# Managing Directus

> Use when working with Directus — directus headless CMS and data platform management covering collection inventory, field configuration, role and permission auditing, flow automation monitoring, webhook management, and file storage analysis. Use when reviewing data models, investigating API access issues, monitoring automation flows, or auditing user permissions.

- Skill: `cloudthinker-ai/managing-directus` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add cloudthinker-ai/managing-directus`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/cloudthinker-ai/managing-directus/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector CAUTION)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Integrations & APIs
- Author: cloudthinker-ai (https://skillmd.com/u/cloudthinker-ai)
- Updated: 2026-09-08
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/cloudthinker-ai/managing-directus

---


# Directus Management Skill

Manage and monitor Directus collections, permissions, flows, and data infrastructure.

## MANDATORY: Discovery-First Pattern

**Always list collections and roles before querying specific items or permissions.**

### Phase 1: Discovery

```bash
#!/bin/bash

DIRECTUS_API="${DIRECTUS_URL}"

directus_api() {
    curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $DIRECTUS_API_TOKEN" \
         -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
         "${DIRECTUS_API}/${1}"
}

echo "=== Directus Server Info ==="
directus_api "server/info" | jq '{project: .data.project.project_name, version: .data.directus.version}'

echo ""
echo "=== Collections ==="
directus_api "collections" | jq -r '
    .data[] |
    select(.collection | startswith("directus_") | not) |
    "\(.collection)\t\(.schema.comment // "")\t\(.meta.hidden)\t\(.meta.singleton)"
' | column -t | head -30

echo ""
echo "=== Roles ==="
directus_api "roles" | jq -r '
    .data[] |
    "\(.id)\t\(.name)\t\(.admin_access)\t\(.app_access)"
' | column -t

echo ""
echo "=== Users ==="
directus_api "users?limit=30" | jq -r '
    .data[] |
    "\(.email)\t\(.role)\t\(.status)\t\(.last_access // "never")"
' | column -t | head -20
```

### Phase 2: Analysis

```bash
#!/bin/bash

echo "=== Permissions Summary ==="
directus_api "permissions?limit=200" | jq '
    .data | group_by(.role) | map({
        role: .[0].role,
        permissions: length,
        collections: [.[].collection] | unique | length
    })
'

echo ""
echo "=== Flows (Automations) ==="
directus_api "flows" | jq -r '
    .data[] |
    "\(.id)\t\(.name)\t\(.status)\t\(.trigger)"
' | column -t | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Webhooks ==="
directus_api "webhooks" | jq -r '
    .data[] |
    "\(.id)\t\(.name)\t\(.status)\t\(.actions | join(","))\t\(.collections | join(","))"
' | column -t | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== File Storage ==="
directus_api "files?aggregate[count]=*" | jq '.data[0]'
directus_api "files?limit=5&sort=-uploaded_on" | jq -r '
    .data[] |
    "\(.id)\t\(.filename_download)\t\(.filesize)\t\(.uploaded_on[:10])"
' | column -t
```

## Output Rules
- **TOKEN EFFICIENCY**: Target <=50 lines per output
- Filter collections to exclude system (directus_*) collections
- Never dump full item data -- extract schema and permission metadata

## Output Format

Present results as a structured report:
```
Managing Directus Report
════════════════════════
Resources discovered: [count]

Resource       Status    Key Metric    Issues
──────────────────────────────────────────────
[name]         [ok/warn] [value]       [findings]

Summary: [total] resources | [ok] healthy | [warn] warnings | [crit] critical
Action Items: [list of prioritized findings]
```

Target ≤50 lines of output. Use tables for multi-resource comparisons.

## Anti-Hallucination Rules

1. **NEVER assume resource names** — always discover via CLI/API in Phase 1 before referencing in Phase 2.
2. **NEVER fabricate metric names or dimensions** — verify against the service documentation or `--help` output.
3. **NEVER mix CLI commands between service versions** — confirm which version/API you are targeting.
4. **ALWAYS use the discovery → verify → analyze chain** — every resource referenced must have been discovered first.
5. **ALWAYS handle empty results gracefully** — an empty response is valid data, not an error to retry.

## Counter-Rationalizations

| Shortcut | Counter | Why |
|----------|---------|-----|
| "I'll skip discovery and check known resources" | Always run Phase 1 discovery first | Resource names change, new resources appear — assumed names cause errors |
| "The user only asked for a quick check" | Follow the full discovery → analysis flow | Quick checks miss critical issues; structured analysis catches silent failures |
| "Default configuration is probably fine" | Audit configuration explicitly | Defaults often leave logging, security, and optimization features disabled |
| "Metrics aren't needed for this" | Always check relevant metrics when available | API/CLI responses show current state; metrics reveal trends and intermittent issues |
| "I don't have access to that" | Try the command and report the actual error | Assumed permission failures prevent useful investigation; actual errors are informative |

## Common Pitfalls

- **Public role**: The public role grants unauthenticated access -- audit its permissions carefully
- **Flow errors**: Failed flow operations are logged but do not surface as API errors
- **Relational fields**: M2M fields create junction collections -- include them in permission audits
- **Token expiry**: Static tokens do not expire but temporary tokens do -- check auth method
- **File permissions**: File access follows collection permissions -- misconfigured roles leak files
- **Singleton collections**: Singleton collections behave like settings -- only one item allowed