How do I install the Search skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add ballred/search in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Search safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: docs only. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Search?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Search free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Search?

ballred (@ballred) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Search by ballred — Agent Skill

Name: Search
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: ballred

File contents

Search Skill

Fast keyword search across all vault markdown files using the Grep tool. No indexes, no plugins, no setup — just structured search with directory grouping.

Usage

/search <term>

Examples:

/search project planning
/search weekly review
/search TODO

How to Execute

When the user invokes /search <term>:

Step 1: Search for the term

Use the Grep tool to search all .md files for the term:

Grep:
  pattern: <search term>
  glob: "*.md"
  output_mode: content
  -n: true
  -C: 1

Exclude hidden directories (.claude/, .obsidian/) and templates:

Grep:
  pattern: <search term>
  glob: "*.md"
  path: .
  output_mode: content
  -n: true
  -C: 1

Filter out results from .claude/, .obsidian/, and Templates/ directories.

Step 2: Group results by directory

Organise matches into sections by their parent directory:

Daily Notes/ — journal entries
Goals/ — goal and vision documents
Projects/ — project notes
Archives/ — archived content
Inbox/ — unprocessed items
(root) — top-level notes

Step 3: Present results

Format output as:

## Search: "<term>"

### Daily Notes/
- **2024-01-15.md** (line 23): ...matching context...
- **2024-01-14.md** (line 8): ...matching context...

### Projects/
- **Project Alpha.md** (line 45): ...matching context...

### Goals/
- **2024 Goals.md** (line 12): ...matching context...

**Found X matches across Y files**

Step 4: Suggest related content

After showing results, check if any matched files contain [[wiki-links]] to other notes. If so, briefly mention:

💡 Related notes mentioned in results: [[Note A]], [[Note B]]

No Results

If no matches are found:

Suggest alternative search terms (synonyms, related words)
Offer to search with case-insensitive matching if the original search was case-sensitive
Suggest checking Archives/ if not already included

Tips

Search is case-sensitive by default. Add -i: true to the Grep call for case-insensitive search
Use regex patterns for advanced searches: task.*complete, #tag-name
Combine with /daily to quickly find when something was mentioned

---name: searchdescription: Search vault content by keyword using Grep. Zero dependencies — works in any vault without indexes or plugins. Groups results by directory for easy scanning.---# Search SkillFast keyword search across all vault markdown files using the Grep tool. No indexes, no plugins, no setup — just structured search with directory grouping.## Usage```/search <term>```Examples:- `/search project planning`- `/search weekly review`- `/search TODO`## How to ExecuteWhen the user invokes `/search <term>`:### Step 1: Search for the termUse the **Grep** tool to search all `.md` files for the term:```Grep: pattern: <search term> glob: "*.md" output_mode: content -n: true -C: 1```Exclude hidden directories (`.claude/`, `.obsidian/`) and templates:```Grep: pattern: <search term> glob: "*.md" path: . output_mode: content -n: true -C: 1```Filter out results from `.claude/`, `.obsidian/`, and `Templates/` directories.### Step 2: Group results by directoryOrganise matches into sections by their parent directory:- **Daily Notes/** — journal entries- **Goals/** — goal and vision documents- **Projects/** — project notes- **Archives/** — archived content- **Inbox/** — unprocessed items- **(root)** — top-level notes### Step 3: Present resultsFormat output as:```markdown## Search: "<term>"### Daily Notes/- **2024-01-15.md** (line 23): ...matching context...- **2024-01-14.md** (line 8): ...matching context...### Projects/- **Project Alpha.md** (line 45): ...matching context...### Goals/- **2024 Goals.md** (line 12): ...matching context...**Found X matches across Y files**```### Step 4: Suggest related contentAfter showing results, check if any matched files contain `[[wiki-links]]` to other notes. If so, briefly mention:```💡 Related notes mentioned in results: [[Note A]], [[Note B]]```## No ResultsIf no matches are found:1. Suggest alternative search terms (synonyms, related words)2. Offer to search with case-insensitive matching if the original search was case-sensitive3. Suggest checking `Archives/` if not already included## Tips- Search is case-sensitive by default. Add `-i: true` to the Grep call for case-insensitive search- Use regex patterns for advanced searches: `task.*complete`, `#tag-name`- Combine with `/daily` to quickly find when something was mentioned

Frequently asked questions

Search