# Skill: Run CLI tool example

> Example file for the Run app skill showing how to document building, invoking, and testing a CLI tool

- Skill: `lord1egypt/skill-run-cli-tool-example-2` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add lord1egypt/skill-run-cli-tool-example-2`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/lord1egypt/skill-run-cli-tool-example-2/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- License: BSD-3-Clause license
- Author: Lord1Egypt (https://skillmd.com/u/lord1egypt)
- Updated: 2026-09-21
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/lord1egypt/skill-run-cli-tool-example-2

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# Example: CLI tool

CLIs are the simplest case — there's usually no background process to
manage, no ports, no lifecycle. The skill focuses on **installation**,
**representative invocations**, and **testing**.

## What matters

- **How to get the binary on `PATH`.** Installed globally? Run via
  `npx`/`uv run`? Built to `./target/release/foo`? Be explicit.
- **Two or three example invocations** that cover the main use cases.
  Include expected output so a reader can tell it worked.
- **Exit codes** if they're meaningful (e.g. linter returns 1 on findings).
- **Stdin behavior** if the tool reads from stdin.

## Example snippet

> ---
> name: run-mytool
> description: Build, install, and run mytool. Use when asked to run mytool, test it, or verify it's installed correctly.
> ---
>
> ## Setup
>
> ```bash
> pip install -e .
> ```
>
> This puts `mytool` on PATH. Verify:
>
> ```bash
> mytool --version
> # → mytool 0.3.1
> ```
>
> ## Run
>
> Process a single file:
>
> ```bash
> mytool process input.json
> # → Processed 42 records, wrote output.json
> ```
>
> Read from stdin, write to stdout:
>
> ```bash
> cat input.json | mytool process -
> ```
>
> Lint a directory (exits non-zero on problems):
>
> ```bash
> mytool lint ./src
> echo $?  # 0 if clean, 1 if issues found
> ```
>
> ## Test
>
> ```bash
> pytest
> ```

## Keep it short

A CLI's run skill can be very compact. Don't pad it with every flag —
the `--help` output covers that. Just show enough that an agent can
(a) build it, (b) confirm it works, (c) run the tests.