Getting Started
This project provides sample code for educational and demonstration purposes only. It is not intended for direct production use without proper review, testing, and validation. Always test generated infrastructure artifacts (Terraform, Helm charts, kubectl commands) in non-production environments first. Use at your own risk — the authors are not responsible for any issues, damages, or losses that may result from using this code in production.
APEX skills are plain folders of markdown + scripts. Any agent harness that supports the Agent Skills standard can load them.
NPX Installer (recommended)
Prerequisites: Node.js 18+ and git must be installed.
npx apex-skills@1.3.0
APEX v2 is in progress, so the commands here pin the installer to exactly version 1.3.0 until v2 ships, which also skips later 1.3.x installer releases. A fresh install with no earlier install record takes the newest v1.x.y release of the skills; --version picks a release, --branch follows a branch, and --update stays on the clone's major line or the branch it follows.
The installer's own messages show npx apex-skills; add @1.3.0 when you run them.
For v2 and its /apex router, use the Manual Install below (from main).
Detects Claude Code and/or Kiro CLI, clones the repo to ~/.apex-skills/, and links the skills into place. Flags, exit codes, installed paths and uninstall: see the installer README.
Before upgrading from installer 1.2.0 or earlier, and before re-running after moving or renaming a home or project directory, copy out edited Kiro steering copies and remove or note links of your own into ~/.apex-skills: with no install record the installer cannot tell them from its own.
npx apex-skills@1.3.0 --update # Update an existing install
npx apex-skills@1.3.0 --version v1.2.0 # Installer 1.3.0, skills release v1.2.0
npx apex-skills@1.3.0 --branch feat/new-eks # Install from a branch
npx apex-skills@1.3.0 --help # See all options
Manual Install
If you prefer not to use npx, clone the repo and copy skills directly.
Claude Code
git clone https://github.com/aws-samples/sample-apex-skills.git
cd sample-apex-skills
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cp -r skills/* ~/.claude/skills/
Restart Claude Code; skills become available via /<skill-name>. With this manual install (from main), start with /apex: it routes your request to the right skill.
Kiro CLI
git clone https://github.com/aws-samples/sample-apex-skills.git
cd sample-apex-skills
mkdir -p ~/.kiro/skills
cp -r skills/* ~/.kiro/skills/
Usage: in Kiro, type /apex with your request, or ask for apex by name, for example "use apex to plan my EKS upgrade". Tested on Kiro CLI 2.35.1 (2026-10-28); Kiro CLI 1.27.0 rejected /apex.
Codex
git clone https://github.com/aws-samples/sample-apex-skills.git
cd sample-apex-skills
mkdir -p ~/.agents/skills
cp -r skills/* ~/.agents/skills/
Usage: in Codex, type $apex with your request, for example "$apex plan my EKS upgrade". Codex reads skills from ~/.agents/skills (and a repository's .agents/skills); the installer does not set up Codex.
Other Agent Harnesses
Skills follow the Agent Skills standard. Clone and point your tool at skills/{skill-name}/ — each contains a SKILL.md and optional references/ directory.
AWS DevOps Agent
A subset of skills are ported for fully autonomous execution on the AWS DevOps Agent. These live in the devops-agent/ directory and run without interactive prompts.
git clone https://github.com/aws-samples/sample-apex-skills.git
cd sample-apex-skills
# Automated setup (creates Agent Space, uploads skills, configures EKS access)
./devops-agent/setup.sh --space-name <your-space> --cluster-name <your-cluster> --region <region>
# Or upload a single skill manually
cd devops-agent/eks-cost-intelligence
zip -r /tmp/eks-cost-intelligence.zip . -x '*.zip' -x './references/porting-notes.md'
# Upload in the Agent Space Operator Web App: Knowledge > Skills > Add skill > Upload skill
See devops-agent/README.md for full setup instructions and constraints.
Verify
In your harness, run:
/eks-recon
You should see the EKS reconnaissance skill prompt for cluster context.
Add Agent Rules (recommended)
We provide a rules/AGENTS.md file with recommended rules for agents using APEX skills — skill discovery, upstream source verification, and safety guardrails.
Add the contents to your project's existing agent configuration:
| Tool | Where to add |
|---|---|
| Claude Code | Append to your project's CLAUDE.md |
| Cursor | Add to .cursor/rules/apex.mdc |
| Codex | Append to your project's AGENTS.md |
| Kiro | Add to .kiro/steering/apex-rules.md |
| Gemini CLI | Append to your project's GEMINI.md |
Claude Code (v2.1.277 or later; v2.1.281 or later in some sessions, such as on Amazon Bedrock or with telemetry disabled), Codex and Kiro also read a root AGENTS.md: you can append these rules there. Claude Code reads AGENTS.md only when no CLAUDE.md is in the working directory or above, so if you have a CLAUDE.md, append there or import with @AGENTS.md.
See rules/AGENTS.md for the full content.
Next steps
- Browse the Skills catalog.
- With a manual install from
main, start with the APEX router skill for a phased engagement: it routes to the right skill and its runbook.