skillx install

Synopsis

skillx install [sources...] [options]

Persistently install skills into agent environments. Unlike skillx run, installed skills remain in place across sessions and are not cleaned up automatically.

Two modes of operation:

• Explicit mode: skillx install <source1> [source2...] — install specified skills
• Manifest mode: skillx install (no args) — install all skills from skillx.toml

Arguments

Argument	Required	Description
sources	No	Skill source(s): local path, github:/gist: prefix, or URL. If omitted, installs from skillx.toml

Options

Flag	Default	Description
--agent <name>	auto-detect	Target a specific agent (conflicts with --all)
--all	—	Install to all detected agents (conflicts with --agent)
--scope <scope>	global	Injection scope: global or project
--no-cache	—	Force re-fetch, skip cache
--skip-scan	—	Skip security scan
--yes	—	Auto-confirm WARN level risks
--no-save	—	Don’t save to skillx.toml (by default, sources ARE saved)
--dev	—	Install as dev dependency (saved under [skills.dev])
--prod	—	Only install production dependencies, skip dev
--prune	—	Remove installed skills not listed in skillx.toml

Install Modes

Explicit Mode

When one or more source arguments are provided, skillx installs those specific skills:

skillx install github:anthropics/skills/pdf-processing github:org/skills/formatter

By default, installed sources are saved to skillx.toml (if it exists). Use --no-save to skip saving.

Manifest Mode

When no source arguments are provided, skillx reads from skillx.toml and installs all listed skills:

skillx install

A summary is shown before installation begins:

Found 5 skills (3 new, 1 to update, 1 already installed)

Agent Selection

Agent selection follows this priority:

1. --agent flag (explicit single agent)
2. --all flag (all detected agents)
3. skillx.toml [agent].targets list
4. config.toml preferred agent
5. Auto-detection

Conflict Handling

Situation	Behavior
Active run session exists for the skill	Error — must clean up or wait for the run to finish
Skill already installed (same source)	Upgrade to latest version
Unmanaged files exist at the injection path	Prompt Overwrite? [y/N]

Dependency Types

Skills can be categorized as production or dev dependencies:

• Production ([skills]): Core skills needed for the project
• Dev ([skills.dev]): Skills only needed during development (e.g., testing, debugging)

Use --dev to install as a dev dependency, and --prod to skip dev dependencies during manifest mode install.

Pruning

The --prune flag removes installed skills that are not listed in skillx.toml. This is useful for keeping your installed skills in sync with the manifest:

skillx install --prune

Skills with active run sessions are skipped during pruning.

Examples

Install a single skill

skillx install github:anthropics/skills/pdf-processing

Install to a specific agent

skillx install --agent cursor github:org/skills/formatter

Install to all detected agents

skillx install --all github:org/skills/testing

Install as dev dependency

skillx install --dev github:org/skills/debug-helper

Install from skillx.toml

skillx install

Install production only, prune extras

skillx install --prod --prune

Install without saving to skillx.toml

skillx install --no-save github:org/skills/one-off-tool