tim-hub/update-skill
improvement/skills/update-skill/SKILL.md
Refines an existing project skill in .claude/skills/ with new learnings from the current session. Use when updating or improving an existing skill, or when distill-session identifies the learning extends an existing skill rather than warranting a new one.
$ install --global
skillsauthnpx skillsauth add tim-hub/powerball update-skillInstall this skill globally with one command. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.
Security Scan Results
3 of 9 scanners reported clean
Some scanners were skipped, did not run, or reported a non-clean status. Review each row below.
3
Scanners Passed
9
Scanners in report
Clean
TrivyContainer and dependency vulnerability scanner
95%
Clean
SemgrepStatic code analysis for vulnerabilities
95%
Clean
mcp-scan (Snyk)Model Context Protocol security validation
95%
Skipped
Snyk (dep)Open source security scanning
50%
Skipped
Socket.devSupply chain security analysis
50%
Skipped
VirusTotalMulti-engine malware detection
50%
Skipped
CrowdStrikeAdvanced threat intelligence
50%
Skipped
OSV-ScannerOpen Source Vulnerability database check
50%
Skipped
OWASP Dep-Check
50%
Last scanned: May 19, 2026, 6:04 AM56.0s1 file scanned
SKILL.md
- name:
- update-skill
- description:
- Refines an existing project skill in .claude/skills/ with new learnings from the current session. Use when updating or improving an existing skill, or when distill-session identifies the learning extends an existing skill rather than warranting a new one.
- when_to_use:
- update SKILL.md, update an existing skill, improve this skill, extend existing skill, refine skill, tighten skill description, skill needs updating, skill didn't trigger
- model:
- opus
- effort:
- medium
Update an Existing Project Skill
When invoked:
-
Identify the target skill.
- If the user named one, use that.
- Otherwise, list skills in
.claude/skills/and propose the closest match based on this session's content. Confirm before proceeding. - If no existing skill is a good fit, stop and suggest running
distill-sessioninstead.
-
Read the current SKILL.md fully before proposing changes. Don't guess at its contents.
-
Diagnose what kind of update this is. Pick one:
- Description tightening — skill exists but didn't trigger when it should have, or triggered when it shouldn't. Fix the description, not the body.
- New case / branch — skill handles workflow A, this session revealed workflow B that belongs in the same skill. Add a section.
- Correction — skill has instructions that produced a wrong result this session. Fix the specific instruction; don't rewrite around it.
- Reference extraction — skill is getting long (>200 lines) and a chunk should move to
references/*.mdwith a pointer from SKILL.md.
State which kind out loud. The kind dictates the diff.
-
Propose a minimal diff. Show:
- The exact lines being changed (before/after), not a rewrite of the whole file.
- One-sentence rationale per change.
- If touching the description, explain what trigger case it fixes.
-
Wait for approval. Then apply with targeted edits to
.claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md. The change is live immediately. -
Sanity check the result:
- SKILL.md still under 200 lines? If not, suggest extracting to
references/. - Frontmatter still valid YAML with
nameanddescription? - Description still concrete and "pushy" with trigger phrases?
- SKILL.md still under 200 lines? If not, suggest extracting to
-
Remind me to commit. Mention what changed in one line so the commit message writes itself.
What not to do
- Don't rewrite a skill from scratch when a few lines would do. Skills accumulate trust through stable instructions; churn breaks that.
- Don't expand scope. If the new learning isn't really the same workflow, stop and recommend a new skill via
distill-session. - Don't touch
~/.claude/— project skills only. - Don't add generic advice ("be careful", "think step by step"). Only add things Claude wouldn't do correctly on its own.
- Don't silently delete sections. If something should go, call it out and explain why.
When in doubt
If the update would more than double the skill's size, or change its core purpose, that's a signal it's actually a new skill. Stop and say so.
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