---
title: "Manage AI Agent Skills | Hostman Docs"
description: "Learn how skills give AI agents context-specific instructions, and how to create, connect, version, copy, and delete them."
---

> For the complete documentation index for AI agents, see [llms.txt](https://hostman.com/llms.txt).

Skills are text instructions that an AI agent uses in specific situations, without loading the full instruction into every request.

This article covers how skills work and how to create, connect, version, and delete them.

## How Skills Work

Unlike [a system prompt](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/manage-agents/prompts/), the full skill instruction isn't sent to the model with every request—only the description from the When to apply field stays in context at all times. If a request matches that description, the agent pulls in the skill's full instruction as well. This keeps token usage down, since long instructions only enter the context when they're actually needed.

Skills work across the [widget](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/manage-agents/embed-chatbots/), [external chat](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/manage-agents/external-chat/), and the [API](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/api-usage/native-api/).

A few things to know about how skills behave:

-   One agent can have multiple skills attached, and the same skill can be reused across multiple agents.
    
-   When generating a response, an agent can draw on several skills at once if the request matches more than one of their conditions.
    
-   If a skill's instructions conflict with the system prompt, the system prompt takes priority.
    
-   When a skill is used to generate a response, a label showing this appears in the chat.
    

## Create a Skill

You can create a skill from the **AI Services** → **Skills** section, or while creating an agent.

### From the Skills Section

1.  Go to **AI Services** → **Skills**.
2.  Click **Add**.
3.  Set the [skill's parameters](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/manage-agents/skills/#skill-parameters).
4.  Click **Add**.

The skill will now appear under **AI Services** → **Skills**.

![AI Agents 2026 09 01 14 10](https://content.hostman.com/assets/92787ec9-b149-4aa8-a512-a338374bcf40.png?width=1754&height=834)

### When Creating an Agent

On the **Instructions and Skills** step, select an existing skill or click **Add new**. If you're creating a new skill, set its parameters and click **Add**.

![Create AI Agent 2026 09 01 14 07](https://content.hostman.com/assets/a0d6a28e-683d-4761-9eaa-a509cb151deb.png?width=608&height=359)

## Skill Parameters

When you create a skill, you'll need to specify:

-   **Skill name**: the name shown in the dashboard.
    
-   **When to apply**: describes the situations in which the agent should use the skill. This description is sent to the agent with every request.
    
-   **Instruction**: the instruction the agent follows once a request matches the **When to apply** description.
    
-   **Agents (optional)**: a list of agents to attach the skill to right away.
    

![AI Agents 2026 09 01 14 10 2026 09 01 14 11](https://content.hostman.com/assets/c8a05018-bebf-4607-acde-93b200abe0fc.png?width=519&height=772)

## Attach a Skill to an Agent

You can attach a skill to an agent right when you [create the skill](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/manage-agents/skills/#create-a-skill), by selecting the agent in the **Agents** field. But you don't have to decide this upfront—you can attach a skill to any agent at any later point, or update which agents use it, from the agent's settings.

This is also where you can detach a skill or switch an agent to a different version.

1.  Go to **AI Services** → **Agents** and click on the agent.
2.  Open the **Management** tab.
3.  In the **Resources** block, click **Modify** next to **Skills**.

![Ambitious Aquila 2026 09 01 14 17](https://content.hostman.com/assets/d5f7afac-a1f9-4084-830d-417700b8f603.png?width=1573&height=1316)

4.  Select the skill and the version you want to use.

![Ambitious Aquila 2026 09 01 14 18](https://content.hostman.com/assets/12f8b60d-770b-4390-bfa1-19ef098b0d16.png?width=1744&height=847)

## Edit Skills

Editing a skill's parameters creates a new version, so you can always roll back to an earlier one. Renaming a skill is the only change that doesn't create a new version.

1.  Go to **AI Services** → **Skills**.
2.  Click the skill you want to edit.
3.  Update its parameters in the editor.
4.  Click **Save**.
5.  Choose which agents should use the new version.
6.  Click **Save** again.

You'll see a new version appear in the **Version history** on the right.

> [!NOTE]
> A skill can have up to 50 versions. Once you hit the 50th, you won't be able to save further changes—[duplicate the skill](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/manage-agents/skills/#duplicatea-skill) instead if you need to keep editing.

![AI Agents 2026 09 01 14 21](https://content.hostman.com/assets/4cdc557c-e9e1-46d0-bc8f-606f7ebcf1c6.png?width=1412&height=804)

## Manage Skill Versions

Every skill has a current version—the one suggested by default whenever you attach the skill to an agent. You can always choose a different version instead, either while [attaching the skill](https://hostman.com/docs/ai-agents/manage-agents/skills/#attach-a-skill-to-an-agent) or afterward, in the agent's settings.

To set a different version as current:

1.  Go to **AI Services** → **Skills**.
2.  Click the skill you want to edit.
3.  Click the version you want in the **Version history** block.
4.  Click **Make current**.
5.  Click **Save**.

## Duplicate a Skill

Duplicating a skill creates a new one containing only the version currently selected in the editor. Version history isn't carried over, so the copy's version count starts fresh at 1.

To create a copy:

1.  Go to **AI Services** → **Skills**.
2.  Click on the the skill and select the version you want to copy.
3.  Return to the skills list, click the three dots next to the skill, and select **Duplicate**.

The copy is created instantly and appears in the list.

![AI Agents 2026 09 01 14 33](https://content.hostman.com/assets/9da1eb19-2ef7-4665-8c32-b513d5d4ee58.png?width=1570&height=828)

## Delete a Skill

To delete a skill:

1.  Go to **AI Services** → **Skills**.
2.  Click the three dots next to the skill and select **Delete**.
3.  Confirm the deletion.