| name | rename-skill |
| description | Rename an existing agent skill (internal or external), updating its directory name, frontmatter name, and codebase-wide references. Use when the user requests to rename a skill, change a skill's identifier, or restructure a skill's folder. |
| metadata | {"internal":true} |
Rename Skill
This skill guides you through safely and comprehensively renaming an existing skill (either internal or external) in the workspace.
Workflow
1. Gather Information
- Identify the skill to rename (e.g.,
old-name).
- Determine the target name (e.g.,
new-name).
- Locate the skill directory. Typically, it will be under:
skills/old-name (internal skills)
.agents/skills/old-name (external/cache skills)
2. Rename the Directory
Rename the skill directory on the filesystem:
mv skills/<old-name> skills/<new-name>
mv .agents/skills/<old-name> .agents/skills/<new-name>
3. Update Frontmatter and Attribution
Open SKILL.md in the newly renamed directory and update the name field in the frontmatter:
---
name: <new-name>
...
---
Ensure you handle attribution and metadata correctly:
- Preserve Attribution: Do NOT delete existing attribution metadata in the frontmatter (e.g.,
original_author, origin). These track the provenance of the skill.
- Update Maintainer (Optional): If you are taking over maintenance or updating the skill extensively, you can update or add the
author field to yourself/your team, but keep original_author intact.
- Update Internal Flag: Ensure
metadata.internal: true is set if it is an internal skill.
- Update Credits Section: If the bottom of
SKILL.md contains a ## Credits or ## Acknowledgements section, preserve it and update any local folder/file links to reflect the renamed directory.
4. Search and Update References
Scan the codebase and docs for any references to the old skill name and update them to the new skill name. Look specifically for:
- Markdown links to the skill or its files (e.g.,
[link](file:///.../skills/old-name/SKILL.md)).
- References to the old name in descriptions or lists of available skills.
- Importing/requiring any scripts inside the skill.
You can find references using grep or the grep_search tool:
grep -rn "old-name" skills/ .agents/skills/ docs/ README.md
5. Verify the Rename
Ensure the renamed skill is healthy:
- Check that
skills/<new-name>/SKILL.md exists and contains valid markdown and YAML frontmatter.
- If there are tests associated with the skill, verify they still run successfully.
- Check that all updated links/references point to valid files.