How do I install the Apple Tools skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add blackbelttechnology/apple-tools 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 Apple Tools safe to use?

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

Which AI agents work with Apple Tools?

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 Apple Tools free to use?

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

Who published Apple Tools?

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

Apple Tools by blackbelttechnology — Agent Skill

Name: Apple Tools
Author: BlackBeltTechnology

Apple Tools

Reach Apple PIM data (Calendar, Contacts, Reminders, Messages, Location, Maps, Weather) from a pi session via iMCP + pi-mcp-adapter on macOS. Use when the user asks to read/search their Apple Calendar, Contacts, Reminders, iMessages, current Location, Maps, or Weather. Does NOT cover Apple Mail — iMCP exposes no Mail service; use apple-mail-fast-export for email.

File contents

apple-tools (iMCP)

Access Apple personal-information-management data on macOS through iMCP, a menu-bar app that brokers the OS permission grants, reached over MCP by pi-mcp-adapter.

Reachable services (seven)

Calendar · Contacts · Location · Maps · Messages · Reminders · Weather

Messages here means iMessage / SMS — it is NOT email.
There is no Mail service. iMCP exposes no Apple Mail access.

Mail is out of scope — redirect

If the user asks to read, search, or summarize Apple Mail / email:

iMCP exposes no Mail service; do not attempt an iMCP/adapter tool call for Mail.
Use the apple-mail-fast-export skill instead — it exports .eml files directly from the on-disk Apple Mail store.

"Messages" satisfying an email request is a category error: Messages is iMessage/SMS only.

Access pattern — search then invoke via the adapter

The agent reaches iMCP tools through pi-mcp-adapter, not by spawning the server. Do not run imcp-server directly. Use the adapter's MCP tool surface (search the available tools, then invoke).

Provisioning check (run at load)

This skill runs the installer's --check traversal on load (one sw_vers plus a few stat calls; short-circuits instantly on non-macOS). If iMCP is not provisioned it reports the gap and names the fix:

pi-apple-tools-install

Terminal states mirror the CLI and the dashboard panel: UNSUPPORTED_PLATFORM, OS_VERSION_UNKNOWN, OS_TOO_OLD, NO_INSTALL_METHOD, INSTALL_FAILED, CONFIG_UNPARSEABLE, CONFIG_WRITE_FAILED, READY_PENDING_GRANTS.

READY is NOT one of them. It is a live-access result — reachable only by a successful tool round-trip through the adapter, never by the provisioning traversal, which cannot know whether the TCC grants were given.

If the state is anything other than READY_PENDING_GRANTS, do NOT attempt Apple-data tool calls — report the gap and the pi-apple-tools-install command first.

Permission grants are manual and out-of-band

The final step — granting Calendar/Contacts/… permissions — happens in the iMCP menu-bar app and cannot be automated (Apple's TCC security model has no API).

The load-time check cannot detect a revoked grant ahead of a call.
A permission-class failure at call time means the grant was revoked or never given → the fix is menu-bar remediation, NOT re-running the installer. Re-running pi-apple-tools-install will not restore a TCC grant.

---name: apple-toolsdescription: Reach Apple PIM data (Calendar, Contacts, Reminders, Messages, Location, Maps, Weather) from a pi session via iMCP + pi-mcp-adapter on macOS. Use when the user asks to read/search their Apple Calendar, Contacts, Reminders, iMessages, current Location, Maps, or Weather. Does NOT cover Apple Mail — iMCP exposes no Mail service; use apple-mail-fast-export for email.---# apple-tools (iMCP)Access Apple personal-information-management data on **macOS** through[iMCP](https://github.com/mattt/iMCP), a menu-bar app that brokers the OSpermission grants, reached over MCP by `pi-mcp-adapter`.## Reachable services (seven)Calendar · Contacts · Location · Maps · Messages · Reminders · Weather- **Messages** here means **iMessage / SMS** — it is NOT email.- There is **no Mail service**. iMCP exposes no Apple Mail access.## Mail is out of scope — redirectIf the user asks to read, search, or summarize **Apple Mail / email**:- iMCP exposes **no Mail service**; do not attempt an iMCP/adapter tool call for Mail.- Use the **`apple-mail-fast-export`** skill instead — it exports `.eml` files directly from the on-disk Apple Mail store."Messages" satisfying an email request is a category error: Messages isiMessage/SMS only.## Access pattern — search then invoke via the adapterThe agent reaches iMCP tools through **`pi-mcp-adapter`**, not by spawning theserver. Do **not** run `imcp-server` directly. Use the adapter's MCP toolsurface (search the available tools, then invoke).## Provisioning check (run at load)This skill runs the installer's `--check` traversal on load (one `sw_vers` plusa few `stat` calls; short-circuits instantly on non-macOS). If iMCP is notprovisioned it reports the gap and names the fix:```pi-apple-tools-install```Terminal states mirror the CLI and the dashboard panel:`UNSUPPORTED_PLATFORM`, `OS_VERSION_UNKNOWN`, `OS_TOO_OLD`, `NO_INSTALL_METHOD`,`INSTALL_FAILED`, `CONFIG_UNPARSEABLE`, `CONFIG_WRITE_FAILED`,`READY_PENDING_GRANTS`.`READY` is NOT one of them. It is a live-access result — reachable only by asuccessful tool round-trip through the adapter, never by the provisioningtraversal, which cannot know whether the TCC grants were given.If the state is anything other than `READY_PENDING_GRANTS`, do NOT attemptApple-data tool calls — report the gap and the `pi-apple-tools-install`command first.## Permission grants are manual and out-of-bandThe final step — granting Calendar/Contacts/… permissions — happens in the**iMCP menu-bar app** and **cannot be automated** (Apple's TCC security modelhas no API).- The load-time check **cannot detect a revoked grant** ahead of a call.- A permission-class failure at call time means the grant was **revoked or never given** → the fix is **menu-bar remediation**, NOT re-running the installer. Re-running `pi-apple-tools-install` will not restore a TCC grant.

Frequently asked questions