239 lines
9.0 KiB
Markdown
239 lines
9.0 KiB
Markdown
# Skills Library
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You are here: [AI Docs Home](index.md) > Skills Library
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## Contents
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## Discover More Skills
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You can browse and discover additional skills at [https://skills.sh/](https://skills.sh/).
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To install the global Skills CLI for managing and installing skills from the registry, run:
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```sh
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npm install -g skills
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```
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Once installed, you can search and add skills with commands like:
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```sh
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skills search swift
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skills install swiftui-modern
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```
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See the [skills.sh documentation](https://skills.sh/docs) for more details.
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## Skills vs Agents vs Instructions
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**Short answer:**
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- **Skills** = reusable tools or playbooks the AI can call when needed. Like a toolbox for a generalist.
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- **Custom agents** (your /assets/agents/ folders) = specialized AI teammates with their own personality, expertise, and decision-making style. Like building a team of experts.
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- **Instructions** = always-on repo rules that auto-apply by file pattern.
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You can get pretty far with just the default agent (the generalist one) + skills, but custom agents unlock a completely different level: turning one smart generalist into a full specialized team.
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### Why people actually create and use custom agents
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Here’s what changes in practice:
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**True specialization & expertise**
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- A default agent + “use the React skill” still thinks like a generalist.
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- A custom @react-architect agent has deep, baked-in knowledge (your exact component patterns, state management preferences, accessibility rules, performance gotchas). It doesn’t forget or need reminding.
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**Different thinking styles / risk levels**
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- @rapid-prototype agent → fast, experimental, okay with temporary hacks
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- @production-safety agent → extremely conservative, asks for confirmation on big changes, always checks security/performance first
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- @security-auditor agent → thinks about threats, OWASP, secrets scanning before writing a single line
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You can’t get this reliably just by prompting the default agent every time.
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**Multi-agent orchestration (the real 2026 power move)**
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Tools like Windsurf Cascade, Claude Code Subagents, VS Code Agents, RooCode, Cline, and even Cursor (via agent handoffs) let agents delegate to each other:
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Planner Agent → Backend Agent → Frontend Agent → Tester Agent → Reviewer Agent
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This is way smoother and more reliable than one default agent trying to do everything.
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**Convenient UX**
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You just type @security review this or switch to the agent in the sidebar. No long prompt every session.
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**Consistency across sessions & team members**
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The custom agent always behaves the same way. No “mood” variation like the default agent sometimes has.
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**Curated tool/skill usage**
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You can restrict or prioritize certain skills for that agent only (e.g. the security agent only gets vulnerability-scanning skills and is blocked from deploying).
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**Real-world analogy**
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Default agent + skills = One extremely capable senior developer with a huge toolbox. You still have to guide them a lot.
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Custom agents = You built a small specialized team (architect, frontend wizard, security lead, QA expert). You just assign the right person to the task.
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Most power users and big teams in 2026 do both:
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- A rich library of skills (your /assets/skills/)
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- Several custom agents (your /assets/agents/) that know exactly which skills to use and how.
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That’s exactly why having separate /agents/ and /skills/ folders in your repo is such a smart setup.
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## What Skills Are
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Skills are reusable instructions and workflows that guide the assistant through specialized tasks.
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## When To Use A Skill
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- The task has a repeatable workflow.
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- You want consistent structure and outputs.
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- The task spans multiple files or steps.
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## Skills Directory
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Store skills in the team-approved skills directory for your environment. If you do not know the location, ask your team lead or check your internal setup docs.
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### Example Question To Ask
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Example prompt:
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```text
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Where is the approved skills directory for our team, and how do I add a new skill?
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```
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## Skills Governance And Sync
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To keep skills consistent across teams, use a central skills registry plus a per-project manifest. Avoid copying skills into every repo unless the skill is tightly coupled to the project.
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### Recommended Pattern
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- Central skills registry repo (single source of truth)
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- Project-level manifest that pins required skills and versions
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- Sync script that installs the approved set to each developer's laptop
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- Agents.md points to the manifest and sync command
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### Curated Assets Structure (Current)
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Keep the approved list in a single repo and organize by platform. This repo already includes the /assets folder as the staging area for a future migration.
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```text
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/assets/
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setup.sh ← the installer (auto-discovers everything)
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ios-skills.txt ← curated iOS skills (one per line)
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android-skills.txt ← curated Android skills
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shared-skills.txt ← curated cross-platform skills
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skills/ ← custom skill folders (auto-discovered)
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agents/ ← agent prompt files (auto-discovered)
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instructions/ ← instruction rule files (auto-discovered)
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```
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### Project Manifest Example
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Skills files are plain text. Each non-empty, non-comment line is passed to `npx skills add`:
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```text
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# iOS Skills
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avdlee/swiftui-agent-skill@swiftui-expert-skill
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```
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### Sync Workflow
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1. Update the curated list in assets (shared, iOS, or Android).
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2. Run `./assets/setup.sh skills ios` (or `android`, `shared`).
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3. The script installs each skill using the `npx skills` CLI.
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4. Restart your editor if required.
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### Example Sync Commands
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```bash
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# Install iOS skills
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./assets/setup.sh skills ios
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# Install everything (skills + agents + instructions)
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./assets/setup.sh all ios
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# Remote — no clone required
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export ASSETS_BASE_URL="https://gitlab.com/<org>/mobile-ai-docs/-/raw/develop/assets"
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bash <(curl -fsSL "$ASSETS_BASE_URL/setup.sh") all ios
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```
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## Skills CLI (Single Path)
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We use a single, approved path: update the curated list under assets/ and run the sync script. The sync script calls `npx skills add` for each entry.
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### Where To Find Skills
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- Homepage: https://skills.sh/
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- Docs: https://skills.sh/docs
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- CLI reference: https://skills.sh/docs/cli
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### How It Works (High-Level)
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1. You update `assets/shared-skills.txt` (or a platform list) with approved install entries — one per line.
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2. Run `./assets/setup.sh skills` (or `skills ios`, `skills android`).
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3. The script uses `npx skills add` to install each entry.
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### Install The CLI (No Global Install Required)
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The CLI runs via `npx`, so you do not need a global install.
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### Example Install Entry
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Add one line to the platform file (e.g., `ios-skills.txt`):
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```text
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avdlee/swiftui-agent-skill@swiftui-expert-skill
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```
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### Notes
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- The leaderboard uses anonymous telemetry from the CLI. You can opt out by setting `DISABLE_TELEMETRY=1`.
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- Review skills before installing. The ecosystem is audited, but quality varies.
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## skills CLI Commands
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Common commands shown in the CLI help output:
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```text
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npx skills add <package> Install a skill
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npx skills list List installed skills
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npx skills find [query] Search for skills
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npx skills check Check for updates
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npx skills update Update all skills
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npx skills remove Remove installed skills
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npx skills init [name] Create a new skill
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```
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## How to Download Existing Skills
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Run the setup script:
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```bash
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./assets/setup.sh skills ios
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```
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Or remotely without cloning:
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```bash
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bash <(curl -fsSL "$ASSETS_BASE_URL/setup.sh") skills ios
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```
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## How to Download Agents
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Run the setup script:
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```bash
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./assets/setup.sh agents
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```
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Or remotely without cloning:
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```bash
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bash <(curl -fsSL "$ASSETS_BASE_URL/setup.sh") agents
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```
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Agents are installed to `~/.copilot/agents/` by default. Override with the `AGENTS_DIR` environment variable.
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## How to Enable or Configure Skills
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- Follow the instructions provided in each skill's README or SKILL file.
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- Some skills require additional setup, such as environment variables or tools.
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## How To Connect Skills
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1. State the primary skill you want to use.
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2. Provide the inputs that skill expects.
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3. If needed, add a secondary skill and explain the handoff.
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### Example Skill Request
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Example prompt:
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```text
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Use swiftui-expert-skill to review this view for best practices. Then use webapp-testing to validate the web flow.
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```
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## Central Assets Repo (Recommended)
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Do not list every skill in this guide. Instead, point readers to the assets folder (or a future dedicated repo) that contains the approved agents, skills, and instructions.
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Everything is installable with one command:
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```bash
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./assets/setup.sh all ios
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```
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- A short README with install and update steps
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- Curated skill lists (for example, ios-skills.txt, android-skills.txt)
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### Link To The Assets Repo
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- Repo (current project source): [assets/](../../assets/)
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## Next Steps
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- For day-to-day workflows, read [Cross-Platform AI Usage](crossplatform/cross-platform.md).
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- For setup issues, follow [Troubleshooting and FAQ](troubleshooting.md).
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