Alibaba Cloud Agent Skills Search & Discovery

This skill helps users search, discover, and install Alibaba Cloud official Agent Skills through the agentexplorer CLI plugin.

Scenario Description

This skill enables users to:

• Search Skills — Find Alibaba Cloud Agent Skills by keyword, category, or both

• Browse Categories — Explore available skill categories and subcategories

• View Skill Details — Get detailed information about specific skills

• Install Skills — Guide users through skill installation process

Architecture: Alibaba Cloud CLI + agentexplorer Plugin → Skills Repository

Use Cases

• "Find a skill for managing ECS instances"

• "What Alibaba Cloud skills are available for databases?"

• "阿里云有哪些 OSS 相关的 skill?"

• "Browse all available alicloud skills"

• "Install a skill for RDS management"

Installation

Pre-check: Aliyun CLI >= 3.3.1 required

Run aliyun version to verify >= 3.3.1. If not installed or version too low, see references/cli-installation-guide.md for installation instructions. Then [MUST] run aliyun configure set --auto-plugin-install true to enable automatic plugin installation.

Install agentexplorer Plugin

Install the agentexplorer plugin

aliyun plugin install --names agentexplorer

Verify installation

aliyun agentexplorer --help --user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Authentication

Pre-check: Alibaba Cloud Credentials Required

Security Rules:

• NEVER read, echo, or print AK/SK values (e.g., echo $ALIBABA_CLOUD_ACCESS_KEY_ID is FORBIDDEN)

• NEVER ask the user to input AK/SK directly in the conversation or command line

• NEVER use aliyun configure set with literal credential values

• ONLY use aliyun configure list to check credential status

aliyun configure list --user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Check the output for a valid profile (AK, STS, or OAuth identity).

If no valid profile exists, STOP here.

• Obtain credentials from Alibaba Cloud Console

• Configure credentials outside of this session (via aliyun configure in terminal or environment variables in shell profile)

• Return and re-run after aliyun configure list shows a valid profile

RAM Policy

This skill uses read-only APIs from the AgentExplorer service. Required permissions: agentexplorer:ListCategories , agentexplorer:SearchSkills , agentexplorer:GetSkillContent . For the full RAM policy JSON, see references/ram-policies.md.

[MUST] Permission Failure Handling: When any command or API call fails due to permission errors at any point during execution, follow this process:

• Read references/ram-policies.md to get the full list of permissions required by this SKILL

• Use ram-permission-diagnose skill to guide the user through requesting the necessary permissions

• Pause and wait until the user confirms that the required permissions have been granted

For detailed permission information, see references/ram-policies.md.

Parameter Confirmation

IMPORTANT: Parameter Confirmation — Before executing any command or API call, ALL user-customizable parameters (e.g., keyword, category-code, skill-name, max-results, etc.) MUST be confirmed with the user. Do NOT assume or use default values without explicit user approval.

Parameter Name Required/Optional Description Default Value

keyword

Optional Search keyword (product name, feature name, or description) None

category-code

Optional Category code for filtering (e.g., "computing", "computing.ecs") None

max-results

Optional Maximum number of results per page (1-100) 20

next-token

Optional Pagination token from previous response None

skip

Optional Number of items to skip 0

skill-name

Required (for get-skill-content) Unique skill identifier None

Core Workflow

Workflow 1: Search Skills by Keyword

Scenario: User wants to find skills related to a specific product or feature.

Step 1: Confirm search keyword with user

Example: "ECS", "database backup", "OSS", "monitoring"

Step 2: Execute search command

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--keyword "<user-confirmed-keyword>"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 3: Parse and display results to user

Show: skillName, displayName, description, categoryName, installCount, likeCount

Workflow 2: Browse Skills by Category

Scenario: User wants to explore skills in a specific category.

Step 1: List all available categories

aliyun agentexplorer list-categories
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 2: Confirm category selection with user

Example: "computing", "database", "computing.ecs"

Step 3: Search skills in selected category

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--category-code "<user-confirmed-category>"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 4: Display results to user

Workflow 3: Get Skill Details

Scenario: User wants to see detailed information about a specific skill.

Step 1: Confirm skill name with user

(Usually obtained from previous search results)

Step 2: Retrieve skill content

aliyun agentexplorer get-skill-content
--skill-name "<user-confirmed-skill-name>"
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 3: Display skill details including:

- Full description

- Usage instructions

- Prerequisites

- Examples

Workflow 4: Install a Skill

Scenario: User wants to install a discovered skill.

Step 1: Confirm skill name with user

Step 2: Execute installation command

npx skills add aliyun/alibabacloud-aiops-skills
--skill <user-confirmed-skill-name>

Step 3: Verify installation success

Check that skill appears in available skills list

Workflow 5: Combined Search (Keyword + Category)

Scenario: User wants to narrow down search results using both keyword and category.

Step 1: Confirm both keyword and category with user

Step 2: Execute combined search

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--keyword "<user-confirmed-keyword>"
--category-code "<user-confirmed-category>"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 3: Display filtered results

Workflow 6: Paginated Search

Scenario: User wants to browse through multiple pages of search results.

Step 1: Execute initial search

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--keyword "<keyword>"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 2: Extract nextToken from response

Step 3: Fetch next page if user requests more results

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--keyword "<keyword>"
--max-results 20
--next-token "<next-token-from-previous-response>"
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Success Verification

After each operation, verify success by checking:

• List Categories: Response contains categoryCode and categoryName fields

• Search Skills: Response contains skills array with valid skill objects

• Get Skill Content: Response contains complete skill markdown content

• Install Skill: Skill appears in Claude Code skills list

For detailed verification steps, see references/verification-method.md.

Search Strategies & Best Practices

1. Keyword Selection

• Use product codes: ecs , rds , oss , slb , vpc (English abbreviations work best)

• Chinese names: Also supported, e.g., "云服务器", "数据库", "对象存储"

• Feature terms: "backup", "monitoring", "batch operation", "deployment"

• Generic terms: When unsure, use broader terms like "compute", "storage", "network"

2. Category Filtering

• Browse first: Use list-categories to understand available categories

• Top-level categories: computing , database , storage , networking , security , etc.

• Subcategories: Use dot notation like computing.ecs , database.rds

• Multiple categories: Separate with commas: computing,database

3. Result Optimization

• Start broad: Begin with keyword-only search, then add category filters

• Adjust page size: Use --max-results based on display needs (20-50 typical)

• Check install counts: Popular skills usually have higher install counts

• Read descriptions: Match skill description to your specific use case

4. When No Results Found

Strategy 1: Try alternative keywords

Instead of "云服务器" try "ECS" or "instance"

Strategy 2: Remove filters

Drop category filter, search by keyword only

Strategy 3: Browse by category

aliyun agentexplorer list-categories --user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills aliyun agentexplorer search-skills --category-code "computing" --user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Strategy 4: Use broader terms

Instead of "RDS backup automation" try just "RDS" or "database"

5. Display Results to Users

When presenting search results, format as table:

Found N skills:

Include:

• skillName: For installation and detailed queries

• displayName: User-friendly name

• description: Brief overview

• categoryName + subCategoryName: Classification

• installCount: Popularity indicator

Cleanup

This skill does not create any resources. No cleanup is required.

Best Practices

• Always verify credentials first — Use aliyun configure list before any search operation

• Confirm parameters with user — Never assume keyword or category without asking

• Start with broad searches — Narrow down with filters if too many results

• Show category structure — Help users understand available categories before filtering

• Display results clearly — Use tables to make skill comparison easy

• Provide skill names — Always show skillName field for installation

• Handle pagination — Offer to load more results if nextToken is present

• Check install counts — Guide users toward popular, well-tested skills

• Show full details — Use get-skill-content before installation recommendation

• Test after install — Verify skill is available after installation

Common Use Cases & Examples

Example 1: Find ECS Management Skills

User: "Find skills for managing ECS instances"

Step 1: Search by keyword

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--keyword "ECS"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 2: Display results table

Step 3: If user selects a skill, get details

aliyun agentexplorer get-skill-content
--skill-name "alibabacloud-ecs-batch-command"
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Example 2: Browse Database Skills

User: "What database skills are available?"

Step 1: List categories to show database category

aliyun agentexplorer list-categories
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 2: Search database category

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--category-code "database"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 3: Display results grouped by subcategory

Example 3: Search with Chinese Keyword

User: "搜索 OSS 相关的 skill"

Step 1: Search using Chinese or English

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--keyword "OSS"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 2: Display results in user's preferred language

Example 4: Narrow Down Search

User: "Find backup skills for RDS"

Step 1: Combined search

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills
--keyword "backup"
--category-code "database.rds"
--max-results 20
--user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills

Step 2: Display targeted results

Reference Documentation

Reference Description

references/ram-policies.md Detailed RAM permission requirements

references/related-commands.md Complete CLI command reference

references/verification-method.md Success verification steps for each workflow

references/cli-installation-guide.md Alibaba Cloud CLI installation guide

references/acceptance-criteria.md Testing acceptance criteria and patterns

references/category-examples.md Common category codes and examples

Troubleshooting

Error: "failed to load configuration"

Cause: Alibaba Cloud CLI not configured with credentials.

Solution: Follow authentication section above to configure credentials.

Error: "Plugin not found"

Cause: agentexplorer plugin not installed.

Solution: Run aliyun plugin install --names aliyun-cli-agentexplorer

No Results Returned

Cause: Search criteria too specific or incorrect category code.

Solutions:

• Try broader keywords

• Remove category filter

• Use list-categories to verify category codes

• Try English product codes instead of Chinese names

Pagination Issues

Cause: Incorrect nextToken or skip value.

Solution: Use exact nextToken value from previous response, don't modify it.

Notes

• Read-only operations: This skill only performs queries, no resources are created

• No credentials required for browsing: Some operations may work without full credentials

• Multi-language support: Keywords support both English and Chinese

• Regular updates: Skills catalog is regularly updated with new skills

• Community skills: Some skills may be community-contributed, check descriptions carefully