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generate-repo-instructions

Generates the global repository constitution file (.github/copilot-instructions.md). Works for code repositories, documentation repositories, data repositories, and mixed repos. Performs LLM-driven deep repository analysis including docs, code patterns, build systems, documentation generators, and data schemas. Generates constitutional rules following context economics (under 1000 lines). Enforces positive constraints and no hardcoded secrets.

58

Quality

66%

Does it follow best practices?

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Adds up to 20 points to the overall score

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SecuritybySnyk

Low

Low-risk findings worth noting

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tessl review fix ./.github/skills/generate-repo-instructions/SKILL.md

The canonical home for this skill is generate-repo-instructions in canonical/copilot-collections

SKILL.md
Quality
Evals
Security

Quality

Content

73%Weight 40%Scale 1-5

Reviews the quality of instructions and guidance provided to agents. Good implementation is clear, handles edge cases, and produces reliable results.

The body presents a well-sequenced 8-step workflow with strong validation checkpoints and genuinely well-signaled one-level-deep references that all exist on disk. Its weaknesses are redundancy (Best Practices and Example Usage restate the workflow) and a couple of concrete gaps such as an unspecified secret-scanning method.

Suggestions

Cut or merge the 'Best Practices' DO/DON'T and 'Example Usage' sections (~60 lines) — they restate guidance already covered by the workflow steps and inflate the always-loaded token budget.

Make the Step 6 secret scan concrete by specifying an executable command (e.g., a grep pattern for API keys/tokens or a scanning tool) instead of just listing what to scan for.

Trim the inline conversion table in Step 4 since the same patterns live in references/positive_constraints_patterns.md; a one-line pointer would suffice.

DimensionReasoningScore

Conciseness

The workflow steps themselves are efficient (tables, checklists, exact commands), but there is substantive duplication: the 'Best Practices' DO/DON'T section restates rules already given in Steps 2/4/6, and the 14-step 'Example Usage' walkthrough repeats the workflow end-to-end (~60 lines of redundancy). This is more than the 'minor instances' of the 4 anchor but the content is mostly efficient and does not explain concepts Claude already knows, so it sits at the 3 anchor.

3 / 5

Actionability

Guidance is largely executable: exact commands ('cat references/analysis_checklist.md', 'mkdir -p .github/'), a decision tree, a placeholder-to-source mapping table, and concrete fallback values ('Not specified', 'Follow existing code patterns'). It falls short of 5 only on minor gaps — e.g., 'Scan for: API keys, passwords, tokens, database URLs' gives no concrete scan method (grep pattern or tool). Well above the 3 anchor, which expects pseudocode or missing key details.

4 / 5

Workflow Clarity

Eight clearly sequenced steps with an explicit decision tree for intent validation (Step 1), validation checklists (Steps 4 and 6), explicit feedback loops ('If over: Move framework-specific rules to path instructions', 'If validation fails: Trim content before writing'), and post-write verification ('Verify file exists and is readable'). This matches the 5 anchor: clear sequence, explicit validation, error-recovery loops, and checklists.

5 / 5

Progressive Disclosure

Scored against the actual bundle: all four referenced files (analysis_checklist.md, instruction_template.md, context_economics.md, positive_constraints_patterns.md) exist, are loaded at the right step via explicit cat commands, are described in a Resources section, and are one level deep (verified — reference files only cross-point to siblings, no nested chains). It is not a 5 because some content that also lives in the references (the Step 4 conversion table) and the long Best Practices/Example Usage sections are inlined in the overview rather than fully split out.

4 / 5

Total

16

/

20

Passed

Description

58%Weight 40%Scale 1-5

Based on the skill's description, can an agent find and select it at the right time? Clear, specific descriptions lead to better discovery.

The description answers 'what' concretely with a specific output file and a broad analysis scope, and stays in third-person voice. Its main weaknesses are the complete absence of any 'Use when...' trigger guidance and missing natural trigger synonyms users would say, plus some buzzwordy phrasing ('LLM-driven deep repository analysis', 'constitutional rules').

Suggestions

Add an explicit trigger clause, e.g. 'Use when the user asks to generate repository instructions, Copilot instructions, or a copilot-instructions.md file for the whole repo.'

Include natural user-facing synonyms such as 'repo instructions', 'copilot instructions', and 'project conventions' so the description matches how users actually phrase the request.

Replace buzzwordy phrases like 'constitutional rules' and 'LLM-driven deep repository analysis' with plainer concrete statements of what the skill produces.

DimensionReasoningScore

Specificity

The description lists several concrete actions — 'Generates the global repository constitution file (.github/copilot-instructions.md)', 'Performs LLM-driven deep repository analysis including docs, code patterns, build systems, documentation generators, and data schemas', 'Enforces positive constraints and no hardcoded secrets' — with a specific output artifact and analysis scope. It falls short of a 5 because phrases like 'LLM-driven deep repository analysis', 'constitutional rules', and 'context economics' are buzzwordy and leave minor gaps in how concrete the actual behavior is; it is clearly above the 3 anchor, which expects only 1-2 concrete actions.

4 / 5

Completeness

The 'what' is clear and explicit (generate the global .github/copilot-instructions.md via repository analysis), but there is no 'Use when...' clause or equivalent trigger guidance anywhere in the description. Per the judging guidelines, a missing 'Use when' clause caps completeness at 3 ('clear what but when is missing or only weakly implied'); it is not a 2 because the 'what' is concrete, not vague.

3 / 5

Trigger Term Quality

Relevant keywords are present ('repository', 'code repositories', 'build systems', 'data schemas', '.github/copilot-instructions.md'), but the natural phrases a user would actually say — 'copilot instructions', 'repo instructions', 'generate instructions for this project' — are missing, as are common synonyms like 'repo'. This matches the 3 anchor ('some relevant keywords but missing common variations or synonyms') rather than 4, whose keyword coverage would include the natural user-facing trigger terms.

3 / 5

Distinctiveness Conflict Risk

The very specific target artifact '.github/copilot-instructions.md' and the word 'global' give it a clear niche with mostly distinct triggers. It is not a 5 because a closely related sibling skill exists (generate-path-instructions, referenced in the body), and a user asking simply for 'repository instructions' or instructions for a subdirectory could plausibly trigger this skill incorrectly — minor overlap risk matching the 4 anchor.

4 / 5

Total

14

/

20

Passed

Validation

100%

Checks the skill against the spec for correct structure and formatting. All validation checks must pass before discovery and implementation can be scored.

Validation — 16 / 16 Passed

Validation for skill structure

No warnings or errors.

Repository
canonical/copilot-collections
Reviewed

Table of Contents

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