Settings.json Configuration Options That Control Skills Discovery in Prime Agent

The skills, enableSkillCommands, enableBuiltinSkills, and bundledSkills fields in settings.json govern how Prime Agent discovers, loads, and exposes skills, while the --no-skills CLI flag overrides all discovery.

PrimeIntellect-ai/prime-agent relies on a hierarchical JSON configuration system to determine which capabilities are available to the coding agent. By modifying specific keys in settings.json, you control the discovery of custom skill modules, the exposure of built-in bundles, and whether capabilities appear as slash commands in the interface.

Core Configuration Fields in Settings.json

The SettingsManager class in packages/coding-agent/src/core/settings-manager.ts parses four primary options that directly influence the discovery lifecycle. Each field maps to a specific line in the source where the value is read during initialization.

The skills Array for Custom Discovery Paths

The skills array defines filesystem paths that the agent scans for user-defined skill modules. Each entry can point to a single file or a directory containing multiple .js or .ts skill definitions.

According to the source implementation at line 90, the manager iterates over this array to locate loadable modules. If the array is empty (the default), the agent relies solely on built-in capabilities or CLI-provided overrides.

{
  "skills": [
    "./my-custom-skills",
    "./project-specific/code-review.ts"
  ]
}

Command Exposure via enableSkillCommands

The boolean field enableSkillCommands determines whether discovered skills are automatically registered as /skill:<name> slash commands. When set to true (default), each loaded skill becomes accessible via the command palette.

This behavior is controlled at line 162 in settings-manager.ts. Setting the value to false suppresses the command registration while still loading the skill code into the runtime for internal use.

{
  "enableSkillCommands": false
}

Built-in Bundle Control with enableBuiltinSkills

The enableBuiltinSkills boolean toggles the inclusion of the default "prime-agent" skill bundle. When true (default), the core discovery routine in packages/coding-agent/src/core/skills.ts loads the bundled utilities. When false, the entire built-in set is omitted, leaving only user-defined skills from the skills array.

This check occurs at line 164 of the settings manager.

{
  "enableBuiltinSkills": false
}

Granular Bundle Configuration via bundledSkills

For fine-grained control without disabling the entire built-in set, the bundledSkills object allows you to enable or disable individual bundled capabilities. This is parsed at line 163, sitting between the global toggle and the final skill registration phase.

{
  "bundledSkills": {
    "websearch": false,
    "file-analysis": true
  }
}

CLI Override for Discovery

Regardless of settings.json values, you can disable all skill discovery at runtime using the --no-skills (or -ns) flag. This override is defined in packages/coding-agent/src/cli/command-registry.ts at line 232 and takes precedence over any configuration file settings.

prime-agent --no-skills

# or

prime-agent -ns

Practical Configuration Examples

Global User Settings

Locate the global settings.json at ~/.pi/agent/settings.json to apply defaults across all projects:

{
  "skills": [
    "~/agent-skills/utilities",
    "~/agent-skills/security-audit.ts"
  ],
  "enableSkillCommands": true,
  "enableBuiltinSkills": true,
  "bundledSkills": {
    "websearch": false
  }
}

Project-Level Settings

Create a .prime/agent/settings.json file in your project root to override global options for a specific codebase:

{
  "skills": [
    "./.prime/skills/project-helpers"
  ],
  "enableBuiltinSkills": false,
  "enableSkillCommands": true
}

Disabling Discovery via CLI

When debugging or running in a restricted environment, bypass all skill loading:

prime-agent --no-skills --verbose

Summary

• The skills array in settings.json specifies filesystem paths for custom skill discovery.
• enableSkillCommands controls whether loaded skills appear as /skill:<name> slash commands.
• enableBuiltinSkills acts as a master switch for the default Prime Agent skill bundle.
• bundledSkills provides granular control over individual built-in capabilities.
• The --no-skills CLI flag overrides all configuration to disable discovery entirely.
• All options are parsed by SettingsManager in packages/coding-agent/src/core/settings-manager.ts, with the final discovery logic implemented in packages/coding-agent/src/core/skills.ts.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I set both enableBuiltinSkills and skills to empty/false?

If enableBuiltinSkills is false and the skills array is empty, the agent initializes with no available skills. The runtime will skip the discovery phase entirely, and only core agent capabilities without skill dependencies will function.

Can I use environment variables instead of settings.json for skill paths?

No. As implemented in settings-manager.ts, the skills array is strictly read from the JSON configuration file. Path resolution relies on the settings.json schema, and there is no environment variable interpolation for this specific field in the current source.

Does the --no-skills flag affect the settings.json file itself?

No. The --no-skills flag is a runtime override processed by the CLI argument parser in command-registry.ts. It prevents the discovery routine from executing but does not modify, delete, or persist any changes to your settings.json file on disk.

Where is the complete schema for settings.json documented?

The full schema and field descriptions are documented in packages/coding-agent/docs/settings.md within the repository. This file covers all configuration options beyond skill discovery, including logging levels and agent behavior thresholds.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "instagit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "instagit@latest"]
    }
  }
}