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Overview

Skills provide a standardized way to give Auggie specialized domain knowledge and capabilities. Following the agentskills.io specification, skills are modular packages of guidance, resources, and context that help the agent understand specific domains or workflows.

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What are Skills?

Skills are self-contained packages that provide:
  • Specialized knowledge: Domain-specific guidance and best practices
  • Contextual resources: Links to documentation, APIs, or tools
  • Workflow patterns: Step-by-step procedures for common tasks
  • Tool usage guidance: How to use specific tools or frameworks
Unlike rules (which provide general guidelines), skills are designed to be:
  • Discoverable: The agent can see what skills are available through their metadata
  • Modular: Each skill is independent and can be added or removed easily
  • Standardized: Following the agentskills.io spec ensures compatibility across AI tools

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Skill File Structure

Skills are defined in SKILL.md files located in the .augment/skills/, .claude/skills/, or .agents/skills/ directories (in either your workspace or home directory). Each skill must be in its own subdirectory:

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SKILL.md Format

Each SKILL.md file must include YAML frontmatter with required metadata: Example SKILL.md file:
The file content after the frontmatter can include:
  • Markdown headings and text
  • Code examples (using code blocks)
  • Lists and other markdown formatting

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Required Frontmatter Fields

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Skill Name Requirements

Per the agentskills.io specification, skill names must:
  • Be 1-64 characters long
  • Use only lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens
  • Not start or end with a hyphen
  • Not contain consecutive hyphens
  • Match the directory name containing the SKILL.md file
Valid names: python-testing, api-design, database-migrations
Invalid names: Python-Testing, api_design, -database, my--skill

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Skill Locations

Skills are discovered from these locations, in order of precedence: Skills from all locations are loaded and made available to the agent. When multiple skills with the same name exist, the skill from the higher precedence location is used. You can also load skills from other paths:
  • Pass --skill <path> to load a skill file or directory for one run. Repeat the flag to add more.
  • Add paths to the skills array in settings.json.
  • Use --no-skills to turn off discovery. Skills passed with --skill still load.

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Invoking Skills

In interactive mode, every discovered skill is registered as a slash command named /skill:<name>. If you have a skill at .augment/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md, run it by typing:
Any text after the command is passed to the skill along with its instructions:
Type /skill: to see the available skills and their descriptions in the autocomplete list. To turn off skill commands, set enableSkillCommands to false in settings.json. You don’t have to invoke a skill yourself. The agent sees each skill’s name and description and loads the full SKILL.md when a task matches.

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Creating Your First Skill

1

Create the skills directory

2

Create the SKILL.md file

Create a file at .augment/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md with the following content:
3

Verify the skill is loaded

Start Auggie and type /skill: to confirm your skill appears in the list.

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Skills vs Rules

While both skills and rules provide guidance to the agent, they serve different purposes: Use skills for:
  • Framework-specific knowledge (e.g., React patterns, Django best practices)
  • Tool usage guides (e.g., Docker workflows, CI/CD procedures)
  • Domain expertise (e.g., security practices, performance optimization)
Use rules for:
  • Code style preferences
  • Project architecture guidelines
  • Team conventions

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Best Practices

  1. Be Specific: Focus each skill on a single domain or workflow
  2. Include Examples: Provide concrete code examples and commands
  3. Keep Updated: Review and update skills as tools and practices evolve
  4. Use Clear Descriptions: Help the agent understand when to use each skill
  5. Version Control: Commit workspace skills to share with your team

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See Also