Maintaining AGENTS.md

AGENTS.md is the canonical agent-facing documentation. Keep it minimal—agents are capable and don't need hand-holding.

File Setup

•Create AGENTS.md at project root
•Create symlink: ln -s AGENTS.md CLAUDE.md

Before Writing

Discover local skills to reference:

bash

find .claude/skills -name "SKILL.md" 2>/dev/null
ls plugins/*/skills/*/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null

Read each skill's frontmatter to understand when to reference it.

Writing Rules

•Headers + bullets - No paragraphs
•Code blocks - For commands and templates
•Reference, don't duplicate - Point to skills: "Use db-migrate skill. See .claude/skills/db-migrate/SKILL.md"
•No filler - No intros, conclusions, or pleasantries
•Trust capabilities - Omit obvious context
•Skill updates - ALWAYS use /skill-creator when creating or updating skills

Required Sections

Package Manager

Which tool and key commands only:

markdown

## Package Manager
Use **pnpm**: `pnpm install`, `pnpm dev`, `pnpm test`

Commit Attribution

Always include this section. Agents should use their own identity:

markdown

## Commit Attribution
AI commits MUST include:

Co-Authored-By: (the agent model's name and attribution byline)

code

Example: `Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4 <noreply@example.com>`

Key Conventions

Project-specific patterns agents must follow. Keep brief.

Local Skills

Reference each discovered skill:

markdown

## Database
Use `db-migrate` skill for schema changes. See `.claude/skills/db-migrate/SKILL.md`

## Testing
Use `write-tests` skill. See `.claude/skills/write-tests/SKILL.md`

Optional Sections

Add only if truly needed:

•API route patterns (show template, not explanation)
•CLI commands (table format)
•File naming conventions

Anti-Patterns

Omit these:

•"Welcome to..." or "This document explains..."
•"You should..." or "Remember to..."
•Content duplicated from skills (reference instead)
•Obvious instructions ("run tests", "write clean code")
•Explanations of why (just say what)
•Long prose paragraphs

Example Structure

markdown

# Agent Instructions

## Package Manager
Use **pnpm**: `pnpm install`, `pnpm dev`

## Commit Attribution
AI commits MUST include:

Co-Authored-By: (the agent model's name and attribution byline)

code


## API Routes
[Template code block]

## Database
Use `db-migrate` skill. See `.claude/skills/db-migrate/SKILL.md`

## Testing
Use `write-tests` skill. See `.claude/skills/write-tests/SKILL.md`

## CLI
| Command | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| `pnpm cli sync` | Sync data |