Customizing

Add your own skills, commands, scripts, and MCP servers via a custom module repository.

Setting Up a Custom Repository

mkdir my-claude-modules
cd my-claude-modules
git init

Structure

my-claude-modules/
├── VERSION              # e.g., "1.0.0"
├── CHANGELOG.md
├── skills/              # Custom skills (auto-load or command)
│   └── my-skill/
│       └── SKILL.md
├── commands/            # Command overrides/extends (optional)
│   └── catchup.md
├── scripts/             # Helper scripts (optional)
│   └── my-helper.sh
└── mcp/                 # MCP server configs (optional)
    └── my-server.json

Install for Your Team

Push to Git, then each team member runs:

/add-custom git@company.com:team/claude-modules.git

Or link manually for development:

ln -sf ~/path/to/my-claude-modules ~/.claude/custom

Override Principle

Custom modules override base modules with the same name. A custom standards-python skill replaces the built-in one.

Custom Skills

Skills provide specialized knowledge that Claude loads automatically (context skills) or on demand (command skills).

Quick Start

/skill-creator

Manual Creation

Place a SKILL.md in ~/.claude/custom/skills/my-skill/:

---
name: my-skill
description: What this skill does
type: context
applies_to: [python, fastapi]
file_extensions: [".py"]
---
 
# Skill Content
 
Instructions and standards here...

Skill Types

Frontmatter Fields

Optional Files

my-skill/
├── SKILL.md              # Required
├── deps.json             # System dependencies per platform
├── assets/               # Templates, reusable content
├── references/           # Reference docs Claude can read
└── test-project/         # Example project for testing

See Creating Skills for detailed examples and deps.json format.

Custom Commands

Custom commands override or extend base commands like /catchup, /wrapup, or /do-review.

Override

Place a command with the same name as a base command in commands/. It replaces the base entirely.

commands/do-review.md    # Replaces base do-review.md

Extend

Use the {{base:command-name}} marker to include base command content. The installer replaces the marker with the full base command at install time — Claude reads a single file.

Prepend custom steps, then base:

# Custom Catchup
 
## Additional Steps
- Load team-specific skills
- Check internal tooling
 
---
 
{{base:catchup}}

Conditional gate (custom logic first, base as fallback):

# Custom Catchup
 
## Step 0: Detect Project Type
Check if this is a company framework project.
 
### If detected:
- Follow custom workflow
- **Stop here**
 
### If NOT detected:
Continue with standard tasks below.
 
---
 
{{base:catchup}}

Append custom steps after base:

{{base:wrapup}}
 
---
 
## Additional Custom Steps
- Sync with internal dashboard

Edge Cases

• Missing base ({{base:nonexistent}}): Replaced with an HTML comment warning
• Path traversal ({{base:../../etc/passwd}}): Rejected — names must be alphanumeric and hyphens only
• Multiple markers: All resolved in a single pass during installation

Custom Scripts

Place helper scripts in scripts/. They are deployed to ~/.claude/scripts/ with executable permissions.

Commands and skills can reference them:

Run the detection script:
\`\`\`bash
~/.claude/scripts/my-helper.sh
\`\`\`

Scripts are re-deployed on --update. To remove a script, delete it from your custom repo and run /claude-code-setup or ./install.sh --update.

Custom MCP Servers

Place JSON configs in mcp/:

{
  "name": "my-server",
  "description": "Internal search API",
  "config": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["-y", "my-mcp-server"]
  }
}

See MCP Servers for the full config format.

Visibility

--list shows all custom modules:

Custom Commands:
  + catchup.md (override)
  + wrapup.md (extend)
Custom Scripts:
  + my-helper.sh
Custom Skills:
  + my-skill
Custom MCP:
  + my-server

/claude-code-setup also shows custom modules in its status display.

Keeping Updated

When you update the custom repo:

1. Push changes
2. Bump VERSION
3. Update CHANGELOG.md

Team members update with /claude-code-setup — it detects new versions automatically.

Related

• Creating Skills - Detailed skill examples and deps.json format
• /add-custom - Install custom modules for your team
• Module Management - --list, --update, --remove