Agent skill

Service Mesh

by sickn33 in sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills

Implement Istio and Linkerd service meshes. An agent skill from sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills.

MITAuto-check passedBackend & APIs

Install Service Mesh

skills CLI
$ npx skills add sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills --skill service-mesh -a claude-code

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

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills service-mesh --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/sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/service-mesh .claude/skills/service-mesh && 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
service-mesh
GitHub stars
47k
Used in
2 other repos
Token cost
~2.7k tokens
SKILL.md length
292 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
1,497
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Implement Istio and Linkerd service meshes. An agent skill from sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills.

  • Managing microservices communication
  • SKILL.md covers When to Use, Prerequisites, Istio Installation and Traffic Management, plus 8 more sections
  • Calls kubectl, curl and sh; reaches istio.io and run.linkerd.io
  • Tasks that involve Microservices

What it does

Service Mesh is an agent skill from sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills. Implement Istio and Linkerd service meshes. Configure mTLS, traffic management, and observability. Use when managing microservices communication.

Its SKILL.md is about 2.7k 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 the relevant OS/platform tooling and privileged access where noted. Docs-only; helper scripts and templates not bundled.

It sits in Backend & APIs, covering Microservices. The repository describes itself as: AAS Core is the local, agent-first control plane for complete catalog discovery, agent-owned selection, stack validation, and planning, backed by 2,400+ agentic skills. Includes… The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • Managing microservices communication
  • Tasks that involve Microservices

Example prompts

  • “/service-mesh”

Requirements

  • Compatibility (from SKILL.md): Requires the relevant OS/platform tooling and privileged access where noted. Docs-only; helper scripts and templates not bundled.

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit b84d35a. 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

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • kubectl
    • curl
    • sh

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

  • Network

    Hosts in commands or code, which the agent is likely to contact:

    • istio.io
    • run.linkerd.io

    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 the relevant OS/platform tooling and privileged access where noted. Docs-only; helper scripts and templates not bundled.

    From compatibility in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

Context cost

Service Mesh loads about 2.7k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 40 tokens; SKILL.md has 292 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~40
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~2.7k

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 sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills at commit b84d35a, republished under its MIT licence (© sickn33). 292 words, ~2,666 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/service-mesh/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
service-mesh
description
Implement Istio and Linkerd service meshes. Configure mTLS, traffic management, and observability. Use when managing microservices communication.
compatibility
Requires the relevant OS/platform tooling and privileged access where noted. Docs-only; helper scripts and templates not bundled.
category
devops
risk
critical
source
https://github.com/BagelHole/DevOps-Security-Agent-Skills
source_repo
BagelHole/DevOps-Security-Agent-Skills
source_type
community
date_added
2026-09-20
license
MIT
license_source
https://github.com/BagelHole/DevOps-Security-Agent-Skills/blob/main/LICENSE
metadata.author
devops-skills
metadata.version
1.0

Service Mesh

Implement service-to-service communication management with mTLS, traffic shaping, observability, and policy enforcement using Istio or Linkerd.

When to Use

  • Securing microservice communication with automatic mTLS.
  • Implementing canary deployments, traffic splitting, or A/B testing.
  • Adding circuit breakers, retries, and timeouts without changing application code.
  • Gaining service-level observability (latency, error rates, request volume).
  • Enforcing authorization policies between services.

Prerequisites

  • Kubernetes cluster (1.26+) with kubectl configured.
  • Helm 3 installed (for some installation methods).
  • Sufficient cluster resources (Istio control plane needs ~2 GB RAM).
  • For Istio: istioctl CLI installed.
  • For Linkerd: linkerd CLI installed.

Istio Installation

Install with istioctl
bash
# Download istioctl
curl -L https://istio.io/downloadIstio -o /tmp/downloadIstio.sh && sh /tmp/downloadIstio.sh && rm /tmp/downloadIstio.sh
cd istio-*
export PATH=$PWD/bin:$PATH

# Install with the production profile
istioctl install --set profile=default -y

# Or use the demo profile (includes all addons, good for learning)
istioctl install --set profile=demo -y

# Verify installation
istioctl verify-install

# Check running components
kubectl get pods -n istio-system
Enable Sidecar Injection
bash
# Enable automatic sidecar injection for a namespace
kubectl label namespace default istio-injection=enabled

# Verify label
kubectl get namespace default --show-labels

# Restart existing pods to inject sidecars
kubectl rollout restart deployment -n default

# Check sidecar status
kubectl get pods -n default -o jsonpath='{range .items[*]}{.metadata.name}{" containers: "}{range .spec.containers[*]}{.name}{" "}{end}{"\n"}{end}'
Install Observability Addons
bash
# Install Kiali, Prometheus, Grafana, Jaeger
kubectl apply -f samples/addons/prometheus.yaml
kubectl apply -f samples/addons/grafana.yaml
kubectl apply -f samples/addons/jaeger.yaml
kubectl apply -f samples/addons/kiali.yaml

# Wait for rollout
kubectl rollout status deployment/kiali -n istio-system

# Access dashboards
istioctl dashboard kiali
istioctl dashboard grafana
istioctl dashboard jaeger

Traffic Management

VirtualService (Routing Rules)
yaml
# virtualservice.yaml — canary deployment with traffic split
apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: VirtualService
metadata:
  name: my-app
  namespace: default
spec:
  hosts:
    - my-app
  http:
    # Header-based routing (canary testers)
    - match:
        - headers:
            x-canary:
              exact: "true"
      route:
        - destination:
            host: my-app
            subset: canary
    # Percentage-based traffic split
    - route:
        - destination:
            host: my-app
            subset: stable
          weight: 90
        - destination:
            host: my-app
            subset: canary
          weight: 10
      timeout: 30s
      retries:
        attempts: 3
        perTryTimeout: 10s
        retryOn: gateway-error,connect-failure,refused-stream
DestinationRule (Subsets and Connection Policy)
yaml
# destinationrule.yaml
apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: DestinationRule
metadata:
  name: my-app
  namespace: default
spec:
  host: my-app
  trafficPolicy:
    connectionPool:
      tcp:
        maxConnections: 100
      http:
        h2UpgradePolicy: DEFAULT
        http1MaxPendingRequests: 100
        http2MaxRequests: 1000
        maxRequestsPerConnection: 10
    outlierDetection:
      consecutive5xxErrors: 5
      interval: 10s
      baseEjectionTime: 30s
      maxEjectionPercent: 50
  subsets:
    - name: stable
      labels:
        version: v1
    - name: canary
      labels:
        version: v2
Gateway (Ingress Traffic)
yaml
# gateway.yaml — expose service to external traffic
apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: Gateway
metadata:
  name: app-gateway
  namespace: default
spec:
  selector:
    istio: ingressgateway
  servers:
    - port:
        number: 443
        name: https
        protocol: HTTPS
      tls:
        mode: SIMPLE
        credentialName: app-tls-cert  # Kubernetes secret
      hosts:
        - app.example.com
    - port:
        number: 80
        name: http
        protocol: HTTP
      hosts:
        - app.example.com
      tls:
        httpsRedirect: true
---
apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: VirtualService
metadata:
  name: app-external
  namespace: default
spec:
  hosts:
    - app.example.com
  gateways:
    - app-gateway
  http:
    - route:
        - destination:
            host: my-app
            port:
              number: 8080

mTLS Configuration

Strict mTLS (Cluster-Wide)
yaml
# peer-authentication.yaml
apiVersion: security.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: PeerAuthentication
metadata:
  name: default
  namespace: istio-system  # Applies to entire mesh
spec:
  mtls:
    mode: STRICT
Permissive mTLS (Per Namespace)
yaml
# Allow both plaintext and mTLS during migration
apiVersion: security.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: PeerAuthentication
metadata:
  name: default
  namespace: legacy-apps
spec:
  mtls:
    mode: PERMISSIVE
Verify mTLS Status
bash
# Check mTLS status for a namespace
istioctl x describe pod <pod-name> -n default

# View TLS configuration
istioctl proxy-config cluster <pod-name>.default --fqdn my-app.default.svc.cluster.local -o json | grep -A5 "tlsContext"

# Verify with istioctl authn
istioctl authn tls-check <pod-name>.default my-app.default.svc.cluster.local

Authorization Policies

yaml
# authz-policy.yaml — only allow frontend to call API
apiVersion: security.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: AuthorizationPolicy
metadata:
  name: api-access
  namespace: default
spec:
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: my-api
  action: ALLOW
  rules:
    - from:
        - source:
            principals:
              - "cluster.local/ns/default/sa/frontend"
      to:
        - operation:
            methods: ["GET", "POST"]
            paths: ["/api/*"]
---
# Deny all other traffic to api
apiVersion: security.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: AuthorizationPolicy
metadata:
  name: deny-all
  namespace: default
spec:
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: my-api
  action: DENY
  rules:
    - from:
        - source:
            notPrincipals:
              - "cluster.local/ns/default/sa/frontend"

Circuit Breaking

yaml
# circuit-breaker.yaml
apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1beta1
kind: DestinationRule
metadata:
  name: my-api-circuit-breaker
spec:
  host: my-api
  trafficPolicy:
    connectionPool:
      tcp:
        maxConnections: 50
      http:
        http1MaxPendingRequests: 50
        http2MaxRequests: 100
        maxRetries: 3
    outlierDetection:
      consecutive5xxErrors: 3
      interval: 15s
      baseEjectionTime: 60s
      maxEjectionPercent: 100

Linkerd Installation

bash
# Install Linkerd CLI
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSfL https://run.linkerd.io/install -o /tmp/install-linkerd.sh && sh /tmp/install-linkerd.sh && rm /tmp/install-linkerd.sh
export PATH=$HOME/.linkerd2/bin:$PATH

# Validate cluster prerequisites
linkerd check --pre

# Install Linkerd CRDs
linkerd install --crds | kubectl apply -f -

# Install Linkerd control plane
linkerd install | kubectl apply -f -

# Verify installation
linkerd check

# Inject sidecar into a namespace
kubectl get deploy -n my-app -o yaml | linkerd inject - | kubectl apply -f -

# Or annotate namespace for auto-injection
kubectl annotate namespace my-app linkerd.io/inject=enabled

# View live traffic dashboard
linkerd viz install | kubectl apply -f -
linkerd viz dashboard
Linkerd Traffic Split (SMI)
yaml
# traffic-split.yaml
apiVersion: split.smi-spec.io/v1alpha4
kind: TrafficSplit
metadata:
  name: my-app-split
  namespace: default
spec:
  service: my-app
  backends:
    - service: my-app-stable
      weight: 900
    - service: my-app-canary
      weight: 100

Debugging

bash
# Istio: check proxy configuration
istioctl proxy-config routes <pod-name>.default
istioctl proxy-config clusters <pod-name>.default
istioctl proxy-config listeners <pod-name>.default

# Istio: analyze configuration for issues
istioctl analyze -n default

# Istio: proxy debug logs
istioctl proxy-config log <pod-name>.default --level debug

# Linkerd: check proxy stats
linkerd viz stat deploy -n default
linkerd viz top deploy/my-app -n default
linkerd viz edges deploy -n default

Troubleshooting

SymptomCauseFix
Sidecar not injectedMissing namespace labelAdd istio-injection=enabled label; restart pods
503 errors between servicesmTLS mismatch (one side plaintext)Set PeerAuthentication to PERMISSIVE during migration
High latency after mesh installSidecar resource limits too lowIncrease sidecar CPU/memory limits in mesh config
VirtualService not routingMissing DestinationRule subsetsCreate matching DestinationRule with subset labels
upstream connect errorCircuit breaker trippedCheck outlier detection settings; increase thresholds
Authorization policy blocks everythingDefault deny without matching allow ruleAdd explicit ALLOW rule before DENY-all
Kiali shows "Unknown" trafficMissing sidecar on calling serviceInject sidecar into all communicating services
  • load-balancing (load-balancing) - Layer 4/7 load balancing outside Kubernetes
  • reverse-proxy (reverse-proxy) - Ingress-level proxying
  • ai-inference-service-mesh (ai-inference-service-mesh) - Mesh patterns for ML workloads
  • dns-management (dns-management) - DNS for mesh ingress gateways

Limitations

  • Infrastructure commands can disrupt services: confirm target host/scope and have backups/snapshots before mutating state.
  • Docs-only import: upstream scripts and templates not bundled.

© sickn33, MIT. 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 skills/service-mesh of sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit b84d35a

Used in 2 other repositories

We found 6 copies of this SKILL.md (exact, near-identical or edited) in other folders, from 2 other GitHub owners. This page covers the copy in sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills, which our catalogue first saw on October 7, 2026.

Compare with similar skills

Service Mesh 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.

Service Mesh compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Service Mesh this skillsickn33/agentic-awesome-skills47k2 repos~2.7kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Rtvi Vlm Perf TestingNVIDIA-AI-Blueprints/video-search-and-summarization1.9k—~8.6kAutomated safety check: NotesApache-2.0
Vss Deploy ProfileNVIDIA/skills3.6k—~5kAutomated safety check: NotesApache-2.0
System Designninehills/skills280—~4.7kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Backend Designitseffi/agentic-os114—~474Automated safety check: PassMIT
System Designwondelai/skills2.4k—~4kAutomated safety check: PassMIT

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Questions about Service Mesh

What does Service Mesh do?

Implement Istio and Linkerd service meshes. An agent skill from sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills. Service Mesh is an agent skill from sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills. Implement Istio and Linkerd service meshes.

When should I use Service Mesh?

Service Mesh fits situations like: managing microservices communication; tasks that involve Microservices.

How do I install Service Mesh in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills --skill service-mesh -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/service-mesh in sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills) into .claude/skills/service-mesh in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Service Mesh in Codex?

Run `npx skills add sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills --skill service-mesh -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/service-mesh in sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills) into .agents/skills/service-mesh in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Service Mesh 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 sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills --skill service-mesh -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/service-mesh, .gemini/skills/service-mesh, .github/skills/service-mesh and .opencode/skills/service-mesh in your project.

What does Service Mesh need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Service Mesh needs the command-line tools its instructions call (kubectl, curl and sh). Compatibility (from SKILL.md): Requires the relevant OS/platform tooling and privileged access where noted. Docs-only; helper scripts and templates not bundled..

Does Service Mesh access the network?

SKILL.md names 2 domains. In commands or code: istio.io and run.linkerd.io; the agent is likely to contact these when it follows the instructions. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Service Mesh 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 Service Mesh use?

Service Mesh is published under the MIT licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Service Mesh use?

About 2.7k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 11k 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 Service Mesh?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Service Mesh: Rtvi Vlm Perf Testing (NVIDIA-AI-Blueprints/video-search-and-summarization, 1.9k stars), Vss Deploy Profile (NVIDIA/skills, 3.6k stars), System Design (ninehills/skills, 280 stars) and Backend Design (itseffi/agentic-os, 114 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Service Mesh?

sickn33 (a GitHub user) maintains it in sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills, which has 47,405 GitHub stars. The repository holds 1,497 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 9, 2026.

Source: sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.