows clipboard's file drop list (via a nested STA PowerShell process using .NET Clipboard.GetFileDropList() — works on both Windows PowerShell 5.1 and PowerShell 7+). When you Ctrl+C a file in Explorer, the clipboard keeps the full path list — so the host can recover the real absolute paths and send them back to the browser.

Requirements

Thing	Requirement
OS	Windows (PowerShell 5.1 or 7+ — both supported)
Browser	Chromium-based (Edge / Chrome)
DSH	Web GUI running on the same machine & Windows session as the files
Note	DSH backend must be on the same PC as the browser (localhost setup works)

Install & use

This is a dynamic Cordis plugin — no npm install needed; it lives for the current session (reload after a DSH restart if you need it again).

🪄 Zero-manual-install option: open a DSH chat, paste the contents of plugin/host-half.js and plugin/client-half.js, and say: "Install this dynamic plugin: code.host from the first file, code.client from the second, then run it." The agent defines and runs it for you.

1. In the DSH web GUI, call the cordis_define tool:
   • paste plugin/host-half.js content into code.host
   • paste plugin/client-half.js content into code.client
   • any idPrefix (e.g. fpst) and a name/purpose
2. Call cordis_run and approve the Run in the UI (the client half needs browser authorization).
3. Done. In Explorer, Ctrl+C a file (or folder / multiple files), then Ctrl+V into the DSH input box:
   • a single file → D:\work\report.docx
   • a folder → its full path
   • multiple files → each path, space separated
   • a path containing spaces → wrapped in double quotes

Tip: pasting a screenshot (no file list on the clipboard) keeps DSH's original behavior — it's attached as an image, not turned into text.

How it works

Explorer Ctrl+C (file)  ──►  clipboard holds CF_HDROP file list
Browser Ctrl+V (composer)
        │  window 'paste' listener (capture phase) takes over
        ▼
host.call('paste-paths', { files: [{name,size,type}] })
        │
        ▼  host half runs (unconfined, read-only command):
        │  read clipboard file list (.NET, PS 5.1 / 7 compatible)  ──►  real absolute paths
        ▼
paths inserted at the caret (space-separated, quoted when needed)

Edge cases handled:

• Screenshot / image paste — clipboard has no file list → the plugin re-dispatches the paste so DSH's own image-attachment flow runs unchanged.
• Name mismatch (e.g. non-ASCII names through the pipe) — the pasted name filter is a preference, not a gate; the raw clipboard list is used when nothing matches.
• Clipboard read failure — falls back to inserting just the file names.

Sandbox note

The clipboard query runs with danger-full-access. The dynamic host half hangs under the host root context (it has no session object), so it cannot resolve a session-scoped sandbox policy; the ACL sandbox runner cannot start for the agentless fallback workspace root (its temp dir sits inside the fallback workspace). The command is fixed and read-only (pure clipboard read, no filesystem access), so running it unconfined is safe. If you want a session-scoped policy instead, resolve the policy with your session and pass sandboxPolicy explicitly.

Limitations / roadmap

• Windows only — the clipboard trick relies on the Windows clipboard API (.NET Clipboard.GetFileDropList). macOS (osascript/pbpaste) and Linux (xclip) support could be added on the same host half.
• Dynamic lifetime — as shipped, the plugin is session-scoped and disappears on a DSH restart. A durable host-composition install is possible but currently blocked upstream: a static plugin's client half needs the client→host RPC channel (@Remote / ctx.remote), and that assembly requires an explicit /remote value import inside the DSH web composition — a build-time coupling only DSH maintainers can open for third-party packages. If that changes, an installable npm form (with dsh.client metadata) becomes a straightforward follow-up.
• Chromium only — the client half uses DataTransfer/ClipboardEvent and a capture-phase listener.

License

MIT