| name | validate-skill |
| description | Validate that a skill conforms to the ai-agent-skills repository standards |
| version | 1.2.0 |
| category | meta |
| tags | ["meta","infrastructure","validation","quality-control"] |
| author | bioconductor |
validate-skill
Validate that a skill conforms to bioconductor standards. Uses generic validators (markdownlint, yamllint) for basic checks, then adds bioconductor-specific validation for platform-agnostic compliance and repository conventions.
Usage
Invoke this skill to validate a skill file:
- "Validate this skill"
- "Check if skills/[skill-name]/SKILL.md meets standards"
Prerequisites
- Target skill file exists at
skills/{skill-name}/SKILL.md
- Optional:
markdownlint and yamllint installed
Note — CI/CD integration: The deterministic subset of these checks
(frontmatter completeness, directory-name matching, name uniqueness,
SKILLS.md sync, broken links, version bump) runs automatically via GitHub
Actions on every PR that modifies a SKILL.md file. Use this skill for
interactive local validation before opening a PR and for the full
subjective review (agent neutrality, verbosity, SSOT compliance) that the
static script cannot evaluate.
Process
- Locate Target Skill: Determine the skill to validate from the user's prompt or current directory.
- Run Generic Validation (Optional): If available, run
markdownlint on the file, and validate the YAML frontmatter syntax (e.g., by extracting the frontmatter and running yamllint -d relaxed on it).
- Validate Repository Standards: Check the file against the requirements in AGENTS.md and SKILL_STANDARD.md.
- Ensure the YAML frontmatter contains required fields and no prohibited fields (
platforms, triggers).
- Check that the structure matches the standard format.
- Verify agent neutrality (no tool references or platform commands in instructions).
- Confirm it describes a workflow, not just code snippets.
- Ensure it does not duplicate content from SSOT documents.
- Generate Validation Report: Produce a summary of passed and failed checks, categorized by CRITICAL, WARNING, and INFO.
- Suggest Next Steps: Offer to help fix any identified issues.
Output Format
Generate a validation report in markdown format:
# Skill Validation Report: [skill-name]
**Status**: ✅ PASS | ❌ FAIL ([N] issues)
## Generic Validation
**markdownlint**: ✅ PASS | ⚠️ [N] warnings
**YAML frontmatter**: ✅ PASS | ❌ FAIL
## Bioconductor-Specific Validation
### CRITICAL Issues (Must Fix)
❌ **[Issue title]** ([location])
- Issue: [What violates standards]
- Fix: [How to fix it]
- Reference: [AGENTS.md or SKILL_STANDARD.md section]
### WARNING Issues (Should Fix)
⚠️ **[Issue title]** ([location])
### INFO Issues (Optional Improvements)
ℹ️ **[Issue title]** ([location])
Examples
Example: Validating a Skill
User: "Check if the analyze-r-package skill meets standards"
Agent:
- Locates
skills/analyze-r-package/SKILL.md
- Runs generic and repository-specific validations
- Reports results, identifying any CRITICAL or WARNING issues.
See also: SKILL_STANDARD.md, AGENTS.md
