file_exists

Every glob match in paths must correspond to a real file. Use an array to accept any of several names.

Fix: file_create — write a declared content. With an array of paths, the fix creates the first entry.

Optional git_tracked_only: true further requires that the matching file be in git's index — useful for rules like "every release must commit a CHANGELOG entry" where local-only files shouldn't satisfy the requirement. If Git cannot be run or the lint root is not a Git repository, the rule reports a resource_read analysis failure. See The walker and .gitignore for the full semantics.

Options

Option	Type	Required	Default	Description
git_tracked_only	boolean		false	Restrict matches to files tracked in git's index: entries present in the walked tree but not in git ls-files are skipped. Repository unavailability is an analysis failure when enabled. Default false.
respect_gitignore	boolean		null	Per-rule override for the workspace respect_gitignore setting. When false, this rule's literal-path checks also stat the filesystem directly, so it sees files that are tracked AND .gitignore-masked (the bazel-style .bazelversion pattern - pitfall #18 in docs/development/CONFIG-AUTHORING.md). Honoured only by file_exists literal paths; glob patterns fall through to the workspace setting. Default: inherit the workspace respect_gitignore.
root_only	boolean		false	If true, only files directly at the repository root satisfy the rule.

Plus the common paths, level, id, when, and fix fields. This kind does not support expect_matches; its empty-scope semantics are kind-specific. This table is generated from the JSON Schema; option types and defaults are authoritative.

Example

A repository missing its README

The rule fires on this repository:

• the repository✗

  ✗ error has-readme

  expected a file matching [README.md] at the repo root

• Cargo.toml✓

Cargo.toml

[package]
name = "demo"

With this .alint.yml:

version: 1
rules:
  - id: has-readme
    kind: file_exists
    paths: README.md
    root_only: true
    level: error

alint check reports:

--- Repository-level -----------------------------------------------------------
  x  error    has-readme
              expected a file matching [README.md] at the repo root

Summary (1 violation):
  x 1 error
  0 passing * 1 failing

A repository with the README present

This repository is compliant:

• Cargo.toml✓
• README.md✓

Cargo.toml

[package]
name = "demo"

README.md

# demo

With this .alint.yml:

version: 1
rules:
  - id: has-readme
    kind: file_exists
    paths: README.md
    root_only: true
    level: error

alint check reports:

v All 1 rule(s) passed.