Danilo LealandBennet Bo Fenner
a9296b9a5a
Update some content regarding the skills migration and its impact on the Git commit prompt. Release Notes: - N/A --------- Co-authored-by: Bennet Bo Fenner <bennetbo@gmx.de>
82 lines
4.0 KiB
Markdown
82 lines
4.0 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: AI Rules in Zed - .rules, .cursorrules, CLAUDE.md
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description: Configure AI behavior in Zed with .rules files, .cursorrules, CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md, and the Rules Library for project-level instructions.
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---
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# Rules {#rules}
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Rules are prompts that can be inserted either automatically at the beginning of each [Agent Panel](./agent-panel.md) interaction, through `.rules` files available in your project's file tree, or on-demand, through @-mentioning, via the Rules Library.
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> **Note:** Starting in Zed v1.4.0, on-demand rules (and the rules library) have been replaced by [Skills](./skills.md). Skills are the recommended way to package reusable agent instructions. Learn more about [the rules -> skills migration](#migrating-to-skills).
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## `.rules` files
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Zed supports including `.rules` files at the root of a project's file tree, and they act as project-level instructions that are auto-included in all of your interactions with the Agent Panel.
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Other names for this file are also supported for compatibility with other agents, but note that the first file which matches in this list will be used:
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- `.rules`
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- `.cursorrules`
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- `.windsurfrules`
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- `.clinerules`
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- `.github/copilot-instructions.md`
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- `AGENT.md`
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- `AGENTS.md`
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- `CLAUDE.md`
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- `GEMINI.md`
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## Rules Library {#rules-library}
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The Rules Library is an interface for writing and managing rules.
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It's a full editor with syntax highlighting and all standard keybindings.
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You can also use the inline assistant right in the rules editor, allowing you to get quick LLM support for writing rules.
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> **Note:** Starting in Zed v1.4.0, the rules library has been replaced by [Skills](./skills.md). Skills are the recommended way to package reusable agent instructions. Learn more about [the rules -> skills migration](#migrating-to-skills).
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### Opening the Rules Library
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1. Open the Agent Panel.
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2. Click on the Agent menu (`...`) in the top right corner.
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3. Select `Rules...` from the dropdown.
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You can also open it by running the {#action agent::OpenRulesLibrary} action or through the {#kb agent::OpenRulesLibrary} keybinding.
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### Managing Rules
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Once a rules file is selected, you can edit it directly in the built-in editor.
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Its title can be changed from the editor title bar as well.
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Rules can be duplicated, deleted, or added to the default rules using the buttons in the rules editor.
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### Creating Rules {#creating-rules}
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To create a rule file, simply open the `Rules Library` and click the `+` button.
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Rules files are stored locally and can be accessed from the library at any time.
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For guidance on writing effective rules:
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- [Anthropic: Prompt Engineering](https://platform.claude.com/docs/en/build-with-claude/prompt-engineering/overview)
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- [OpenAI: Prompt Engineering](https://platform.openai.com/docs/guides/prompt-engineering)
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### Using Rules
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You can @-mention every rule created through the Rules Library.
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This allows you to quickly reach for reusable prompts, saving the time to type them out every time you need to use them.
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#### Default Rules {#default-rules}
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All rules in the Rules Library can be set as a default rule, which means they’re automatically inserted into context for every new Agent Panel interaction.
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You can set any rule as the default by clicking the paper clip icon button in the top-right of the rule editor in the Rules Library.
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## Migrating to Skills {#migrating-to-skills}
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As of Zed v1.4.0, your existing Rules are migrated to Skills automatically:
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- **Non-default Rules** become global skills in `~/.agents/skills/`, each with `disable-model-invocation: true`. They remain user-invocable via `/skill-name` or `@`-mention.
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- **Default Rules** are appended to your global `AGENTS.md` file (`~/.config/zed/AGENTS.md` on macOS and Linux, `%APPDATA%\Zed\AGENTS.md` on Windows), preserving their behavior of being included in every conversation.
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- **Git Commit** prompt customizations are also appended to the global `AGENTS.md` file.
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Lastly, note that all of the content you had available in the Rules Library hasn't been deleted, so downgrading to an earlier version of Zed leaves your Rules intact.
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