---
name: Update Installed Skills
slug: update-installed-skills-2
category: Automation
description: Update Installed Skills keeps previously installed skills current while checking for breakages and local changes. Use it to list installed skills, dry-run syncs, and apply updates after review.
github: "https://github.com/MoizIbnYousaf/ai-agent-skills/tree/main/skills/update-installed-skills"
language: JavaScript
stars: 1136
forks: 131
install: "npx degit https://github.com/MoizIbnYousaf/ai-agent-skills/tree/main/skills/update-installed-skills ~/.claude/skills/update-installed-skills"
installs_to: ~/.claude/skills/update-installed-skills
source_path: skills/update-installed-skills/SKILL.md
collection_size: 18
category_size: 1754
collection_url: "https://dirskills.com/collections/MoizIbnYousaf/ai-agent-skills"
added: 2026-09-03T06:03:19.415Z
last_synced: 2026-09-03T06:03:19.415Z
canonical_url: "https://dirskills.com/skills/update-installed-skills-2"
---

# Update Installed Skills

Update Installed Skills keeps previously installed skills current while checking for breakages and local changes. Use it to list installed skills, dry-run syncs, and apply updates after review.

**Install:**

```bash
npx degit https://github.com/MoizIbnYousaf/ai-agent-skills/tree/main/skills/update-installed-skills ~/.claude/skills/update-installed-skills
```

## README

# Update Installed Skills

## Goal

Keep installed skills current without breaking the agent's workflow or silently overwriting local customizations.

## Guardrails

- Always use `--dry-run` before running a real update.
- Check what is currently installed before updating: `npx ai-agent-skills list --installed`.
- Never update all skills at once in production without reviewing the dry-run output.
- Use `--format json` to capture structured update results for logging.

## Workflow

1. List currently installed skills.

```bash
npx ai-agent-skills list --installed --format json --fields name
```

2. Check for available updates.

```bash
npx ai-agent-skills check
```

3. Dry-run the update.

```bash
npx ai-agent-skills sync <skill-name> --dry-run
```

4. Apply the update after reviewing.

```bash
npx ai-agent-skills sync <skill-name>
```

5. For bulk updates, review each skill's dry-run output.

```bash
npx ai-agent-skills sync --all --dry-run
```

## Gotchas

- Skills installed from GitHub will attempt a fresh clone during sync. If the upstream repo is gone, the update will fail gracefully.
- Manually edited SKILL.md files will be overwritten by sync. Back up customizations before syncing.
- The `check` command makes network requests to verify upstream sources. It may be slow or fail if sources are unreachable.