Using Agent Skills
addyosmani/agent-skills
Meta-skill for choosing which workflow skill fits the task at hand, plus always-on habits: surface assumptions, stop on confusion, push back, keep it simple and stay in scope.
A skill your agent uses when designing or auditing how an agent becomes useful after launch — AGENTS.md overlays, role files, skills, rig specs, workflow specs, startup checklists, refocus messages…
$ npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install mvschwarz/openrig agent-startup-and-context-ingestion --agent claude-codeProject scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion .claude/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.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/
Install the "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion" agent skill from https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/tree/main/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion into .claude/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion", 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 install https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/tree/main/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestionType 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.
$ npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install mvschwarz/openrig agent-startup-and-context-ingestion --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion .agents/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion" agent skill from https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/tree/main/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion into .agents/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion", 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.
$ npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install mvschwarz/openrig agent-startup-and-context-ingestion --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion .cursor/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.
Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/
Install the "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion" agent skill from https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/tree/main/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion into .cursor/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion", 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 https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig.git --path skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.
$ npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install mvschwarz/openrig agent-startup-and-context-ingestion --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion .gemini/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.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/
Install the "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion" agent skill from https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/tree/main/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion into .gemini/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion", 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.
$ gh skill install mvschwarz/openrig agent-startup-and-context-ingestionInstalls 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).
$ npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion .github/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.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/
Install the "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion" agent skill from https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/tree/main/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion into .github/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion", 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.
$ npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install mvschwarz/openrig agent-startup-and-context-ingestion --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion .opencode/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.
OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion" agent skill from https://github.com/mvschwarz/openrig/tree/main/skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion into .opencode/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-startup-and-context-ingestion", 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.
agent-startup-and-context-ingestionA skill your agent uses when designing or auditing how an agent becomes useful after launch — AGENTS.md overlays, role files, skills, rig specs, workflow specs, startup checklists, refocus messages…
Agent Startup And Context Ingestion is an agent skill from mvschwarz/openrig. Use when designing or auditing how an agent becomes useful after launch — AGENTS.md overlays, role files, skills, rig specs, workflow specs, startup checklists, refocus messages, "rig context" surface. Covers the 4 failure modes that make startup context fail (old rig spec misses current operating mode; current agents never told about new guidance; startup file as dumping ground; orchestrator transmits implementation without preserving product intent).
Its SKILL.md is about 1.7k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.
It sits in Agent Workflows, covering Agent instruction files. The repository describes itself as: Build your own network of agents from Claude Code, Codex and Pi: persistent teams with roles, shared context and owned work. The licence is Apache-2.0.
4 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 4b48ca2. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.
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.
No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md.
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
No URLs in SKILL.md.
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.
Agent Startup And Context Ingestion loads about 1.7k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 123 tokens; SKILL.md has 782 words of instructions outside code blocks.
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.
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.
The full file from mvschwarz/openrig at commit 4b48ca2, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© mvschwarz). 782 words, ~1,690 tokens.
.claude/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).How an agent becomes useful after launch: AGENTS.md overlays, role
files, skills, rig specs, workflow specs, startup checklists, refocus
messages, and the current rig context retrieval and profile surface.
It is the current concrete startup path inside the broader context-engineering-and-retrieval primitive. Startup gets a seat into the right initial shape; context engineering is the larger question of how a seat gets the right context for the work it is doing right now.
Most coordination failures are not tool failures; they are context failures. Agents need to know their role, operating mode, coordination convention, boundaries, and current product intent. If startup context is scattered or stale, agents execute the wrong thing very efficiently.
session-compaction-and-restoreRun rig whoami --json, then resolve project.yaml -> mission.yaml -> active slice.yaml -> selected component or wave map -> addressed context. The complete
lookup and precedence rule is docs/reference/product-journey-sdlc.md#resolve-the-selected-path
(installed: $OPENRIG_HOME/reference/product-journey-sdlc.md#resolve-the-selected-path).
Read the selected addresses and source needed for this task; skills available in
your profile are capabilities, not a mandatory reading list. No composition means
light Part A. Role names and idle seats add no gates. Explicit rigor and authored
wave boundaries retain their named checks.
Startup files are address maps, not universal reading mandates. Do not preload unrelated planning/review doctrine or require per-file ACKs and quizzes. Skill availability is distinct from loading its full body. An old packet does not choose the current work. Missing selected context is a named gap to resolve.
In a disposable fresh session, observe the actual reads and resulting next action. Test no-selection, explicit rigor, and wave-boundary cases. An edit is not evidence that an already-running seat adopted it; adoption needs an authorized refresh or next-launch observation. Do not clear or re-prime a live seat merely to test prose.
When a seat's startup is artifact-backed mental-model rebuild (active-work reentry case, distinct from reusable Agent Starters / priming packs):
rig whoami > target rigspec > bounded latest transcript > full transcript > touched-files > restore-summary.jsonInventory the selected startup inputs: AGENTS/role/CULTURE overlays, replay context, and any declared restore packet or starter. Record where each comes from, whether it is current, and why this task needs it. An available skill or old packet does not select the work.
Use the task-scoped startup path above to resolve current authority. Permission
to read an input is not permission to rewrite its source; writes follow the
active project/rig policy and assignment. Load
skills/openrig-operating-model/SKILL.md with rig context get when deciding
where durable context belongs.
Per agent-startup-guide.md (product reference doc) and the team handbook:
| Startup files | Skills |
|---|---|
| Rig-specific, role-specific identity | Reusable SOPs / methodology / knowledge |
| Tell agent WHO it is, WHAT it's working on, HOW this team operates | Tell agent HOW to do something (transferable across rigs) |
Examples: role.md, CULTURE.md, startup/context.md | Examples: openrig-user, test-driven-development, vault-user |
| Authored per-rig | Authored once, used everywhere |
Don't put skill content in startup files. Don't put identity content in skills. The 7-layer additive startup model (agent / profile / rig / culture / pod / member / operator) handles the layering.
mission-slice-sop — load when starting assigned mission/slice work; the light artifact and handoff procedure for SPEC.md, NOTES.md, PROGRESS.md and proof. It does not choose the SDLC for the task.forming-an-openrig-mental-model skill — orientation for new agentssession-compaction-and-restore skill — restore-time startup ingestionagent-starters skill — reusable starter manifests that compose startup contextopenrig-operating-model skill — placement and authority of durable contextopenrig/docs/reference/agent-startup-guide.md (product reference doc; not a skill) — the 7-layer additive startup model + delivery hints© mvschwarz, Apache-2.0. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file
Just SKILL.md in skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion of mvschwarz/openrig.
Open the folder on GitHubat commit 4b48ca2
Agent Startup And Context Ingestion 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.
| Skill | Stars | Used in | Tokens | Auto-check | Licence | Repo updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agent Startup And Context Ingestion this skillmvschwarz/openrig | 6.6k | — | ~1.7k | Automated safety check: Pass | Apache-2.0 | |
| Using Agent Skillsaddyosmani/agent-skills | 104k | 4 repos | ~2.4k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Claude ReflectBayramAnnakov/claude-reflect | 1.8k | 2 repos | ~627 | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Neat-Freak Knowledge CloseoutKKKKhazix/khazix-skills | 21k | — | ~1.9k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Writing For Agentsbestofjs/bestofjs | 3.1k | 18 repos | ~2.7k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Task Observerrebelytics/one-skill-to-rule-them-all | 3.2k | 1 repos | ~11k | Automated safety check: Pass | CC-BY-4.0 |
addyosmani/agent-skills
Meta-skill for choosing which workflow skill fits the task at hand, plus always-on habits: surface assumptions, stop on confusion, push back, keep it simple and stay in scope.
BayramAnnakov/claude-reflect
Self-learning system that captures corrections during sessions and reminds users to run /reflect to update CLAUDE.md.
KKKKhazix/khazix-skills
Brings project docs, agent rule files, authorized memory and leftover workspace files back in line with what the code and runtime actually do at the end of a work session.
bestofjs/bestofjs
Writing documents for agents. An agent skill from bestofjs/bestofjs.
rebelytics/one-skill-to-rule-them-all
Monitors task execution for skill improvement opportunities.
microsoft/SkillOpt
Runs an on-demand or nightly sleep cycle that reviews past Claude Code sessions and proposes validated updates to CLAUDE.md and skills.
mvschwarz/openrig
Walks an agent through upgrading the OpenRig CLI and daemon one observed step at a time, keeping live seats alive and reconciling managed plugin files.
mvschwarz/openrig
Re-grounds a long-running agent in the current product outcome by running a path-based trace to the root of its topology and work trees.
mvschwarz/openrig
Helps set up a continuing agent software team for a real repository with OpenRig, choosing between manual work, queue handoffs and an explicit Workflow.
mvschwarz/openrig
Separates a stable agent seat's identity from its changing occupant, and records honest, two-part provenance whenever one occupant replaces another.
mvschwarz/openrig
Loads one section of a Markdown file by its path#h2-slug address with a bundled resolver script, for use outside OpenRig's context library.
mvschwarz/openrig
Covers authoring, inspecting, refreshing, promoting and deprecating named Agent Starters, the reusable starting points for agent seats in a rig.
Categories
A skill your agent uses when designing or auditing how an agent becomes useful after launch — AGENTS.md overlays, role files, skills, rig specs, workflow specs, startup checklists, refocus messages…. Agent Startup And Context Ingestion is an agent skill from mvschwarz/openrig.md overlays, role files, skills, rig specs, workflow specs, startup checklists, refocus messages, "rig context" surface.
Agent Startup And Context Ingestion fits situations like: auditing how an agent becomes useful after launch — AGENTS.md overlays; startup checklists; refocus messages; rig context surface.
Run `npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion in mvschwarz/openrig) into .claude/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
Run `npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/_canonical/core/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion in mvschwarz/openrig) into .agents/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add mvschwarz/openrig --skill agent-startup-and-context-ingestion -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion, .gemini/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion, .github/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion and .opencode/skills/agent-startup-and-context-ingestion in your project.
SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Agent Startup And Context Ingestion is instructions for the agent only.
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.
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.
Agent Startup And Context Ingestion is published under the Apache-2.0 licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.
About 1.7k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 6.8k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Agent Startup And Context Ingestion: Using Agent Skills (addyosmani/agent-skills, 104k stars), Claude Reflect (BayramAnnakov/claude-reflect, 1.8k stars), Neat-Freak Knowledge Closeout (KKKKhazix/khazix-skills, 21k stars) and Writing For Agents (bestofjs/bestofjs, 3.1k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
mvschwarz (a GitHub user) maintains it in mvschwarz/openrig, which has 6,551 GitHub stars. The repository holds 49 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 10, 2026.
Source: mvschwarz/openrig on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.