diff --git a/core/debugger/debugger-docs.factor b/core/debugger/debugger-docs.factor
index f8b53d4abc..ca6aa59cc4 100755
--- a/core/debugger/debugger-docs.factor
+++ b/core/debugger/debugger-docs.factor
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 USING: alien arrays generic generic.math help.markup help.syntax
 kernel math memory strings sbufs vectors io io.files classes
-help generic.standard continuations system debugger.private ;
+help generic.standard continuations system debugger.private
+io.files.private ;
 IN: debugger
 
 ARTICLE: "errors-assert" "Assertions"
diff --git a/core/io/files/files-docs.factor b/core/io/files/files-docs.factor
index 342967acfc..d1a59f3604 100755
--- a/core/io/files/files-docs.factor
+++ b/core/io/files/files-docs.factor
@@ -197,19 +197,20 @@ HELP: file-contents
 HELP: cwd
 { $values { "path" "a pathname string" } }
 { $description "Outputs the current working directory of the Factor process." }
-{ $errors "Windows CE has no concept of ``current directory'', so this word throws an error there." } ;
+{ $errors "Windows CE has no concept of ``current directory'', so this word throws an error there." }
+{ $warning "Modifying the current directory through system calls is unsafe.  Use the " { $link with-directory } " word instead." } ;
 
 HELP: cd
 { $values { "path" "a pathname string" } }
 { $description "Changes the current working directory of the Factor process." }
-{ $errors "Windows CE has no concept of ``current directory'', so this word throws an error there." } ;
+{ $errors "Windows CE has no concept of ``current directory'', so this word throws an error there." }
+{ $warning "Modifying the current directory through system calls is unsafe.  Use the " { $link with-directory } " word instead." } ;
 
-{ cd cwd with-directory } related-words
+{ cd cwd current-directory with-directory } related-words
 
 HELP: with-directory
 { $values { "path" "a pathname string" } { "quot" quotation } }
-{ $description "Changes the current working directory for the duration of a quotation's execution." }
-{ $errors "Windows CE has no concept of ``current directory'', so this word throws an error there." } ;
+{ $description "Changes the " { $link current-directory } " variable for the duration of a quotation's execution.  Words that use the file-system should call " { $link normalize-path } " in order to obtain a path relative to the current directory." } ;
 
 HELP: append-path
 { $values { "str1" "a string" } { "str2" "a string" } { "str" "a string" } }
diff --git a/core/io/files/files.factor b/core/io/files/files.factor
index 45bf0602f2..08ec78492a 100755
--- a/core/io/files/files.factor
+++ b/core/io/files/files.factor
@@ -176,15 +176,18 @@ SYMBOL: +unknown+
 : directory? ( path -- ? )
     file-info file-info-type +directory+ = ;
 
-! Current working directory
+<PRIVATE
+
 HOOK: cd io-backend ( path -- )
 
 HOOK: cwd io-backend ( -- path )
 
-SYMBOL: current-directory
-
 M: object cwd ( -- path ) "." ;
 
+PRIVATE>
+
+SYMBOL: current-directory
+
 [ cwd current-directory set-global ] "io.files" add-init-hook
 
 : resource-path ( path -- newpath )
diff --git a/extra/editors/jedit/jedit.factor b/extra/editors/jedit/jedit.factor
index 92320addef..e4f19781ef 100755
--- a/extra/editors/jedit/jedit.factor
+++ b/extra/editors/jedit/jedit.factor
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ USING: arrays definitions io kernel math
 namespaces parser prettyprint sequences strings words
 editors io.files io.sockets io.streams.byte-array io.binary
 math.parser io.encodings.ascii io.encodings.binary
-io.encodings.utf8 ;
+io.encodings.utf8 io.files.private ;
 IN: editors.jedit
 
 : jedit-server-info ( -- port auth )
diff --git a/extra/io/unix/files/files.factor b/extra/io/unix/files/files.factor
index f6bb3edcde..3085827483 100755
--- a/extra/io/unix/files/files.factor
+++ b/extra/io/unix/files/files.factor
@@ -3,10 +3,13 @@
 USING: io.backend io.nonblocking io.unix.backend io.files io
 unix unix.stat unix.time kernel math continuations
 math.bitfields byte-arrays alien combinators calendar
-io.encodings.binary accessors sequences strings system ;
+io.encodings.binary accessors sequences strings system
+io.files.private ;
 
 IN: io.unix.files
 
+<PRIVATE
+
 M: unix cwd ( -- path )
     MAXPATHLEN [ <byte-array> ] [ ] bi getcwd
     [ (io-error) ] unless* ;
@@ -14,6 +17,8 @@ M: unix cwd ( -- path )
 M: unix cd ( path -- )
     chdir io-error ;
 
+PRIVATE>
+
 : read-flags O_RDONLY ; inline
 
 : open-read ( path -- fd )
diff --git a/extra/io/unix/sockets/sockets.factor b/extra/io/unix/sockets/sockets.factor
index 477757e0ed..a54205a878 100755
--- a/extra/io/unix/sockets/sockets.factor
+++ b/extra/io/unix/sockets/sockets.factor
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ USING: alien alien.c-types generic io kernel math namespaces
 io.nonblocking parser threads unix sequences
 byte-arrays io.sockets io.binary io.unix.backend
 io.streams.duplex io.sockets.impl math.parser continuations libc
-combinators io.backend io.files system ;
+combinators io.backend io.files io.files.private system ;
 IN: io.unix.sockets
 
 : pending-init-error ( port -- )
diff --git a/extra/io/windows/nt/files/files.factor b/extra/io/windows/nt/files/files.factor
index 7bac540ddc..590bc59023 100755
--- a/extra/io/windows/nt/files/files.factor
+++ b/extra/io/windows/nt/files/files.factor
@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ alien.c-types alien.arrays sequences combinators combinators.lib
 sequences.lib ascii splitting alien strings assocs namespaces ;
 IN: io.windows.nt.files
 
+<PRIVATE
+
 M: winnt cwd
     MAX_UNICODE_PATH dup "ushort" <c-array>
     [ GetCurrentDirectory win32-error=0/f ] keep
@@ -13,6 +15,8 @@ M: winnt cwd
 M: winnt cd
     SetCurrentDirectory win32-error=0/f ;
 
+PRIVATE>
+
 : unicode-prefix ( -- seq )
     "\\\\?\\" ; inline