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Multi-Harness Distribution with APM ​

Coding Pal uses the Agent Package Manager (APM) to compile, translate, and install persistent context primitives into multiple AI coding environments from a single source of truth.

Target AI Harnesses ​

Coding Pal distributes its unified catalog across three primary AI coding harnesses using APM:

Target Mapping Matrix ​

Dependencies remain identical across all AI harnesses — only targets: (and the --target CLI flag) changes:

Harnesstargets: in apm.ymlapm install --target
GitHub Copilot[copilot]copilot
Claude Code[claude]claude
Cursor[cursor]cursor
Copilot + Cursor[copilot, cursor]copilot,cursor
All three[copilot, claude, cursor]copilot,claude,cursor

WARNING

Claude Code and Cursor do not load Copilot’s .github/instructions/ and .github/agents/ paths. Always specify claude, cursor, or both in your targets: array so APM compiles and generates native configuration files for each environment.

Where Files Land ​

Each AI environment expects persistent context in specific locations and formats. APM handles translation, frontmatter conversion, and deployment automatically:

PrimitiveGitHub Copilot (copilot)Claude Code (claude)Cursor (cursor)
Instructions.github/instructions/*.instructions.md.claude/rules/*.md.cursor/rules/*.mdc (rewritten to MDC)
Agents.github/agents/*.agent.md.claude/agents/*.md.cursor/agents/*.md
Prompts.github/prompts/*.prompt.md.claude/commands/*.md (compiled).cursor/commands/*.md (compiled)
Skills.agents/skills/<name>/ (shared).claude/skills/<name>/.agents/skills/<name>/ (shared)

NOTE

Skills use the shared .agents/skills/ layout for Copilot and Cursor, but Claude Code keeps its target-native .claude/skills/ directory. That is APM’s default — not a misconfiguration. Older APM could deploy skills under per-client paths (e.g. .github/skills/, .cursor/skills/) via --legacy-skill-paths; prefer the default layout unless you have a specific requirement.

Consumer Configuration (apm.yml) ​

Consumer projects declare which Coding Pal primitives they require in their root apm.yml.

IMPORTANT

Because Coding Pal ships skills under skills/, APM treats the repository as a skill bundle. Agents, prompts, and instructions must be declared as virtual path dependencies (e.g. ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/...). Do not nest agents or instructions under the git: ALTEN-group/coding-pal skill block — APM will only install the skills and skip the rest.

Full Canonical Configuration Reference ​

Below is the complete reference apm.yml listing all persistent context primitives available in Coding Pal. In practice, pick only the specific agents, instructions, and skills your consumer project needs:

yaml
# apm.yml — ships with consumer project
name: your-project
version: 1.0.0
author: your-team
targets:
  - copilot   # and/or: claude, cursor
dependencies:
  apm:
    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    # 1. Specialist Agents (Virtual Path Dependencies)
    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/unit-test.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/api-test.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/e2e-test.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/vitepress-docs.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/performance-tests.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/fuzz-tests.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/code-audit.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/audit-fix.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/spec-from-code.agent.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/agents/think-plan.agent.md

    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    # 2. Interactive Prompts / Slash Commands (Virtual Path Dependencies)
    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/node-unit-tests.prompt.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/node-api-tests.prompt.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/angular-unit-tests.prompt.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/angular-e2e-tests.prompt.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/postgres-liquibase-tests.prompt.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/vitepress-docs.prompt.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/performance-tests.prompt.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/prompts/fuzz-tests.prompt.md

    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    # 3. Persistent Engineering Instructions (Always-On Standards)
    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/sharp-agent.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/node-express.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/node-unit-tests.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/node-api-tests.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/postgres-liquibase.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/postgres-liquibase-tests.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/docker.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/angular-admin.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/angular-unit-tests.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/angular-e2e-tests.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/vitepress-docs.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/k6-performance-tests.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/restler-fuzzing-tests.instructions.md
    - ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/think-plan.instructions.md

    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    # 4. Procedural Skills & Scaffolding Bundles (SKILL.md + references/ + scripts/)
    # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
    - git: ALTEN-group/coding-pal
      skills:
        - node-express-examples
        - postgres-liquibase-examples
        - docker-examples
        - angular-admin-examples
        - vitepress-docs-examples
        - k6-performance-examples
        - restler-fuzzing-examples
        - audit-reporting
        - spec-from-code
        - think-plan
        - scope-guard
        - dependency-guard
        - secret-guard
        - task-gate
        - contract-validator
        - test-probe
        - rollback-probe
  mcp: {}

TIP

Pair each domain instruction with its matching *-examples companion skill when you want copy-ready scaffolding templates (e.g. node-express + node-express-examples). Skills deploy as complete folders containing SKILL.md, references/ specifications, and any automation scripts.

Installation & Maintenance Commands ​

Install All Declared Dependencies ​

bash
# Install for a specific target
apm install --target copilot          # or: claude   or: cursor

# Install for multiple targets simultaneously
apm install --target copilot,claude,cursor

Install a Single Primitive (One-off) ​

You can also install an individual primitive directly by path or skill name:

bash
# Install a single instruction
apm install ALTEN-group/coding-pal/instructions/sharp-agent.instructions.md --target copilot

# Install a single skill bundle
apm install ALTEN-group/coding-pal --skill audit-reporting --target copilot,claude

Update Packages ​

bash
apm update

This resolves the latest commit from Coding Pal and updates the project's lockfile (apm.lock). Never edit generated lockfiles manually.

Learn more about Agent Package Manager (APM).

Published and maintained by ALTEN