# Getting started

Install AXM, set it up in your project, and watch your agent use its first skill.

Use AXM to manage agent skills, rules, subagents, MCP server connections and
more in your projects. [Learn more](/docs/overview)

## Installation

### Agents

Copy and paste the prompt below into your agent to install and setup AXM:

```text
Install and setup AXM with https://axm.sh/install.md
```

### macOS / Linux

```bash
curl -fsSL https://axm.sh/install.sh | sh
```

### Windows (PowerShell)

```powershell
irm https://axm.sh/install.ps1 | iex
```

### Windows (CMD)

```cmd
curl -fsSL -o install.cmd https://axm.sh/install.cmd && install.cmd
```

### Homebrew

```bash
brew install agentxm/tap/axm
```

### npm

```bash
npm install -g axm.sh
```

After installation, verify the CLI is available:

```bash
axm --version
```

Public discovery, public installation, and local authoring do not require an
account. Sign in when publishing or accessing private extensions.

## Setup

Once AXM is installed, run `axm setup` inside a project to bootstrap its
configuration:

```bash
axm setup
```

The command detects the coding agents in your project and prompts you to select
which one(s) AXM should manage — so skills and extensions sync to the right
places. It then creates project-root `axm.json` to record your selection;
`.axm/` is reserved for ignored runtime scratch.

## Install your first skill

A [skill](/docs/skills) is a reusable instruction module that teaches your agent
a specific capability — like how to review a diff against your conventions.
Install one from the [AgentXM.ai registry](https://agentxm.ai):

```bash
axm skills install @acme/skills/code-review
```

Then sync it into every coding agent you configured during setup:

```bash
axm sync
```

That writes the skill into the universal `.agents/skills/code-review` location
plus each agent's native directory (`.claude/skills/code-review` for Claude
Code, and so on). One install; it's available everywhere you work.

## Watch your agent use it

Now make a small code change in your project, then ask your coding agent to
review it:

```text
Review my changes before I open a pull request.
```

A supporting host uses skill metadata to discover relevant instructions. Check
whether it selects the installed skill and follows its guidance; host settings
and model behavior affect activation. If needed, explicitly ask it to use the
skill and consult your host's skill-discovery controls.

Operational sources: `axm help getting-started` and `axm help basic-usage` for
your installed CLI. This walkthrough was reconciled with AXM 0.51.0.

## Next steps

You have a working skill. Build on it:

- [Create a skill](/docs/create-a-skill) — author your own from scratch.
- [Add an MCP server connection](/docs/mcp-servers) — give your agent live tools
  and data sources.
- [Add a subagent](/docs/subagents) — delegate focused tasks to a specialized
  agent.
- [Bundle into a pack](/docs/packs) — group skills, subagents, and MCP server
  connections into one installable unit.
- [Publish and share](/docs/publishing) — push your extensions to the registry
  for your team or the world.

To understand what's happening under the hood, read
[How AXM works](/docs/how-axm-works). For every command and flag, see the
[CLI reference](/docs/cli-reference).