UP

upgrade-template

Safely syncs template improvements from the core project into existing local environments without overwriting project-specific files.

Install

mkdir -p .claude/skills/upgrade-template && curl -L -o skill.zip "https://agentskills.codes/api/skills/download/10190" && unzip -o skill.zip -d .claude/skills/upgrade-template && rm skill.zip

Installs to .claude/skills/upgrade-template

Activation

This is the description your AI agent reads to decide when to run this skill — the better it matches your request, the more reliably it fires.

Upgrades an existing project with improvements from the CLAUDE.MD template. Use when the user says "upgrade the template", "sync template changes to a project", "update project X with new skills", or wants to apply template improvements without losing project-specific context. Runs upgrade-template.py which copies new files and diffs changed ones, never touching project-owned paths.
385 chars✓ has a “when” triggerlonger than Claude Code's old 250-char listing cap (fine on current versions)
Intermediate

Key capabilities

  • Sync template updates to projects
  • Merge configuration changes
  • Add new skills to projects
  • Protect project-owned files
  • Preview changes via dry-run

How it works

It fetches the master template from GitHub and intelligently merges files, protecting project-specific content while applying template improvements.

Inputs & outputs

You give it
Target project path
You get back
Updated project files

When to use upgrade-template

  • Sync template updates to project
  • Update project with new skills
  • Apply new template improvements

About this skill

Upgrade Template

Applies template improvements to an existing project without overwriting project-specific content.

What It Does

StatusMeaning
ADDEDNew file — does not exist in the project yet. Copied automatically.
CHANGEDFile exists in both. Shows a diff. You choose: accept (overwrite) or skip (keep yours).
UNCHANGEDIdentical in both. Silently skipped.
MERGED.claude/settings.json — new hooks/permissions added, project keys preserved.
SKIPPED (project-owned)Never touched — see list below.

Project-Owned Files (Never Touched)

  • .ai/session-context.md — active session state
  • .ai/project/ — architecture, tech stack, domains
  • .ai/progress/, .ai/completed/, .ai/plans/ — task tracking
  • .ai/analysis/ — project analysis files
  • .github/copilot-instructions.md — project-specific Copilot instructions
  • .claude/settings.local.json — never touched

Special-Case Merged File

  • .claude/settings.json — may be merged by the upgrade script (ADDED/MERGED/UNCHANGED); new hooks/permissions are added while existing project-specific config is preserved

Template Source

The canonical template is always fetched from GitHub — no local clone needed:

https://github.com/I-Synergy/AI

Usage

Full upgrade (interactive)

python .ai/scripts/upgrade-template.py \
  --source https://github.com/I-Synergy/AI \
  --target D:/Projects/MyProject/my-repo

Preview only (no changes)

python .ai/scripts/upgrade-template.py \
  --source https://github.com/I-Synergy/AI \
  --target D:/Projects/MyProject/my-repo \
  --dry-run

Skills only (fastest — just adds new skills)

python .ai/scripts/upgrade-template.py \
  --source https://github.com/I-Synergy/AI \
  --target D:/Projects/MyProject/my-repo \
  --skills-only

Non-interactive (CI/scripted — copies new, skips changed)

python .ai/scripts/upgrade-template.py \
  --source https://github.com/I-Synergy/AI \
  --target D:/Projects/MyProject/my-repo \
  --non-interactive

What Gets Synced

PathBehaviour
CLAUDE.mdDiffed if changed
.ai/skills/New skill dirs copied; changed skills diffed
.ai/patterns/New pattern files copied; changed diffed
.ai/reference/templates/New templates copied; changed diffed
.ai/reference/critical-rules.mdDiffed if changed
.ai/reference/forbidden-tech.mdDiffed if changed
.ai/reference/tokens.md, glossary.md, naming-conventions.md, copilot-integration.md, session-management.mdDiffed if changed
.ai/checklists/New checklists copied; changed diffed
.ai/tests/New test scripts copied; changed diffed
.ai/scripts/New scripts copied (including this one); changed diffed
.claude/settings.jsonADDED (new file): created from template, enabledPlugins excluded. MERGED (existing file): new hooks and permissions added, existing config (including enabledPlugins) preserved.

After Upgrade

The script automatically runs sync-skills.py in the target project after every upgrade, syncing all skills to Claude Code and GitHub Copilot targets.

Running This as Claude

Source is always the GitHub template repo. Target is always the current working directory. Do not ask the user for either — derive them automatically.

  1. Run a dry-run first and show the output:
python .ai/scripts/upgrade-template.py \
  --source https://github.com/I-Synergy/AI \
  --target . \
  --dry-run
  1. Ask the user to confirm before applying changes.
  2. Run without --dry-run (add --non-interactive if the user says to apply all changes):
python .ai/scripts/upgrade-template.py \
  --source https://github.com/I-Synergy/AI \
  --target .

When not to use it

  • When the target project is not a valid template-based repo
  • When the user wants to overwrite project-owned files

Limitations

  • Cannot automatically resolve all merge conflicts

How it compares

It automates the synchronization process while respecting project-owned boundaries, unlike manual copy-paste updates.

Compared to similar skills

upgrade-template side by side with the closest alternatives in the catalog.

SkillInstallsUpdatedSafetyDifficulty
upgrade-template (this skill)03moReviewIntermediate
tmux202moReviewIntermediate
jira116moNo flagsBeginner
triaging-issues52moReviewIntermediate

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