Agent skill

Create Template

Generate Harness v0 Template YAML for reusable pipeline components (Step, Stage, Pipeline, StepGroup) and create them via MCP.

Apache-2.0Auto-check passedDevOps & Cloud

Install Create Template

skills CLI

$ npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a claude-code

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

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install harness/harness-skills create-template --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/harness/harness-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/create-template .claude/skills/create-template && 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/

Paste into Claude Code

Install the "create-template" agent skill from https://github.com/harness/harness-skills/tree/main/skills/create-template into .claude/skills/create-template/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "create-template", then confirm the skill loads.

Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

$skill-installer

$skill-installer install https://github.com/harness/harness-skills/tree/main/skills/create-template

Type this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a codex

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install harness/harness-skills create-template --agent codex

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/harness/harness-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/create-template .agents/skills/create-template && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.

Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/

Paste into Codex

Install the "create-template" agent skill from https://github.com/harness/harness-skills/tree/main/skills/create-template into .agents/skills/create-template/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "create-template", then confirm the skill loads.

Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a cursor

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install harness/harness-skills create-template --agent cursor

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/harness/harness-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/create-template .cursor/skills/create-template && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.

Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/

Paste into Cursor

Install the "create-template" agent skill from https://github.com/harness/harness-skills/tree/main/skills/create-template into .cursor/skills/create-template/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "create-template", then confirm the skill loads.

Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

gemini skills install

$ gemini skills install https://github.com/harness/harness-skills.git --path skills/create-template

--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a gemini-cli

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install harness/harness-skills create-template --agent gemini-cli

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/harness/harness-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/create-template .gemini/skills/create-template && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.

Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into Gemini CLI

Install the "create-template" agent skill from https://github.com/harness/harness-skills/tree/main/skills/create-template into .gemini/skills/create-template/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "create-template", then confirm the skill loads.

Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install harness/harness-skills create-template

Installs for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

skills CLI

$ npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a github-copilot

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/harness/harness-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/create-template .github/skills/create-template && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.

GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into GitHub Copilot

Install the "create-template" agent skill from https://github.com/harness/harness-skills/tree/main/skills/create-template into .github/skills/create-template/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "create-template", then confirm the skill loads.

GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a opencode

OpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install harness/harness-skills create-template --agent opencode

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/harness/harness-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/create-template .opencode/skills/create-template && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.

OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into OpenCode

Install the "create-template" agent skill from https://github.com/harness/harness-skills/tree/main/skills/create-template into .opencode/skills/create-template/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "create-template", then confirm the skill loads.

OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

Facts

Skill name: create-template
GitHub stars: 115
Token cost: ~1.6k tokens
SKILL.md length: 237 words
Files: 1
Skills in repo: 64
Repo updated: Oct 6, 2026
First seen: Oct 7, 2026
Licence: Apache-2.0

At a glance

Generate Harness v0 Template YAML for reusable pipeline components (Step, Stage, Pipeline, StepGroup) and create them via MCP.

Works in 5 steps: Determine template type - Step, Stage,… → Identify reusable parameters - Mark… → Generate YAML using the structure below… → …
Asked to create a template
SKILL.md covers Instructions, Template Types, Template Structure and Step Template, plus 9 more sections
Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

Create Template is an agent skill from harness/harness-skills. Generate Harness v0 Template YAML for reusable pipeline components (Step, Stage, Pipeline, StepGroup) and create them via MCP. Use when asked to create a template, build a step template, stage template, pipeline template, or reusable step. Do NOT use for checking template usage or references (use template-usage instead). Trigger phrases: create template, step template, stage template, pipeline template, reusable step, template YAML.

Its SKILL.md is about 1.6k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts. Compatibility notes: Requires Harness MCP v2 server (harness-mcp-v2)

It sits in DevOps & Cloud. It works with Model Context Protocol. The repository describes itself as: A collection of structured AI agent skills that enable Claude Code, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, and other AI coding assistants to create, operate, debug, and govern Harness CI/CD… The licence is Apache-2.0.

When your agent uses it

Asked to create a template
Build a step template
Pipeline template
Checking template usage

Example prompts

“/create-template”

Requirements

Docker
Compatibility (from SKILL.md): Requires Harness MCP v2 server (harness-mcp-v2)

Workflow steps

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

Determine template type - Step, Stage, Pipeline, or StepGroup
Identify reusable parameters - Mark configurable fields with <+input> for runtime inputs
Generate YAML using the structure below with a unique versionLabel
Create via MCP using harness_create with resource_type template
Verify creation using harness_list with resource_type template

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit c25faee. 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 yaml).
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.
Compatibility
Requires Harness MCP v2 server (harness-mcp-v2)
From compatibility in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

Context cost

Create Template loads about 1.6k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 113 tokens; SKILL.md has 237 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it: ~113
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches: ~1.6k

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 harness/harness-skills at commit c25faee, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© harness). 237 words, ~1,596 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/create-template/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).

name: create-template
description: Generate Harness v0 Template YAML for reusable pipeline components (Step, Stage, Pipeline, StepGroup) and create them via MCP. Use when asked to create a template, build a step template, stage template, pipeline template, or reusable step. Do NOT use for checking template usage or references (use template-usage instead). Trigger phrases: create template, step template, stage template, pipeline template, reusable step, template YAML.
compatibility: Requires Harness MCP v2 server (harness-mcp-v2)
metadata.author: Harness
metadata.version: 2.0.0
metadata.mcp-server: harness-mcp-v2
license: Apache-2.0

Create Template

Generate Harness v0 Template YAML for reusable components and push via MCP.

Instructions

Determine template type - Step, Stage, Pipeline, or StepGroup
Identify reusable parameters - Mark configurable fields with <+input> for runtime inputs
Generate YAML using the structure below with a unique versionLabel
Create via MCP using harness_create with resource_type template
Verify creation using harness_list with resource_type template

Template Types

Step - Reusable step definitions
Stage - Reusable stage definitions
Pipeline - Complete reusable pipelines
StepGroup - Groups of related steps

Template Structure

yaml

template:
  name: My Template
  identifier: my_template
  versionLabel: "1.0.0"
  type: Step           # Step, Stage, Pipeline, StepGroup
  orgIdentifier: default
  projectIdentifier: my_project
  tags: {}
  spec: ...            # Content depends on type

Step Template

yaml

template:
  name: Docker Build Push
  identifier: docker_build_push
  versionLabel: "1.0.0"
  type: Step
  spec:
    type: BuildAndPushDockerRegistry
    spec:
      connectorRef: <+input>
      repo: <+input>
      tags: <+input>
      dockerfile: Dockerfile
      context: .
    timeout: 15m

Stage Template

yaml

template:
  name: K8s Deploy Stage
  identifier: k8s_deploy_stage
  versionLabel: "1.0.0"
  type: Stage
  spec:
    type: Deployment
    spec:
      deploymentType: Kubernetes
      service:
        serviceRef: <+input>
      environment:
        environmentRef: <+input>
        infrastructureDefinitions:
          - identifier: <+input>
      execution:
        steps:
          - step:
              identifier: rollout
              name: Rollout
              type: K8sRollingDeploy
              spec:
                skipDryRun: false
              timeout: 10m
        rollbackSteps:
          - step:
              identifier: rollback
              name: Rollback
              type: K8sRollingRollback
              spec: {}
              timeout: 10m
    failureStrategies:
      - onFailure:
          errors: [AllErrors]
          action:
            type: StageRollback

Pipeline Template

yaml

template:
  name: Standard CI/CD
  identifier: standard_cicd
  versionLabel: "1.0.0"
  type: Pipeline
  spec:
    stages:
      - stage:
          identifier: build
          name: Build
          type: CI
          spec:
            cloneCodebase: true
            platform:
              os: Linux
              arch: Amd64
            runtime:
              type: Cloud
              spec: {}
            execution:
              steps:
                - step:
                    identifier: build
                    name: Build
                    type: Run
                    spec:
                      shell: Bash
                      command: <+input>

StepGroup Template

yaml

template:
  name: Test Suite
  identifier: test_suite
  versionLabel: "1.0.0"
  type: StepGroup
  spec:
    steps:
      - step:
          identifier: unit_tests
          name: Unit Tests
          type: Run
          spec:
            shell: Bash
            command: <+input>
      - step:
          identifier: integration_tests
          name: Integration Tests
          type: Run
          spec:
            shell: Bash
            command: <+input>

Using Runtime Inputs

Mark configurable fields with <+input> so users provide values when using the template:

yaml

spec:
  connectorRef: <+input>          # User selects connector
  repo: <+input>                   # User provides repo name
  tags:
    - <+input>                     # User provides tag
    - <+pipeline.sequenceId>       # Fixed value

Creating via MCP

Call MCP tool: harness_create
Parameters:
  resource_type: "template"
  org_id: "<organization>"
  project_id: "<project>"
  body: <the template YAML>

To update a template version:

Call MCP tool: harness_update
Parameters:
  resource_type: "template"
  resource_id: "<template_identifier>"
  org_id: "<organization>"
  project_id: "<project>"
  body: <updated template YAML with new versionLabel>

To list existing templates:

Call MCP tool: harness_list
Parameters:
  resource_type: "template"
  org_id: "<organization>"
  project_id: "<project>"

Referencing Templates in Pipelines

yaml

- stage:
    identifier: deploy
    name: Deploy
    template:
      templateRef: k8s_deploy_stage
      versionLabel: "1.0.0"
      templateInputs:
        type: Deployment
        spec:
          service:
            serviceRef: my_service
          environment:
            environmentRef: prod

Examples

"Create a Docker build and push step template" - Generate Step template with BuildAndPushDockerRegistry
"Create a reusable K8s deployment stage" - Generate Stage template with Deployment type
"Make a standard CI/CD pipeline template" - Generate Pipeline template with CI + CD stages

Performance Notes

Mark all configurable fields with <+input> to maximize template reusability.
Verify the versionLabel is unique for each template update.
Test template references in a pipeline before distributing to other teams.

Troubleshooting

Template Creation Errors

DUPLICATE_IDENTIFIER - Template exists; update with new versionLabel
INVALID_VERSION - versionLabel must be unique per template
Identifiers must match ^[a-zA-Z_][0-9a-zA-Z_]{0,127}$

Template Usage Errors

TEMPLATE_NOT_FOUND - Check templateRef and scope (account/org/project)
VERSION_NOT_FOUND - Verify versionLabel exists
Missing templateInputs - Provide all <+input> values

Files

Just SKILL.md in skills/create-template of harness/harness-skills.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit c25faee

Compare with similar skills

Create Template 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.

Create Template compared with similar skills
Skill	Stars	Used in	Tokens	Auto-check	Licence	Repo updated
Create Template this skillharness/harness-skills	115	—	~1.6k	Automated safety check: Pass	Apache-2.0	yesterday
AWS Cdk Developmentzxkane/aws-skills	367	2 repos	~2.5k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	3 mo ago
Terravision Cloud Diagramspatrickchugh/terravision	1.6k	—	~5.6k	Automated safety check: Notes	AGPL-3.0-only	yesterday
Rocketmq Rust Local Clustermxsm/rocketmq-rust	1.5k	—	~2k	Automated safety check: Pass	Apache-2.0	yesterday
Kubernetes Network Root Cause Analysiskubeshark/kubeshark	12k	—	~5.3k	Automated safety check: Pass	Apache-2.0	7 days ago
Trigger.dev Cost Savings Auditpapermark/papermark	9.2k	—	~1.3k	Automated safety check: Pass	Custom licence	1 mo ago

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Works with

Model Context Protocol

Questions about Create Template

What does Create Template do?

Generate Harness v0 Template YAML for reusable pipeline components (Step, Stage, Pipeline, StepGroup) and create them via MCP. Create Template is an agent skill from harness/harness-skills. Generate Harness v0 Template YAML for reusable pipeline components (Step, Stage, Pipeline, StepGroup) and create them via MCP.

When should I use Create Template?

Create Template fits situations like: asked to create a template; build a step template; pipeline template; checking template usage.

How do I install Create Template in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/create-template in harness/harness-skills) into .claude/skills/create-template in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Create Template in Codex?

Run `npx skills add harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/create-template in harness/harness-skills) into .agents/skills/create-template in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Create Template 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 harness/harness-skills --skill create-template -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/create-template, .gemini/skills/create-template, .github/skills/create-template and .opencode/skills/create-template in your project.

What does Create Template need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Create Template is instructions for the agent only. Our summary lists: Docker. Compatibility (from SKILL.md): Requires Harness MCP v2 server (harness-mcp-v2).

Does Create Template 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 Create Template 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 Create Template use?

Create Template is published under the Apache-2.0 licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Create Template use?

About 1.6k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 6.4k 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 Create Template?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Create Template: AWS Cdk Development (zxkane/aws-skills, 367 stars), Terravision Cloud Diagrams (patrickchugh/terravision, 1.6k stars), Rocketmq Rust Local Cluster (mxsm/rocketmq-rust, 1.5k stars) and Kubernetes Network Root Cause Analysis (kubeshark/kubeshark, 12k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Create Template?

harness (a GitHub organization) maintains it in harness/harness-skills, which has 115 GitHub stars. The repository holds 64 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 6, 2026.

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

Install Create Template

Facts

At a glance

What it does

When your agent uses it

Example prompts

Requirements

Workflow steps

What it can do on your machine

Tool permissions

Runs code

Network

Credentials

Compatibility

Context cost

Safety

SKILL.md

Create Template

Instructions

Template Types

Template Structure

Step Template

Stage Template

Pipeline Template

StepGroup Template

Using Runtime Inputs

Creating via MCP

Referencing Templates in Pipelines

Examples

Performance Notes

Troubleshooting

Template Creation Errors

Template Usage Errors

Files

Compare with similar skills

Similar skills

More from harness/harness-skills

Related

Questions about Create Template