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. Enable AI-Mode Aliyun CLI provides AI-Mode. When enabled, the CLI automatically attaches AI identity information, allowing the server to identify and optimize Agent call chains.

Enable AI-Mode

aliyun configure ai-mode enable

Set AI-Mode user-agent identifier

aliyun configure ai-mode set-user-agent

Disable AI-Mode

aliyun configure ai-mode disable Update Plugin After installing plugins, update them periodically to get the latest features and fixes:

Update installed CLI plugins

aliyun plugin update 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

.

Core Workflow

Step 1: Search Skills

Based on user intent, choose keyword search, category search, or both:

Keyword search

Extract keywords from the user's request and execute search directly

Category search

Call

list-categories

to get all available categories, select the best match, and search

Combined search

Use both keyword and category to narrow results

Keyword search

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

Get all categories

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

Category search

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

Combined search (keyword + category)

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills \ --keyword "" \ --category-code "" \ --max-results 20 \ --user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills Step 2: Iterate Until Found If the target skill is not in the results, adjust search criteria and retry automatically: Switch between Chinese and English keywords ("cloud server" → "ECS", "object storage" → "OSS") Broaden keywords (drop qualifiers: "RDS backup automation" → "RDS") Remove category filter, search by keyword only Try synonyms or related terms ("instance" → "ECS", "bucket" → "OSS") Browse the most relevant top-level category without keyword Repeat until the target skill is found or confirmed not to exist. If all attempts fail, inform the user what was tried. Step 3: View Skill Details (Optional) Optionally retrieve skill content to verify it matches user intent before installation. This step can be skipped if the search results already provide sufficient information. aliyun agentexplorer get-skill-content \ --skill-name "" \ --user-agent AlibabaCloud-Agent-Skills Step 4: Install Skill Execute the installation command for the target skill.

Option A: Using npx skills add

npx skills add aliyun/alibabacloud-aiops-skills \ --skill < skill-name

Option B: Using npx clawhub install (recommended for OpenClaw ecosystem)

npx clawhub

install

<

skill-name

>

Verify the skill appears in the available skills list after installation.

Command Reference

Parameters

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

Pagination

When search results span multiple pages, use

next-token

from the previous response to fetch the next page:

aliyun agentexplorer search-skills

\

--keyword

""

\

--max-results

20

\

--next-token

""

\

--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"

1. Display Results to Users

   When presenting search results, format as table:

   Found N skills:

   | Skill Name | Display Name | Description | Category | Install Count |

   |------------|--------------|-------------|----------|---------------|

   | alibabacloud-ecs-batch | ECS Batch Operations | Batch manage ECS instances | Computing > ECS | 245 |

   | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... |

   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 Iterate on search — Automatically adjust keywords and retry until the target skill is found or confirmed absent 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 and get details for the best match

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 keyword

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