Name: create-environment
Rating: 73.6 (1 reviews)
Author: harness

create-environment

Generate Harness Environment YAML for deployment targets and create via MCP. Supports PreProduction and Production types with environment variables, manifest overrides, and multi-environment setup (dev, staging, prod). Use when asked to create an environment, set up staging, configure production, define deployment targets, or manage environment overrides. Trigger phrases: create environment, deployment environment, setup dev, setup staging, setup production, environment variables, environment overrides.

Quality

90%

Does it follow best practices?

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Securityby

Passed

No known issues

Quality

Content

80%

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

An actionable, token-efficient body built around concrete YAML and MCP examples with a clear process sequence. Its main gaps are a missing validation checkpoint in the create workflow and the absence of any progressive disclosure via reference files.

Suggestions

Add an explicit validation step to the Instructions workflow, e.g. after 'Create via MCP' add: '5. Verify with harness_list that the environment exists and re-run with harness_update on DUPLICATE_IDENTIFIER.'

Split the Multi-Environment Setup examples and/or Troubleshooting into a referenced file (e.g. references/multi-environment.md) and link to it from the body to enable one-level-deep progressive disclosure.

Move the 'Verify that manifest override paths exist' guidance from Performance Notes into the workflow as an explicit pre-create checkpoint.

Dimension	Reasoning	Score
Conciseness	Lean body with minimal prose padding — it jumps straight to a numbered process and concrete YAML/MCP examples without explaining concepts Claude already knows, so every token largely earns its place.	3 / 3
Actionability	Provides complete, copy-paste-ready YAML structures and named MCP tool calls ('harness_create', 'harness_list') with their parameters, matching the 'fully executable; copy-paste ready' anchor.	3 / 3
Workflow Clarity	The 4-step Instructions sequence is clear, but the create-via-MCP workflow is an external mutating operation with no explicit validation checkpoint (e.g., verify the environment was created) inside the sequence; per the rubric this caps workflow clarity at 2.	2 / 3
Progressive Disclosure	Sections are well-organized, but no bundle files exist and all content — including the multi-environment examples and troubleshooting — is inline with no one-level-deep references signaled, fitting the 'content that should be separate is inline' anchor.	2 / 3
	Total	10 / 12 Passed

Description

100%

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

A strong, third-person description that states concrete capabilities and pairs them with an explicit 'Use when' clause and a dedicated trigger-phrase list. It answers what, when, and is clearly distinguishable from other skills.

Dimension	Reasoning	Score
Specificity	Lists multiple concrete actions — 'Generate Harness Environment YAML', 'create via MCP', environment variables, manifest overrides, and multi-environment setup — matching the 'lists multiple specific concrete actions' anchor.	3 / 3
Completeness	Clearly answers both what ('Generate Harness Environment YAML... and create via MCP') and when ('Use when asked to create an environment...') with explicit triggers, matching the top anchor.	3 / 3
Trigger Term Quality	Explicit 'Use when...' clause plus a 'Trigger phrases:' list covering 'create environment', 'setup dev', 'setup staging', 'setup production', 'environment variables', and 'environment overrides' — natural terms users would say.	3 / 3
Distinctiveness Conflict Risk	Scoped to a clear niche — Harness Environment YAML via MCP — with distinct triggers unlikely to fire for unrelated skills.	3 / 3
	Total	12 / 12 Passed

Validation

100%

Warnings & errors only

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: harness/harness-ai
Path: plugins/claude/skills/create-environment/SKILL.md
Commit: a48c95a

Reviewed: 22 days ago

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