> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.nuvolos.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.nuvolos.com/reference/configuration/special-files-nuvolos-recognises.md).

# Special files Nuvolos recognises

Three filenames trigger automatic behaviour in Nuvolos when present in specific locations.

### startup.sh

A startup.sh file in the workspace (located at `/files/startup.sh` inside the running Application) is executed automatically in the background via bash on Application startup. Useful for initialisation steps or kicking off long-running computations.

Because it runs as a separate background process, you cannot directly modify properties of the main Application from it (such as visual editor font size). The standard output and error streams are redirected to `/files/startup.log` for tracking progress.

For details, see [Reference › Applications › Automatic code execution on startup](/reference/applications/create-a-persistent-.bashrc.md#automatic-code-execution-on-startup).

### .bashrc

Two locations behave differently:

* `~/.bashrc` - generated automatically by Nuvolos for each Application. Edits are lost on restart.
* `/files/.nuvolos/.bashrc` - Nuvolos's persistent default. We recommend not modifying this file.
* `/files/.bashrc` - your custom persistent .bashrc. The system automatically sources this when opening a new shell session. This is the recommended location for persistent customisations.

If `/files/.bashrc` does not appear to load, the system-generated `/files/.nuvolos/.bashrc` may be corrupted or accidentally deleted. In that case, define your configuration directly in `/files/.nuvolos/.bashrc`.

### README.md

A file named `README.md` in any folder is interpreted and rendered as Markdown by the Nuvolos web UI. The `README.md` in the root directory is also displayed on the Space overview page.

You can link to headings using standard Markdown syntax, referencing the target heading in its kebab-case form. The web UI provides an Anchor button to make this easier - see [Reference › File storage](/reference/file-system-and-storage.md).