Agent skill

Akka.NET Management and Discovery

by Aaronontheweb in Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

Sets up Akka.Management and Cluster.Bootstrap so Akka.NET clusters form through service discovery on Kubernetes, Azure or config instead of static seed nodes.

MITAuto-check passedDevOps & Cloud

Install Akka.NET Management and Discovery

skills CLI
$ npx skills add Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills --skill akka-net-management -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills akka-net-management --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/akka-management .claude/skills/akka-net-management && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
akka-net-management
GitHub stars
1.2k
Used in
1 other repo
Token cost
~2.5k tokens
SKILL.md length
386 words
Files
3
Skills in repo
35
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Sets up Akka.Management and Cluster.Bootstrap so Akka.NET clusters form through service discovery on Kubernetes, Azure or config instead of static seed nodes.

  • Works in 5 steps: All nodes use same ServiceName → RequiredContactPointsNr matches actual… → Discovery provider is configured correctly → …
  • Deploying an Akka.NET cluster to Kubernetes
  • SKILL.md covers When to Use This Skill, Reference Files, Overview and Architecture, plus 6 more sections
  • Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

The skill explains how Akka.Management exposes HTTP endpoints for cluster management and works with Akka.Cluster.Bootstrap to form a cluster dynamically. It compares static seed nodes, which suit development, single-node and fixed infrastructure, with Akka.Management for Kubernetes, auto-scaling groups and production clusters, and it states the trade-off in configuration effort and external dependencies.

It lists the NuGet packages to reference, shows Akka.Hosting configuration in C# with a mode selector, and covers health endpoints meant for load balancers and orchestrators. Two reference files go deeper: one on Config, Kubernetes and Azure discovery setup with deployment YAML, and one on the strongly typed configuration model classes.

When your agent uses it

  • Deploying an Akka.NET cluster to Kubernetes
  • Replacing static seed nodes with dynamic service discovery
  • Adding health endpoints for a load balancer in front of a cluster
  • Using Azure Table Storage for cluster member discovery

Example prompts

  • “Move our Akka.NET cluster off static seed nodes and onto Kubernetes API discovery.”
  • “Add Akka.Management health endpoints so the load balancer can check each node.”
  • “Configure cluster bootstrap with Azure Table Storage discovery for the staging environment.”

Requirements

  • An Akka.NET project using Akka.Hosting
  • The Akka.Management NuGet package

Workflow steps

5 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.

  1. All nodes use same ServiceName
  2. RequiredContactPointsNr matches actual replica count
  3. Discovery provider is configured correctly
  4. Network allows traffic on management port (8558)
  5. For Kubernetes: RBAC permissions are set

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 29878f2. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md (its code samples are csharp and xml).

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md.

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Akka.NET Management and Discovery loads about 2.5k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 45 tokens; SKILL.md has 386 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~45
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~2.5k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills at commit 29878f2, republished under its MIT licence (© Aaronontheweb). 386 words, ~2,465 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/akka-net-management/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 2 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.
name
akka-net-management
description
Akka.Management for cluster bootstrapping, service discovery (Kubernetes, Azure, Config), health checks, and dynamic cluster formation without static seed nodes.
user-invocable
false

Akka.NET Management and Service Discovery

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

  • Deploying Akka.NET clusters to Kubernetes or cloud environments
  • Replacing static seed nodes with dynamic service discovery
  • Configuring cluster bootstrap for auto-formation
  • Setting up health endpoints for load balancers
  • Integrating with Azure Table Storage, Kubernetes API, or config-based discovery

Reference Files

Overview

Akka.Management provides HTTP endpoints for cluster management and integrates with Akka.Cluster.Bootstrap to enable dynamic cluster formation using service discovery instead of static seed nodes.

Why Use Akka.Management?
ApproachProsCons
Static Seed NodesSimple, no dependenciesDoesn't scale, requires known IPs
Akka.ManagementDynamic discovery, scales to N nodesMore configuration, external dependencies

Use static seed nodes for: Development, single-node deployments, fixed infrastructure.

Use Akka.Management for: Kubernetes, auto-scaling groups, dynamic environments, production clusters.


Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    Cluster Bootstrap                         │
│  ┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐     │
│  │  Node 1     │    │  Node 2     │    │  Node 3     │     │
│  │             │    │             │    │             │     │
│  │ Management  │◄──►│ Management  │◄──►│ Management  │     │
│  │ HTTP :8558  │    │ HTTP :8558  │    │ HTTP :8558  │     │
│  └──────┬──────┘    └──────┬──────┘    └──────┬──────┘     │
│         │                  │                  │             │
│         └──────────────────┼──────────────────┘             │
│                            │                                │
│                    ┌───────▼───────┐                        │
│                    │   Discovery   │                        │
│                    │   Provider    │                        │
│                    └───────────────┘                        │
│                            │                                │
└────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────┘
                             │
              ┌──────────────┼──────────────┐
              │              │              │
        ┌─────▼─────┐ ┌──────▼─────┐ ┌─────▼──────┐
        │ Kubernetes│ │   Azure    │ │   Config   │
        │    API    │ │   Tables   │ │   (HOCON)  │
        └───────────┘ └────────────┘ └────────────┘

Required NuGet Packages

xml
<ItemGroup>
  <!-- Core management -->
  <PackageReference Include="Akka.Management" />
  <PackageReference Include="Akka.Management.Cluster.Bootstrap" />

  <!-- Choose ONE discovery provider -->
  <PackageReference Include="Akka.Discovery.KubernetesApi" />    <!-- For Kubernetes -->
  <PackageReference Include="Akka.Discovery.Azure" />            <!-- For Azure -->
  <PackageReference Include="Akka.Discovery.Config.Hosting" />   <!-- For static config -->
</ItemGroup>

Akka.Hosting Configuration

Basic Setup with Mode Selection
csharp
public static class AkkaConfiguration
{
    public static IServiceCollection ConfigureAkka(
        this IServiceCollection services,
        Action<AkkaConfigurationBuilder, IServiceProvider>? additionalConfig = null)
    {
        services.AddOptions<AkkaSettings>()
            .BindConfiguration("AkkaSettings")
            .ValidateDataAnnotations()
            .ValidateOnStart();

        return services.AddAkka("MySystem", (builder, sp) =>
        {
            var settings = sp.GetRequiredService<IOptions<AkkaSettings>>().Value;
            var configuration = sp.GetRequiredService<IConfiguration>();

            ConfigureNetwork(builder, settings, configuration);
            ConfigureHealthChecks(builder);

            additionalConfig?.Invoke(builder, sp);
        });
    }

    private static void ConfigureNetwork(
        AkkaConfigurationBuilder builder,
        AkkaSettings settings,
        IConfiguration configuration)
    {
        if (settings.ExecutionMode == AkkaExecutionMode.LocalTest)
            return;

        builder.WithRemoting(settings.RemoteOptions);

        if (settings.ClusterBootstrapOptions.Enabled)
            ConfigureAkkaManagement(builder, settings, configuration);
        else
            builder.WithClustering(settings.ClusterOptions);
    }
}
Akka.Management Configuration
csharp
private static void ConfigureAkkaManagement(
    AkkaConfigurationBuilder builder,
    AkkaSettings settings,
    IConfiguration configuration)
{
    var mgmtOptions = settings.AkkaManagementOptions;
    var bootstrapOptions = settings.ClusterBootstrapOptions;

    // IMPORTANT: Clear seed nodes when using Akka.Management
    settings.ClusterOptions.SeedNodes = [];

    builder
        .WithClustering(settings.ClusterOptions)
        .WithAkkaManagement(setup =>
        {
            setup.Http.HostName = mgmtOptions.HostName;
            setup.Http.Port = mgmtOptions.Port;
            setup.Http.BindHostName = "0.0.0.0";
            setup.Http.BindPort = mgmtOptions.Port;
        })
        .WithClusterBootstrap(options =>
        {
            options.ContactPointDiscovery.ServiceName = bootstrapOptions.ServiceName;
            options.ContactPointDiscovery.PortName = bootstrapOptions.PortName;
            options.ContactPointDiscovery.RequiredContactPointsNr = bootstrapOptions.RequiredContactPointsNr;
            options.ContactPointDiscovery.Interval = bootstrapOptions.ContactPointProbingInterval;
            options.ContactPointDiscovery.StableMargin = bootstrapOptions.StableMargin;
            options.ContactPointDiscovery.ContactWithAllContactPoints = bootstrapOptions.ContactWithAllContactPoints;
            options.ContactPoint.FilterOnFallbackPort = bootstrapOptions.FilterOnFallbackPort;
            options.ContactPoint.ProbeInterval = bootstrapOptions.BootstrapperDiscoveryPingInterval;
        });

    // Configure the discovery provider
    ConfigureDiscovery(builder, settings, configuration);
}

See discovery-providers.md for complete Config, Kubernetes, and Azure discovery setup code.

See configuration-reference.md for the full strongly-typed configuration model classes.


Health Endpoints

Akka.Management exposes health endpoints for load balancers and orchestrators:

EndpointPurposeReturns 200 When
/aliveLivenessActorSystem is running
/readyReadinessCluster member is Up
/cluster/membersDebugReturns cluster membership
ASP.NET Core Health Check Integration
csharp
// Register Akka health checks
builder.Services.AddHealthChecks();

// In Akka configuration
builder
    .WithActorSystemLivenessCheck()     // Adds "akka-liveness" health check
    .WithAkkaClusterReadinessCheck();   // Adds "akka-cluster-readiness" health check

// Map endpoints
app.MapHealthChecks("/health/live", new HealthCheckOptions
{
    Predicate = check => check.Tags.Contains("liveness")
});

app.MapHealthChecks("/health/ready", new HealthCheckOptions
{
    Predicate = check => check.Tags.Contains("readiness")
});

Troubleshooting

Show full SKILL.md (170 more words)Show less
Cluster Won't Form

Symptoms: Nodes stay as separate single-node clusters.

Checklist:

  1. All nodes use same ServiceName
  2. RequiredContactPointsNr matches actual replica count
  3. Discovery provider is configured correctly
  4. Network allows traffic on management port (8558)
  5. For Kubernetes: RBAC permissions are set
Split Brain

Symptoms: Multiple clusters form instead of one.

Solutions:

  1. Set ContactWithAllContactPoints = true
  2. Increase StableMargin for slower environments
  3. For Aspire: Set FilterOnFallbackPort = false (dynamic ports)
  4. For Kubernetes: Set FilterOnFallbackPort = true (fixed ports)
Azure Discovery Issues

Symptoms: Nodes can't find each other via Azure Tables.

Checklist:

  1. Connection string is valid
  2. Storage account allows table operations
  3. All nodes use same ServiceName
  4. Firewall allows access to Azure Storage

Aspire Integration

For detailed Aspire-specific patterns, see the akka-net-aspire-configuration skill.

Quick reference for Aspire:

csharp
// In AppHost
appBuilder
    .WithEndpoint(name: "remote", protocol: ProtocolType.Tcp,
        env: "AkkaSettings__RemoteOptions__Port")
    .WithEndpoint(name: "management", protocol: ProtocolType.Tcp,
        env: "AkkaSettings__AkkaManagementOptions__Port")
    .WithEnvironment("AkkaSettings__ClusterBootstrapOptions__Enabled", "true")
    .WithEnvironment("AkkaSettings__ClusterBootstrapOptions__DiscoveryMethod", "AzureTableStorage")
    .WithEnvironment("AkkaSettings__ClusterBootstrapOptions__FilterOnFallbackPort", "false");

Summary: When to Use What

ScenarioDiscovery MethodFilterOnFallbackPort
Local development (single node)None (use seed nodes)N/A
Aspire multi-nodeAzureTableStoragefalse
KubernetesKubernetestrue
Azure VMs/VMSSAzureTableStoragetrue
Fixed infrastructureConfigtrue
AWS ECS/EC2AWS discovery pluginstrue

© Aaronontheweb, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

SKILL.md and 2 other files in skills/akka-management of Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills.

  • SKILL.md
  • configuration-reference.md
  • discovery-providers.md

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 29878f2

Used in 1 other repository

We found 1 copy of this SKILL.md (exact, near-identical or edited) in other folders, from 1 other GitHub owner. This page covers the copy in Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills, which our catalogue first saw on October 7, 2026.

Compare with similar skills

Akka.NET Management and Discovery next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Akka.NET Management and Discovery compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Akka.NET Management and Discovery this skillAaronontheweb/dotnet-skills1.2k1 repos~2.5kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Aspire DeploymentCommunityToolkit/Aspire627—~4.5kAutomated safety check: NotesMIT
Aspire MonitoringCommunityToolkit/Aspire627—~3.5kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Kcli Cluster Deploymentkarmab/kcli653—~1.5kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0
Aks Deployment Skilltimothywarner/chatgptclass143—~916Automated safety check: PassCustom licence
Environment Deploymentmicrosoft/physical-ai-toolchain126—~5.9kAutomated safety check: PassMIT

Similar skills

  • Aspire Deployment

    CommunityToolkit/Aspire

    WORKFLOW SKILL — Deploy Aspire apps from AppHost models to Docker Compose, Kubernetes, Azure, AWS, or preview Radius.

    627 GitHub stars~4.5k tokensUpdated 2 days ago
    DevOps & CloudAuto-check: notes
  • Aspire Monitoring

    CommunityToolkit/Aspire

    ANALYSIS SKILL - Observe Aspire apps: logs, traces, metrics, resource state, telemetry export, browser telemetry, and the standalone dashboard.

    627 GitHub stars~3.5k tokensUpdated 2 days ago
    DevOps & CloudAuto-check passed
  • Guides deployment and management of Kubernetes clusters with kcli.

    653 GitHub stars~1.5k tokensUpdated 2 days ago
    DevOps & CloudAuto-check passed
  • Aks Deployment Skill

    timothywarner/chatgptclass

    Deploy and operate workloads on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) the safe way.

    143 GitHub stars~916 tokensUpdated 21 days ago
    DevOps & CloudAuto-check passed
  • Environment Deployment

    microsoft/physical-ai-toolchain

    Official

    Generate, transfer, and consume environment-specific Azure, AKS, OSMO, ACR, and Azure ML deployment bundles.

    126 GitHub stars~5.9k tokensUpdated yesterday
    DevOps & CloudAuto-check passed
  • Mirrord Operator

    metalbear-co/mirrord

    Help users install and configure the mirrord Operator for team/enterprise environments.

    5.4k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~4.6k tokens
    DevOps & CloudAuto-check passed

More from Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

All 35 skills in this repo
  • .NET Trimming and Native AOT

    Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

    Guides making .NET libraries trimming-safe and Native-AOT compatible: the MSBuild properties, trimming attributes, warning codes and a playbook of safe patterns.

    1.2k GitHub stars~2.9k tokensUpdated today
    Auto-check passed
  • Cscheck

    Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

    Write and simplify C property-based, model-based, and executable specification tests with CsCheck.

    1.2k GitHub stars~1.2k tokensUpdated today
    Auto-check passed
  • Akka.Hosting Actor Patterns

    Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

    Shows how to build entity actors with Akka.Hosting so the same code runs in local unit tests and in a sharded cluster in production.

    1.2k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~5k tokens
    Auto-check passed
  • SDK Container Publishing

    Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

    Publish .NET services as container images with the built-in SDK tooling (dotnet publish /t:PublishContainer, Microsoft.NET.Build.Containers) - no Dockerfile required.

    1.2k GitHub stars~1.9k tokensUpdated today
    Auto-check passed
  • Akka.NET Best Practices

    Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

    Guidance for Akka.NET actor systems covering EventStream versus DistributedPubSub, supervision, Props versus DependencyResolver, work distribution and testable cluster code.

    1.2k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~3.3k tokens
    Auto-check passed
  • Akka.NET Testing Patterns

    Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills

    Shows how to test Akka.NET actors with Akka.Hosting.TestKit: swapping services for fakes, using TestProbes, and checking persistence, plus when the older TestKit still fits.

    1.2k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~2.4k tokens
    Auto-check passed

Questions about Akka.NET Management and Discovery

What does Akka.NET Management and Discovery do?

Sets up Akka.Management and Cluster.Bootstrap so Akka.NET clusters form through service discovery on Kubernetes, Azure or config instead of static seed nodes. Bootstrap to form a cluster dynamically.Management for Kubernetes, auto-scaling groups and production clusters, and it states the trade-off in configuration effort and external dependencies.

When should I use Akka.NET Management and Discovery?

Akka.NET Management and Discovery fits situations like: deploying an Akka.NET cluster to Kubernetes; replacing static seed nodes with dynamic service discovery; adding health endpoints for a load balancer in front of a cluster; using Azure Table Storage for cluster member discovery.

How do I install Akka.NET Management and Discovery in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills --skill akka-net-management -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/akka-management in Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills) into .claude/skills/akka-net-management in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Akka.NET Management and Discovery in Codex?

Run `npx skills add Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills --skill akka-net-management -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/akka-management in Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills) into .agents/skills/akka-net-management in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Akka.NET Management and Discovery in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills --skill akka-net-management -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/akka-net-management, .gemini/skills/akka-net-management, .github/skills/akka-net-management and .opencode/skills/akka-net-management in your project.

What does Akka.NET Management and Discovery need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Akka.NET Management and Discovery is instructions for the agent only. Our summary lists: An Akka.NET project using Akka.Hosting; The Akka.Management NuGet package.

Does Akka.NET Management and Discovery access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Akka.NET Management and Discovery safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Akka.NET Management and Discovery use?

Akka.NET Management and Discovery is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Akka.NET Management and Discovery use?

About 2.5k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 9.9k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Akka.NET Management and Discovery?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Akka.NET Management and Discovery: Aspire Deployment (CommunityToolkit/Aspire, 627 stars), Aspire Monitoring (CommunityToolkit/Aspire, 627 stars), Kcli Cluster Deployment (karmab/kcli, 653 stars) and Aks Deployment Skill (timothywarner/chatgptclass, 143 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Akka.NET Management and Discovery?

Aaronontheweb (a GitHub user) maintains it in Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills, which has 1,209 GitHub stars. The repository holds 35 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 10, 2026.

Source: Aaronontheweb/dotnet-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.