Rules

Rules are persistent instructions that apply to your Qualia sessions. Unlike one-off prompts, rules are always active (or invoked on demand), ensuring consistent AI behavior across all your work.

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What are rules?

A rule is a set of instructions stored as a file:

• Name: Identifier used to reference the rule
• Description: What the rule does (optional)
• Body: The actual instructions (up to 20,000 characters)
• Type: When the rule applies

On local workspaces, rules live as files in Qualia’s configuration directory. On Qualia Cloud, rules are stored with your account instead. Either way, they persist across sessions.

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Rule types

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Always rules

Applied automatically to every conversation:

• Loaded at the start of each generation
• Combined with other always rules
• No action needed to activate

Use always rules for:

• Coding style preferences (“Always use type hints”)
• Domain conventions (“Use SI units for all measurements”)
• Safety guidelines (“Never delete files without confirmation”)

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Manual rules

Invoked explicitly when needed:

• Not automatically loaded
• Activated with @rule:rule-name in chat
• Useful for context-specific guidance

Use manual rules for:

• Project-specific conventions
• Specialized workflows
• Instructions that only apply sometimes

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Rule scope

Every rule is either global or scoped to a single project:

• Global rules apply in every project.
• Project rules apply only when you chat in the selected project.

Pick the scope when creating a rule, and change it later by editing the rule.

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File path rules

Besides free-form rules, you can add a file path rule (click New file path in the Rules tab). It points the agent at a folder of code on disk: when the rule applies, the agent assumes imports in your notebooks resolve from that path. File path rules are always active, and like other rules they can be global or scoped to a project. A global file path applies in every project, so use one for code that all your projects share — and make sure the path exists on the machine running the backend.

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Creating rules

1. Go to Settings > AI Assistant
2. Expand the Rules section
3. Click Create Rule
4. Enter:
   • Name: Lowercase with hyphens (e.g., python-style)
   • Description: Brief explanation
   • Body: The instructions
   • Type: Always or Manual

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Using manual rules

Invoke a manual rule by typing @rule: followed by the rule name in your chat message:

“@rule:data-analysis Analyze this dataset and find anomalies”

The rule’s instructions are included in that message’s context.

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Workspace rules

Qualia also recognizes rules files in your workspace root:

• CLAUDE.md: Instructions in Claude’s standard format
• AGENTS.md: Agent-specific guidance

If present, these are included automatically like always rules. This lets you version-control project-specific instructions alongside your code.

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Importing rules

Import rules from other tools. These options read directories on the machine your workspace runs on, so they appear for local workspaces only:

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From Cursor

1. Go to Settings > AI Assistant > Rules
2. Click Import from Cursor
3. Rules from ~/.cursor/rules/ are imported

Cursor rules (.mdc files) include frontmatter with globs for file-specific matching. Imported rules preserve this metadata.

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From Claude Code

1. Click Import from Claude Code
2. Rules from ~/.claude/rules/ are imported

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From a file

1. Click Import from file…
2. Enter the full path to a file (such as a CLAUDE.md) on the machine running the backend
3. Its contents become a new always rule

Use this to bring in an existing system prompt or CLAUDE.md that lives outside the standard ~/.cursor/rules or ~/.claude/rules locations.

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Rule organization

For complex projects, consider:

• One always rule for global preferences
• Manual rules for different contexts (data analysis, model training, visualization)
• Workspace rules (CLAUDE.md) for project-specific conventions

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Viewing rule files

On local workspaces, click Reveal Rules Folder in Settings to open the rules directory in your file manager. Each rule is stored in its own folder with a RULE.md file. You can edit rules directly on disk if you prefer — changes are picked up automatically. (Cloud workspaces store rules with your account, so there is no folder to reveal; edit rules from the Rules tab instead.)

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Best practices

Be specific: Vague rules like “write good code” don’t help. Specific rules like “always use TQDM in for loops” and “add docstrings to all functions” give clear guidance. Keep rules focused: One rule per concern. A rule about Python style shouldn’t also cover data visualization preferences. Test rules: After creating a rule, try a few prompts to verify it’s being followed. Review periodically: As your workflow evolves, update rules to match. Outdated rules can cause friction.