Agent skill · software engineering · microsoft
create-hook
Create a hook (.json) to enforce policy or automate agent lifecycle events.
Why this skill is useful
Provides a structured approach to creating hooks for policy enforcement and automation that the AI wouldn't reliably generate on its own.
What it needs
About 1k tokens when loaded. Last updated 2026-08-07. 188,455 stars on the source repository.
What this skill does
Related skill: agent-customization. Load and follow hooks.md for template and principles. Guide the user to create a hook in .github/hooks/. Extract from Conversation First, review the conversation history. If the user has been expressing concerns about agent behavior (e.g., "don't run this command", "always check before doing X", "inject this context"), generalize that into a hook. Extract: Actions that should be blocked or gated Context that should be injected at certain points Automation needs at session start/end or tool use Clarify if Needed If no clear policy need emerges from the conversation, clarify: What event should trigger this hook? (e.g. PreToolUse, SessionStart, Stop) Should it block, warn, or inject context? Does it need a companion script? Path Conventions Hook commands and companion scripts run with cwd defaulting to the workspace root (when a workspace folder is available); otherwise cwd falls back to the user home directory. Relative paths resolve from cwd. Absolute paths are fine when intentional — just be deliberate about which you use. Do not use environment variables for pathing. The only exception is plugin-provided environment variables in hooks shipped as part of an agent plugin; never use environment variables for pathing outside of a plugin context. Iterate 1. Draft the hook JSON (and any scripts) and save them. 2. Identify the most ambiguous or weak parts and ask about those. 3. Once finalized, summarize what the hook enforces, suggest ways to test it, and propose related customizations to create next. Remember to follow the agent-customization guidelines to create highly effective hooks.
How to use it
Reference it in AdaL, Claude Code, Cursor or any coding agent — nothing to install:
@skills microsoft/create-hook