Install a Skill
To install a verified capability, run npx saferskills install <name>. The CLI resolves the name to a catalog item, prints its trust score and a five-axis breakdown, discloses which agents it will write to, and gates on the aggregate score before writing anything — by default it will not install an item scoring below 90 without your confirmation. Pick your agent below; the choice syncs to every agent-tabbed block on the site.
How do I install a capability?
Section titled “How do I install a capability?”Run a single command — no global install needed, because npx fetches the prebuilt native binary:
npx saferskills install mcp-server-githubBefore any files are written, the CLI shows you a digest: the global score, the five sub-score axes, and the list of detected agents it will write to. You confirm, and the install proceeds. To reverse exactly what an install wrote, run npx saferskills uninstall <name>; to refresh installed capabilities and re-verify their scores, run npx saferskills update. The full surface of each command lives in the install reference.
The CLI installs Skills and MCP servers. You can browse other kinds — hooks, plugins, rules — in the catalog, but the CLI does not install them; it links you to their report instead.
Which agent does it install to?
Section titled “Which agent does it install to?”The tabs below are generated from the shared agent manifest
(webapp/src/data/homepage-constants.ts, the same SUPPORTED_AGENTS the
homepage uses). Add, remove, or rename an agent there and this list — and every other
<Tabs syncKey="agent"> on the site — updates automatically (D-7, the Prime
Invariant). Each tab shows the install path the CLI writes to and the config file it reads for that agent.
~/.claude/skills/ · config: ~/.claude/settings.json. After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. ~/.cursor/mcp.json · config: ~/.cursor/mcp.json. After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. ~/.codex/skills/ · config: ~/.codex/skills/. After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. ~/.github/copilot/ · config: ~/.github/copilot/. After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. ~/.windsurf/ · config: ~/.windsurf/. After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. vscode://extensions/cline · config: (VS Code extension). After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. ~/.gemini/config/ · config: ~/.gemini/config/. After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. ~/.openclaw/skills/ · config: openclaw.json. After the score gate passes, the CLI writes the capability to this path; run npx saferskills list to confirm it landed. By default install auto-targets every compatible detected agent. For per-agent specifics — where files land, how to verify the result, and platform quirks — see the per-agent guides.
How does the score gate work?
Section titled “How does the score gate work?”The CLI gates on the aggregate trust score before it installs, so the safe path is the easy path. The default minimum is 90, configurable through SAFERSKILLS_MIN_SCORE (0–100) or the min_score key in ~/.saferskills/config.toml. The gate has two levels:
- Below the minimum (or unscored): the CLI warns and asks for confirmation. Pass
--yesto accept a below-threshold install non-interactively. - Red tier (score
< 40, the Block band): the CLI requires you to type the item’s name to proceed. Only--forcebypasses that name gate.
A low score is not an instruction to avoid a capability — it is a prompt to read the report first. SaferSkills publishes methodology, not endorsements. The score comes from five weighted sub-scores (Security carries the most weight), and a single critical finding caps the whole aggregate at 15, so a security failure can never be diluted by the non-security signals. To understand a number before you install, read the public report for the item.
Where do I go next?
Section titled “Where do I go next?”installcommand reference — every flag and behavior of the install command.- Global flags & exit codes —
--json,--force,--yes, and the environment variables that configure installs. - Read a scan report — how to interpret a score before you install.
- How scoring works — the deterministic rubric behind every number.