operating-remote

name	operating-remote
description	This skill should be used when the user asks to inspect, troubleshoot, change, SSH into, or operate a named remote host that has a Plexus `REMOTE.md` profile, such as example-host, media-server, devbox, or another managed device. Before changing state, load durable host memory and live context with `remote-context.py <host>`. This is host-scoped operational memory for remote machines.
argument-hint	<host> [--json] [--no-probe]

Operating Remote Hosts With Plexus

Use this skill when the task is about a named remote machine and Plexus has a matching REMOTE.md profile. Profiles live in the Plexus data directory: $PLEXUS_DATA_DIR, $CLAUDE_PLUGIN_DATA, $CODEX_PLUGIN_DATA, or ~/.plexus as a fallback.

Required First Step

Identify the host from the user's request and run the context loader before making changes:

python3 "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT:-${CODEX_PLUGIN_ROOT:-plugins/plexus}}/scripts/remote-context.py" <host>

Use --no-probe only when the user asks for an offline plan or when SSH/live tools are unavailable. Treat <host> as a profile name, not a shell fragment; use only the exact host token from the request or from known Plexus profiles.

How To Use The Context

Treat REMOTE.md as durable host memory: roles, important paths, access patterns, guardrails, and known quirks. Treat live probe output as the current state. If the two disagree, call out the discrepancy and prefer observed live state for operational decisions.

Operating Rules

• Use non-interactive SSH: ssh -o BatchMode=yes <host> <command>.
• Inspect before changing state: uptime, disk, memory, failed units, Docker containers, and recent syslog entries.
• Prefer host-specific guardrails in REMOTE.md over generic assumptions.
• For service work, capture enough before/after evidence to prove the change.
• If a task touches a reverse proxy, certificate, firewall, storage pool, or auth boundary, validate first and use a rollback path.

Related Context

Plexus pairs well with cortex:cortex-logs: recent logs and AI/session history explain what changed before the current request. It also composes with service-specific skills like tailscale, unraid, create-swag-config, and homelab-map.