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Reference
Install, refresh, and inspect the Helix agent skills — the query-authoring skills (helix-query-typescript, helix-query-rust, helix-memory-system, and friends) that coding agents like Claude Code use to write correct HelixDB queries. helix init and helix chef install these skills for you; helix skills is how you manage them afterwards.

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Usage

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Subcommands

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Options

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Behavior

  • Skills are installed with the skills CLI under the hood (npx skills add HelixDB/skills), so this command requires Node.js/npm (npx) on your PATH.
  • Skills install globally by default (~/.agents/skills, shared across projects); --project works relative to the current directory.
  • install and list hand the terminal to the skills CLI, so they refuse --json. update --json prints {"updated":true}.
helix skills update re-fetches the skills from source and overwrites their files, so any local edits to the installed skills are discarded.

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Update notifications

When skills are installed, the CLI checks once every 24 hours (the same cadence and HELIX_NO_UPDATE_CHECK opt-out as the CLI version check) whether the Helix skills are out of date, and prints a one-line notice pointing you at helix skills update. It is notify-only — it never rewrites skill files on a routine command. Running helix update also refreshes installed skills.

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Examples

  • helix update — update the CLI and refresh skills together.
  • helix init — installs skills when creating a project.
  • helix chef — installs skills and launches a coding agent.