# Install Project Understanding

> Installs the tuned project-understanding skill into the current project's .cursor/skills/ folder so it auto-triggers for that repo only. Use when the user invokes /install-project-understanding, asks to "install project understanding", "set up project memory" in this repo, or "enable the project knowledge base here". One-shot per project; re-run to update.

- Skill: `alirana01/install-project-understanding` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add alirana01/install-project-understanding`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/alirana01/install-project-understanding/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Research & Search
- Author: alirana01 (https://skillmd.com/u/alirana01)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/alirana01/install-project-understanding

---


# Install Project Understanding

Provisions a project-local copy of the `project-understanding` skill so it
auto-activates in this repo without paying any always-on token cost at the
user level.

## When this fires

- Slash command: `/install-project-understanding`
- Equivalent phrasings: "install project understanding here", "set up
  project memory in this repo", "enable project knowledge base here".

Only run when the user explicitly asked. Do not auto-install.

## Steps

1. Confirm you're inside a git repo (the target must have a `.git` dir at
   the root). If not, stop and ask the user whether to proceed anyway.
2. Resolve the repo root and target path
   `<root>/.cursor/skills/project-understanding/SKILL.md`.
3. If the target already exists:
   - Ask the user: overwrite with the current template, skip, or show a
     diff first.
   - Only overwrite on explicit confirmation.
4. Read the template at
   `~/.cursor/skills/install-project-understanding/template/project-understanding.md`.
5. Create `<root>/.cursor/skills/project-understanding/` (if missing) and
   write the template to `SKILL.md` inside it **byte-for-byte unchanged**.
6. Gitignore hygiene (idempotent):
   - If `<root>/.gitignore` does not already match
     `.cursor/skills/project-understanding/` (directly or via a broader
     `.cursor/*` / `.cursor/` pattern without a conflicting negation),
     append the explicit line under a
     `# Local agent notes (project-understanding skill)` header.
   - If it does not already match `.cursor_project_understanding/`, append
     that too under the same header.
   - If `.gitignore` doesn't exist, create it containing just these two
     entries under that header.
7. Confirm to the user in one line: "Installed. Will auto-trigger on
   exploration / architecture questions in this repo. Notes will live in
   `.cursor_project_understanding/` (gitignored)."

## Do not

- Do not stage, commit, or push the installed skill or the notes folder.
- Do not modify the template when copying — preserve it exactly.
- Do not install outside a git repo without explicit user confirmation.
- Do not propagate anything to user-level settings; the behavior stays
  project-local.
- Do not mention the installed files in generated commit messages.

## Updating an installed project later

Re-run `/install-project-understanding` and choose "overwrite" when
prompted. This pulls the latest template from the user-level installer.
No migration is needed for existing `.cursor_project_understanding/`
contents — the skill body change is independent of the notes.