harness-engineering
Adopt repository-level harness engineering for coding agents. Use when a user wants to prevent repeated AI coding-agent mistakes by turning failures into durable instructions, drift checks, regression tests, failure memory, and adoption reports tailored to the target repository.
Profile →npx skills add github/awesome-copilot --skill harness-engineering --agent copilot
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for claude-code, codex, cursor.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
# Harness Engineering Harness engineering turns repeated coding-agent mistakes into durable repository artifacts: ```text Harness = Instructions + Constraints + Feedback + Memory + Evaluation + Governance ``` Use this skill when the user asks to: - make a repository more reliable for GitHub Copilot or other coding agents - add durable agent instructions, repository rules, or guardrails - prevent repeated AI coding-agent mistakes - record known failure paths and the checks that prevent recurrence - add lightweight drift checks for project rules - review, refresh, or update an existing agent harness Do not use this skill for ordinary feature implementation unless the user asks to improve the repository's agent operating environment. ## Core Principles - Treat the target repository as the source of truth. - Inspect before editing. Preserve the existing stack, package manager, CI, docs, naming, and architecture. - Add the smallest useful harness. Prefer updating existing files over adding duplicate guidance. - Make important rules enforceable where practical through tests, linters, type checks, CI, pre-commit hooks, or drift scripts. - Use manual review points only when automation woul
- Core Principles
- Discovery
- Adoption Workflow
- 1. Choose the Harness Surface
- 2. Write Agent Instructions
- 3. Add Enforceable Checks
- 4. Record Failure Memory
- 5. Add Drift Checks
- 6. Report the Adoption
- Review Workflow
- Output Contract
- Optional Reference
What does the harness-engineering skill do?
Adopt repository-level harness engineering for coding agents. Use when a user wants to prevent repeated AI coding-agent mistakes by turning failures into durable instructions, drift checks, regression tests, failure memory, and adoption reports tailored to the target repository.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add github/awesome-copilot --skill harness-engineering --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From github/awesome-copilot, a repository with 37,432 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.