Setup

Name: Setup
Author: alelaguard

DSecurity

Set up and verify AgentGuards in GitHub Copilot CLI. Use when the user asks to configure AgentGuards, set their API key, or check that the guardrails are wired up correctly.

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Added September 19, 2026

ai-agentsshellbashrailsgitapi

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Security analysis

D50/100

criticalModifies startup scripts or system services for persistence
criticalModifies startup scripts or system services for persistence

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Scanned September 19, 2026

npx -y skills add alelaguard/agentguards-plugins --skill setup --agent claude-code

Installs into .claude/skills of the current project.

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SKILL.md

---
name: setup
description: Set up and verify AgentGuards in GitHub Copilot CLI. Use when the user asks to configure AgentGuards, set their API key, or check that the guardrails are wired up correctly.
---

# AgentGuards setup

Guide the user through finishing AgentGuards setup after installing the
plugin. The plugin already bundles the MCP server and the enforcing hooks —
the only thing the user must supply is their API key.

## Steps

1. **Check for the API key.** Look for the `AGENTGUARDS_API_KEY` environment
   variable. If it is missing or does not start with `ag_`, tell the user to:
   - Get a key from the dashboard at https://agentguards.co/dashboard/keys
   - Export it so both the MCP server and the hooks can read it. For the
     current shell and future sessions, add to their shell profile
     (`~/.bashrc`, `~/.zshrc`, etc.):

     ```
     export AGENTGUARDS_API_KEY=ag_your_token_here
     ```

   - Restart Copilot CLI (or start a new session) so the MCP server and hooks
     pick up the key from the environment.

2. **Confirm the URL (optional).** AgentGuards defaults to
   `https://prod.agentguards.co`. Only set `AGENTGUARDS_URL` if the user runs a
   self-hosted instance.

3. **Fail-open vs fail-closed.** The hooks fail **closed** by default — if the
   AgentGuards service is unreachable, actions are blocked. A user who prefers
   availability over strict enforcement can set `AGENTGUARDS_FAIL_OPEN=true`.
   Mention this only if they ask or report unexpected blocks.

4. **Verify.** Call the AgentGuards `health_check` tool from the `agentguards`
   MCP server. Report whether the service is reachable and which key prefix is
   active. If it fails, the most common cause is `AGENTGUARDS_API_KEY` not
   being exported in the environment Copilot CLI was launched from.

5. **Summarize what is now active:** `userPromptSubmitted` input scanning,
   `preToolUse` shell-command authorization, `postToolUse` web-content
   scanning, and the `check_input` / `authorize_action` MCP tools.