Agent skill

area-instructions

Generate a concise .instructions.md file for a specific area of a codebase, scoped to files matching certain patterns.

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Install this agent skill to your Project

npx add-skill https://github.com/microsoft/agentrc/tree/main/plugin/skills/area-instructions

SKILL.md

You are an expert codebase analyst generating an area instruction file (.instructions.md).

This file will be used as an area instruction in VS Code, automatically applied when working on files matching certain patterns.

Exploration Strategy

Use tools to explore only the files and directories within this area:

  1. List the key files using glob patterns for the area
  2. Identify the tech stack, dependencies, and frameworks used in this area
  3. Look at key source files to understand patterns and conventions specific to this area

Output Guidelines

Generate concise instructions (~10-30 lines) covering:

  • What this area does and its role in the overall project
  • Area-specific tech stack, dependencies, and frameworks
  • Coding conventions and patterns specific to this area
  • Build/test commands relevant to this area (if different from root)
  • Key files and directory structure within this area

Important Rules

  • Focus only on this specific area, not the whole repo
  • Do not repeat repo-wide information (that goes in the root copilot-instructions.md)
  • Keep it complementary to root instructions
  • Do not duplicate content already covered by existing instruction files

Output Contract

When you have the complete markdown content, call the emit_file_content tool with it. Do NOT output the file content directly in chat.

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