| name | tooluniverse-install-skills |
| description | Detect and auto-install missing ToolUniverse research skills. Checks common Claude Code/Cursor/Codex skill directories for the canary file, and installs any missing skills if none found. Use when the plugin's research skills aren't loading, when migrating between clients, or when verifying a skill installation. |
ToolUniverse Install Skills
Checks whether the ToolUniverse specialized skills are installed and installs them automatically if not.
Detection
Use the Shell tool to check for the canary file across all common client locations:
ls .cursor/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| ls .agents/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| ls .windsurf/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| ls .gemini/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| ls .claude/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| ls .opencode/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| ls .trae/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| ls .skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null \
|| echo "NOT_INSTALLED"
- Output is a file path → skills already installed, stop here.
- Output is
NOT_INSTALLED → proceed to installation.
Installation
git clone --depth 1 --filter=blob:none --sparse \
https://github.com/mims-harvard/ToolUniverse.git /tmp/tu-skills
cd /tmp/tu-skills && git sparse-checkout set skills
mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r /tmp/tu-skills/skills/* .cursor/skills/
rm -rf /tmp/tu-skills
If the client cannot be detected automatically, ask the user which one they use before running step 2.
Client Detection
Detect the client from the presence of config files:
| Config file present | Client |
|---|
.cursor/ | Cursor |
.agents/ | Codex / OpenAI |
.windsurf/ | Windsurf |
.gemini/ | Gemini CLI |
.claude/ | Claude Code |
.opencode/ | OpenCode |
.trae/ | Trae |
| None of the above | Ask the user |
After Installation
Confirm success:
ls .cursor/skills/tooluniverse-drug-research/SKILL.md
Tell the user: "ToolUniverse skills installed successfully. You now have access to 50+ specialized research workflows."