Agents Md

Maintaining AGENTS.md

AGENTS.md is the canonical agent-facing documentation file. Keep it minimal—agents are capable and don't need hand-holding. Target under 60 lines; never exceed 100. Instruction-following quality degrades as document length increases.

When to Use

• The user asks to create, update, or audit AGENTS.md or CLAUDE.md.
• The project needs concise, high-signal agent instructions derived from the actual toolchain and repo layout.
• Existing agent documentation is too long, duplicated, or drifting away from real project conventions.

Prerequisites

• Project root must be accessible (this is where AGENTS.md lives).
• On Windows hosts (primary), use PowerShell for symlink creation and file operations.

Procedure

1. File Setup

1. Create AGENTS.md at project root.
2. Create a symlink so CLAUDE.md resolves to the same content.

Windows (PowerShell):

New-Item -ItemType SymbolicLink -Path CLAUDE.md -Target AGENTS.md

Linux / macOS:

ln -s AGENTS.md CLAUDE.md

On Windows, creating symlinks may require Developer Mode enabled or an elevated PowerShell session.

2. Analyze the Project Before Writing

Before writing anything, inspect the repository to understand what belongs in the file:

1. Package manager — Check for lock files: pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, package-lock.json, uv.lock, poetry.lock.
2. Linter/formatter configs — Look for .eslintrc, biome.json, ruff.toml, .prettierrc, etc. Do not duplicate these rules in AGENTS.md.
3. CI/build commands — Check Makefile, package.json scripts, CI configs for canonical commands.
4. Monorepo indicators — Check for pnpm-workspace.yaml, nx.json, Cargo workspace, or subdirectory package.json files.
5. Existing conventions — Check for CONTRIBUTING.md, docs/, or README patterns.

3. Writing Rules

• Headers + bullets — No paragraphs.
• Code blocks — For commands and templates.
• Reference, don't embed — Point to existing docs: "See CONTRIBUTING.md for setup" or "Follow patterns in src/api/routes/".
• No filler — No intros, conclusions, or pleasantries.
• Trust capabilities — Omit obvious context.
• Prefer file-scoped commands — Per-file test/lint/typecheck commands over project-wide builds.
• Don't duplicate linters — Code style lives in linter configs, not AGENTS.md.

4. Required Sections

Package Manager

Which tool and key commands only:

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

File-Scoped Commands

Per-file commands are faster and cheaper than full project builds. Always include when available:

## File-Scoped Commands
| Task | Command |
|------|---------|
| Typecheck | `pnpm tsc --noEmit path/to/file.ts` |
| Lint | `pnpm eslint path/to/file.ts` |
| Test | `pnpm jest path/to/file.test.ts` |

Commit Attribution

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

## Commit Attribution
AI commits MUST include:

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

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

Key Conventions

Project-specific patterns agents must follow. Keep brief.

5. Optional Sections

Add only if truly needed:

• API route patterns (show template, not explanation)
• CLI commands (table format)
• File naming conventions
• Project structure hints (point to critical files, flag legacy code to avoid)
• Monorepo overrides (subdirectory AGENTS.md files override root)

Pitfalls

• Length creep — Instruction-following quality degrades as document length increases. Target under 60 lines; never exceed 100.
• Duplicating linter rules — Never copy .eslintrc, biome.json, or ruff.toml rules into AGENTS.md. Reference the config instead.
• Embedding instead of referencing — Don't paste full docs; point to them ("See CONTRIBUTING.md").
• Project-wide builds over file-scoped commands — Always prefer per-file test/lint/typecheck commands when available.
• Listing installed skills or plugins — Agents discover these automatically; don't list them.
• Windows symlink failures — On Windows, symlink creation may fail without Developer Mode or elevation. If it fails, create CLAUDE.md as a copy or use Copy-Item as a fallback.
• Anti-patterns to omit:
  • "Welcome to..." or "This document explains..."
  • "You should..." or "Remember to..."
  • Full project-wide build commands when file-scoped alternatives exist
  • Obvious instructions ("run tests", "write clean code")
  • Explanations of why (just say what)
  • Long prose paragraphs

Verification

1. Line count check — Ensure the file is under 60 lines (hard max 100):

   (Get-Content AGENTS.md).Count
   

   wc -l AGENTS.md
   

2. Symlink check — Confirm CLAUDE.md resolves to AGENTS.md:

   Get-Item CLAUDE.md | Select-Object Target
   

   ls -l CLAUDE.md
   

3. No linter duplication — Grep for common linter rule keywords that should not appear:

   Select-String -Path AGENTS.md -Pattern "semi","no-unused","max-len","indent" | Select-Object LineNumber,Line
   

   If matches are found (outside of legitimate command examples), remove them.

4. Required sections present — Confirm all four required sections exist:

   Select-String -Path AGENTS.md -Pattern "Package Manager","File-Scoped Commands","Commit Attribution","Key Conventions"
   

Example Structure

# 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)

## File-Scoped Commands
| Task | Command |
|------|---------|
| Typecheck | `pnpm tsc --noEmit path/to/file.ts` |
| Lint | `pnpm eslint path/to/file.ts` |
| Test | `pnpm jest path/to/file.test.ts` |

## API Routes
[Template code block]

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

Limitations

• Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.
• Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.
• Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.