Agent skill

Init

by rekal-dev in rekal-dev/rekal-cli

Turn on Rekal memory in the current repository by running rekal init.

Apache-2.0Auto-check passedAgent Workflows

Install Init

skills CLI
$ npx skills add rekal-dev/rekal-cli --skill init -a claude-code

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

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install rekal-dev/rekal-cli init --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/rekal-dev/rekal-cli.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugin/skills/init .claude/skills/init && 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
init
GitHub stars
207
Token cost
~567 tokens
SKILL.md length
284 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
3
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
Apache-2.0

At a glance

Turn on Rekal memory in the current repository by running rekal init.

  • The user asks to initialize
  • SKILL.md covers Do not volunteer this, Ask first, Run it and After
  • Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md
  • Set up Rekal here

What it does

Init is an agent skill from rekal-dev/rekal-cli. Turn on Rekal memory in the current repository by running rekal init. Use when the user asks to initialize or set up Rekal here, or when a rekal command reported the repository is not initialized. Once per repository. Do not offer this merely because a repo lacks a .rekal/ store — most repos do not want one.

Its SKILL.md is about 570 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. It works with Git, DuckDB and Go. The repository describes itself as: Your coding agent starts every session blank. Rekal is the memory your team is missing. The licence is Apache-2.0.

When your agent uses it

  • The user asks to initialize
  • Set up Rekal here
  • A rekal command reported the repository is not initialized

Example prompts

  • “/init”

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 4550e60. 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 bash).

    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

Init loads about 567 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 80 tokens; SKILL.md has 284 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~80
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~567

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 rekal-dev/rekal-cli at commit 4550e60, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© rekal-dev). 284 words, ~567 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/init/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
init
description
Turn on Rekal memory in the current repository by running `rekal init`. Use when the user asks to initialize or set up Rekal here, or when a `rekal` command reported the repository is not initialized. Once per repository. Do not offer this merely because a repo lacks a `.rekal/` store — most repos do not want one.

Initialize Rekal in this repository

Run once per repository. The binary must already be installed — if rekal is not on PATH, use the install skill first.

Do not volunteer this

This skill is loaded in every repository the user opens. Almost none of them should be initialized. Act when the user asks, or when a rekal command has actually reported the repo is not initialized. A repository simply lacking .rekal/ is not a reason to suggest anything.

Ask first

rekal init changes the user's repository. Name what it writes, then wait:

  • .rekal/ — the store (two files: an append-only data.db, a local index.db)
  • a post-commit / pre-push git hook that captures sessions at commit time
  • an orphan branch rekal/<their-email> used to transport memory over git
  • the full recall skill under .claude/skills/rekal/
  • one marker-tagged line in CLAUDE.md, plus the equivalent line in any other agent rules file it detects (AGENTS.md, GEMINI.md, .github/copilot-instructions.md, .kiro/steering/rekal.md)

User content is never rewritten — only the marker line is added. rekal clean removes everything, with no residue.

If the user declines, stop and say so plainly.

Run it

From the repository root:

bash
rekal init

After

Say what to expect, because the first impression is misleading:

  • A fresh store is empty. Recall stays silent until the next commit. That silence is correct, not a broken install — memory accumulates from here.
  • If the team already shares a ledger, rekal sync pulls it now and recall has something to find immediately.

From this point the binary owns memory. It installed the full recall skill, which is the one that answers questions — richer than anything in this plugin, and versioned with the binary whose commands it runs. Route recall questions there. This skill is done until the next repository.

© rekal-dev, 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

Files

Just SKILL.md in plugin/skills/init of rekal-dev/rekal-cli.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 4550e60

Compare with similar skills

Init 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.

Init compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Init this skillrekal-dev/rekal-cli207—~567Automated safety check: PassApache-2.0
Easyeda Repo Maintainzhoushoujianwork/easyeda-agent596—~360Automated safety check: PassCustom licence
CLIProxy Core Synccaidaoli/ccLoad417—~1.5kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Go-Redis Release Preparationredis/go-redis22k—~1.1kAutomated safety check: PassBSD-2-Clause
Code Reviewyaklang/yakit7.8k—~1.4kAutomated safety check: NotesAGPL-3.0
Bfe Rd Workflowbfenetworks/bfe6.3k—~1.3kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0

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More from rekal-dev/rekal-cli

  • Rekal

    rekal-dev/rekal-cli

    Use in a repo with Rekal initialized (.rekal/ exists). An agent skill from rekal-dev/rekal-cli.

    207 GitHub stars~2.1k tokensUpdated 27 days ago
    Auto-check passed
  • Install

    rekal-dev/rekal-cli

    Install the Rekal binary on this machine. An agent skill from rekal-dev/rekal-cli.

    207 GitHub stars~432 tokensUpdated 27 days ago
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Works with

Questions about Init

What does Init do?

Turn on Rekal memory in the current repository by running rekal init. Init is an agent skill from rekal-dev/rekal-cli. Turn on Rekal memory in the current repository by running rekal init.

When should I use Init?

Init fits situations like: the user asks to initialize; set up Rekal here; A rekal command reported the repository is not initialized.

How do I install Init in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add rekal-dev/rekal-cli --skill init -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (plugin/skills/init in rekal-dev/rekal-cli) into .claude/skills/init in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Init in Codex?

Run `npx skills add rekal-dev/rekal-cli --skill init -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (plugin/skills/init in rekal-dev/rekal-cli) into .agents/skills/init in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Init 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 rekal-dev/rekal-cli --skill init -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/init, .gemini/skills/init, .github/skills/init and .opencode/skills/init in your project.

What does Init need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Init is instructions for the agent only.

Does Init 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 Init 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 Init use?

Init 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.

How many tokens does Init use?

About 567 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 2.3k 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 Init?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Init: Easyeda Repo Maintain (zhoushoujianwork/easyeda-agent, 596 stars), CLIProxy Core Sync (caidaoli/ccLoad, 417 stars), Go-Redis Release Preparation (redis/go-redis, 22k stars) and Code Review (yaklang/yakit, 7.8k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Init?

rekal-dev (a GitHub user) maintains it in rekal-dev/rekal-cli, which has 207 GitHub stars. The repository holds 3 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 10, 2026.

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