| name | host-instruction-drift-checker |
| description | Check whether host instruction surfaces such as AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, Codex agents, Cursor rules, Copilot instructions, and SKILL.md files have drifted apart. |
Host Instruction Drift Checker
Use this skill when a repo supports multiple coding-agent hosts or when a baseline update may change agent behavior.
Process
- Identify the canonical instruction source for the repo.
- Inventory host surfaces:
AGENTS.md
CLAUDE.md
AGENT_INSTRUCTIONS.md
.claude/agents/*
.codex/agents/*
.agents/skills/*/SKILL.md
.claude/skills/*/SKILL.md
.codex/skills/*/SKILL.md
.cursor/rules/*.mdc
.github/copilot-instructions.md
- Compare only the behavioral contract: scope, permissions, stop rules, evidence, generated-file ownership, and profile/installer semantics.
- Treat host-specific syntax as normal, not drift.
- Classify each mismatch as generated drift, overlay drift, stale doctrine, policy conflict, missing host surface, or intentional host specialization.
- Prefer updating canonical source and regenerating derived surfaces over hand-editing generated agent files.
Output
Canonical Source
Surfaces Checked
Drift Findings
Intentional Differences
Regeneration Path
Required Manual Review
Avoid
- forcing every host file to contain identical prose
- editing generated files as if they were canonical
- ignoring Cursor
.mdc and Copilot surfaces when the repo advertises those hosts
- treating missing evidence gates as minor wording drift