What to always do.
BACK UP FIRST
Before running anything generated against real data or a live site.
That single habit prevents most serious outcomes.
UNDERSTAND BEFORE RUNNING
If you cannot explain what a command does, do not run it.
That applies particularly to anything with delete, drop, remove or recursive in it.
TEST SOMEWHERE SAFE
A staging copy, or a test database.
Never a live site as the first attempt.
SELECT BEFORE UPDATE
For database work, run the SELECT equivalent first to see what would be affected.
VERIFY DEPENDENCIES
Check any library actually exists before installing it.
REVIEW SECURITY-RELEVANT CODE
Anything handling user input, authentication, payment or personal data.
CHECK VERSIONS
Generated code may use methods removed in current versions.
NEVER PASTE CREDENTIALS
Into any AI tool, including in configuration files you are asking about.
Remove them first.
THE UNDERLYING RULE
You are responsible for what you run.
