# What Do sync-agent-rules.sh and sync-skills.mjs Accomplish? AI Agent Configuration Sync Explained > Discover how sync-agent-rules.sh and sync-skills.mjs synchronize AI agent configurations. Ensure single-source management for rules and skills across IDEs and tools with these powerful scripts. - Repository: [JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template) - Tags: internals - Published: 2026-06-23 --- **Both scripts are generators that synchronize platform-specific AI assistant configuration files with canonical source-of-truth documents, ensuring single-source management for agent rules and skills across multiple IDEs and tools.** In the `JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template` repository, maintaining consistent AI agent behavior across multiple development tools requires careful orchestration of configuration files. The **[`sync-agent-rules.sh`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/sync-agent-rules.sh)** and **`sync-skills.mjs`** scripts solve this by automatically generating platform-specific rule sets and skill definitions from centralized master documents. This approach eliminates configuration drift and ensures that updates to agent instructions propagate instantly to every supported AI coding assistant. ## Overview of the Sync Scripts Both scripts serve as **generators** that keep auxiliary configuration files in sync with a single source of truth. They target different aspects of AI assistant configuration: one handles general agent rules, while the other manages reusable skills. | Script | Source of Truth | Generated Output | Target Locations | |--------|----------------|-------------------|------------------| | [`scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh) | [`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/AGENTS.md) | Plain-text configuration files for Copilot Chat, Cline, Continue, and Amazon Q | [`.github/copilot-instructions.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.github/copilot-instructions.md), `.clinerules`, [`.continue/rules/project.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.continue/rules/project.md), [`.amazonq/rules/project.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.amazonq/rules/project.md) | | `scripts/sync-skills.mjs` | [`.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md) | Platform-specific command/skill files for nine AI coding tools | [`.codex/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.codex/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md), [`.github/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.github/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md), [`.cursor/commands/clone-website.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.cursor/commands/clone-website.md), [`.windsurf/workflows/clone-website.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.windsurf/workflows/clone-website.md), [`.gemini/commands/clone-website.toml`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.gemini/commands/clone-website.toml), [`.opencode/commands/clone-website.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.opencode/commands/clone-website.md), [`.augment/commands/clone-website.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.augment/commands/clone-website.md), [`.continue/commands/clone-website.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.continue/commands/clone-website.md), [`.amazonq/cli-agents/clone-website.json`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.amazonq/cli-agents/clone-website.json) | ## How sync-agent-rules.sh Generates Agent Rules The **[`sync-agent-rules.sh`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/sync-agent-rules.sh)** bash script processes the repository’s master AI-agent specification and distributes it to platforms that cannot read [`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/AGENTS.md) directly. The script executes the following workflow according to the source code at [[`scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh)](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh): 1. **Load the master specification** by setting `SOURCE="$REPO_ROOT/AGENTS.md"` [[source lines 25‑27]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh). 2. **Resolve `@file` imports** by inlining referenced file contents (e.g., `@docs/research/…`) [[source lines 33‑50]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh). 3. **Create a header comment** marking files as auto-generated to prevent manual editing [[source lines 55‑56]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh). 4. **Write resolved content** to each target using the `write_file` helper [[source lines 58‑66]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh). 5. **Generate specific targets**: Copilot instructions ([`.github/copilot-instructions.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.github/copilot-instructions.md)), Cline rules (`.clinerules`), Continue project rules with extra front-matter ([`.continue/rules/project.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.continue/rules/project.md)), and Amazon Q project rules ([`.amazonq/rules/project.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.amazonq/rules/project.md)) [[source lines 69‑84]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh). ## How sync-skills.mjs Generates Platform Skills The **`sync-skills.mjs`** Node.js script converts the canonical "clone-website" skill definition into nine distinct platform formats, handling syntax variations and argument substitution automatically. According to the implementation at [`scripts/sync-skills.mjs`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-skills.mjs), the script performs these operations: 1. **Read the canonical skill** from [`.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md) [[source lines 14‑22]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-skills.mjs). 2. **Parse front-matter** to extract metadata, splitting content into `body` and description fields [[source lines 27‑34]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-skills.mjs). 3. **Write files safely** using the `write` utility, which creates parent directories and prepends auto-generated headers [[source lines 38‑44]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-skills.mjs). 4. **Substitute argument placeholders** (e.g., converting `$ARGUMENTS` to `{{args}}` for Gemini CLI) for platforms with incompatible syntax [[source lines 49‑70]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-skills.mjs). 5. **Generate platform-specific outputs**: maintaining original Markdown for Codex and GitHub Copilot, while converting to required formats for Cursor ([`.cursor/commands/clone-website.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.cursor/commands/clone-website.md)), Windsurf ([`.windsurf/workflows/clone-website.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.windsurf/workflows/clone-website.md)), Gemini CLI ([`.gemini/commands/clone-website.toml`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.gemini/commands/clone-website.toml)), OpenCode, Augment, Continue, and Amazon Q [[source lines 56‑99]](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/master/scripts/sync-skills.mjs). ## Running the Sync Scripts Execute these commands from the repository root after modifying the respective source documents. Regenerate agent rule files after editing [`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/AGENTS.md): ```bash bash scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh ``` Regenerate the clone-website skill files after editing [`.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md): ```bash node scripts/sync-skills.mjs ``` Both commands output a confirmation list of generated files. The shell script produces: ``` ✓ .github/copilot-instructions.md ✓ .clinerules ✓ .continue/rules/project.md ✓ .amazonq/rules/project.md ``` The Node.js script outputs: ``` ✓ .codex/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md ✓ .github/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md ✓ .cursor/commands/clone-website.md ... ✓ .amazonq/cli-agents/clone-website.json ``` ## Summary - **[`sync-agent-rules.sh`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/sync-agent-rules.sh)** generates plain-text agent configuration files from [`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/AGENTS.md) for Copilot Chat, Cline, Continue, and Amazon Q. - **`sync-skills.mjs`** generates platform-specific skill commands from [`.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md) for nine AI coding assistants including Cursor, Windsurf, and Gemini CLI. - Both scripts resolve file imports, add auto-generated headers, and handle platform-specific syntax transformations. - Running these scripts ensures single-source truth for AI assistant configurations across the entire development toolchain. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is the source of truth for agent rules in this repository? The source of truth for agent rules is **[`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/AGENTS.md)** at the repository root. This master document contains the canonical AI-agent specifications, which [`sync-agent-rules.sh`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/sync-agent-rules.sh) processes and distributes to platform-specific configuration files that agents like Copilot Chat, Cline, and Amazon Q can consume directly. ### Which AI platforms are supported by these synchronization scripts? The scripts support **Copilot Chat**, **Cline**, **Continue**, and **Amazon Q** for agent rules, plus **Codex**, **GitHub Copilot**, **Cursor**, **Windsurf**, **Gemini CLI**, **OpenCode**, **Augment Code**, and **Amazon Q** (again) for skills. This covers most major AI coding assistants currently available. ### Why are there two separate scripts instead of one unified generator? The repository separates concerns between **agent rules** (general behavior instructions for AI assistants) and **skills** (specific reusable commands like "clone-website"). Agent rules require bash-based file resolution and simple text generation, while skills require Node.js for front-matter parsing, argument substitution, and complex format conversions across nine different platforms. Separating them allows each script to use the most appropriate tooling for its specific domain. ### How do I run these scripts after updating the master configuration files? After editing [`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/AGENTS.md), run `bash scripts/sync-agent-rules.sh` from the repository root. After editing [`.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md`](https://github.com/JCodesMore/ai-website-cloner-template/blob/main/.claude/skills/clone-website/SKILL.md), run `node scripts/sync-skills.mjs`. Both commands will automatically create parent directories as needed and overwrite the generated files with updated content, printing a success message for each file created.