Open-steps provides a set of constraints and protocols that guide AI agents toward brevity and honesty. By replacing verbose AI tendencies with straight verdicts and honest session reports, it helps developers maintain clarity during complex technical tasks.
The collection implements a system of verification and planning, enabling agents to check their own work and identify potential failure points before execution.
Follow the documented setup, then try a first task.
Installs: Open Steps plugin bundle, including its skills and both hooks, with the routing block added separately. The listed skill paths are a bounded selection. · Claude Code
Run from: The directory containing open-steps/ after cloning, not the clone itself.
In a terminal, download the repository. Stay in the directory where you run this command for the following terminal commands.
git clone https://github.com/kharmanskyi/open-steps.git
In a terminal, register the downloaded marketplace and install the Open Steps plugin.
claude plugin marketplace add ./open-steps && claude plugin install open-steps@open-steps
In a terminal, add the routing block to ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md using the documented repeatable command.
grep -q 'os-done-or-not' ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md 2>/dev/null || cat open-steps/docs/routing-block.md >> ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md
In a Claude Code session, run the installation check. It reports what is connected and marks anything it cannot verify as unchecked.
/open-steps:os-install-check
Installs: Open Steps os-* skill folders copied to ~/.agents/skills/, with routing instructions added manually. This procedure does not configure the separately documented hooks. The listed skill paths are a bounded selection of the copied bundle. · Codex CLI, Cursor CLI, Gemini CLI
Run from: The directory containing open-steps/ after cloning, not the clone itself.
In a terminal, download the repository. Stay in the directory where you run this command for the copy command.
git clone https://github.com/kharmanskyi/open-steps.git
In a terminal, copy the Open Steps skill folders into the shared skills directory read by all three tools.
mkdir -p ~/.agents/skills && cp -R open-steps/skills/os-* ~/.agents/skills/
Manually add the routing block from open-steps/docs/routing-block.md to the standing instructions for each tool you use: ~/.codex/AGENTS.md for Codex, the project's root AGENTS.md for Cursor, or ~/.gemini/GEMINI.md for Gemini CLI.
Uses os-say-simple
Use os-say-simple to rewrite the text I paste below in plain language. Lead with the main point, preserve every number, warning, and caveat, and keep unverified claims attributed to the original text.
Uses os-ask-simple
Use os-ask-simple to assess the technical choice I describe below. Explain the trade-offs in plain words, consider doing nothing and a simpler substitute, and end with one marked recommendation. If this is a structural choice, show the six checks and mark anything you cannot verify as not checked.
Uses os-done-or-not
Use os-done-or-not to report on the work completed in this session in one short screen of plain language. Say whether it is fully done, whether you need anything from me, whether it created new debt, and whether it is safe to close. Give proof for every yes, mark unverified items as not checked, and use existing test results rather than rerunning the test suite.
Claude
Codex
Cursor
Gemini CLI