Fix skills build: selective reference copying prevents CLI bloat

.gitignore

@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ bld/
 [Oo]bj/
 [Ll]og/
 [Ll]ogs/
+tmp/
 
 # Visual Studio 2015/2017 cache/options
 .vs/
@@ -231,7 +232,12 @@ infrastructure/azure/appinsights.secrets.local
 # Local MSBuild properties (secrets, connection strings)
 Directory.Build.props.user
 
-# Skills - generated shared references (copied from skills/shared/ by Build-AgentSkills.ps1)
-# Keep: claude-desktop.md (MCP-specific), README.md (CLI placeholder)
-skills/*
+# Skills - generated references in excel-cli/references and excel-mcp/references (copied by Build-AgentSkills.ps1)
+# Keep MCP-specific: claude-desktop.md
+# Keep CLI-specific: README.md
+# Keep all of skills/shared/ (source of truth, synced from MCP Server prompts)
+skills/excel-cli/references/*.md
+skills/excel-mcp/references/*.md
+!skills/excel-cli/references/README.md
+!skills/excel-mcp/references/claude-desktop.md
 vscode-extension/skills/*

scripts/Build-AgentSkills.ps1

@@ -55,12 +55,48 @@ function Copy-SharedReferences {
         New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $RefsDir -Force | Out-Null
     }
 
-    # Copy all shared files
+    # Define which files each skill needs (based on SKILL.md @references/)
+    $SkillReferences = @{
+        "excel-cli" = @(
+            "behavioral-rules.md"
+            "anti-patterns.md"
+            "workflows.md"
+        )
+        "excel-mcp" = @(
+            "behavioral-rules.md"
+            "anti-patterns.md"
+            "workflows.md"
+            "excel_chart.md"
+            "excel_conditionalformat.md"
+            "excel_datamodel.md"
+            "excel_powerquery.md"
+            "excel_range.md"
+            "excel_slicer.md"
+            "excel_table.md"
+            "excel_worksheet.md"
+        )
+    }
+
+    # Get the list of files for this skill
+    $FilesToCopy = $SkillReferences[$SkillName]
+    if (-not $FilesToCopy) {
+        Write-Warning "No reference files defined for skill: $SkillName"
+        return
+    }
+
+    # Copy only the files this skill needs
     if (Test-Path $SharedDir) {
-        Get-ChildItem -Path $SharedDir -File | ForEach-Object {
-            Copy-Item -Path $_.FullName -Destination $RefsDir -Force
+        $CopiedCount = 0
+        foreach ($fileName in $FilesToCopy) {
+            $sourceFile = Join-Path $SharedDir $fileName
+            if (Test-Path $sourceFile) {
+                Copy-Item -Path $sourceFile -Destination $RefsDir -Force
+                $CopiedCount++
+            } else {
+                Write-Warning "Reference file not found in shared: $fileName"
+            }
         }
-        Write-Host "  Copied shared references to $SkillName/references/" -ForegroundColor Green
+        Write-Host "  Copied $CopiedCount shared references to $SkillName/references/" -ForegroundColor Green
     } else {
         Write-Warning "Shared directory not found: $SharedDir"
     }

skills/README.md

@@ -45,9 +45,7 @@ Agent Skills are reusable instruction sets that extend AI coding assistants with
 | **Cursor** | `.cursor/skills/excel-mcp/` | Manual or npx |
 | **Windsurf** | `.windsurf/skills/excel-mcp/` | Manual or npx |
 | **Gemini CLI** | `.gemini/skills/excel-mcp/` | Manual or npx |
-| **Codex** | `.codex/skills/excel-mcp/` | Manual or npx |
 | **Goose** | `.goose/skills/excel-mcp/` | Manual or npx |
-| **And 36+ more** | Via `npx skills` | Manual or npx |
 
 ## Installation Methods
 
@@ -62,51 +60,46 @@ Enable skills in VS Code settings:
 }
 ```
 
-### Method 2: npx skills (Cross-Platform)
+### Method 2: npx add-skill (Cross-Platform)
 
 **Important:** The repository contains TWO separate skills. You must specify which one to install using the `--skill` flag.
 
 ```bash
-# Install CLI skill (recommended for coding agents - Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf, Codex, etc.)
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli
+# Install CLI skill (recommended for coding agents - Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf)
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli
 
 # Install MCP skill (for conversational AI - Claude Desktop, VS Code Chat)
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-mcp
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-mcp
 
 # Install BOTH skills (if you use multiple tools)
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-mcp
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-mcp
 
-# Install for specific agent (optional - auto-detects if omitted)
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli -a cursor
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-mcp -a claude-code
+# Install for specific agent (optional)
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli -a cursor
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-mcp -a claude-code
 
 # Install globally (user-wide)
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli --global
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli --global
 
 # Install to current project
-npx skills add sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli --local
+npx add-skill sbroenne/mcp-server-excel --skill excel-cli --local
 ```
 
-**Supported agents:** claude-code, github-copilot, cursor, windsurf, gemini-cli, codex, goose, cline, continue, replit, and 33+ more. Run `npx skills add --help` to see the full list.
-
 ### Method 3: GitHub Release Download
 
 Download the skill package for your use case from [GitHub Releases](https://github.com/sbroenne/mcp-server-excel/releases/latest):
 
 | Package | Best For |
 |---------|----------|
-| `excel-cli-skill-vX.X.X.zip` | **Coding agents** (Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf, Codex, etc.) |
+| `excel-cli-skill-vX.X.X.zip` | **Coding agents** (Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf) |
 | `excel-mcp-skill-vX.X.X.zip` | **Conversational AI** (Claude Desktop, VS Code Chat) |
 
 Extract to the appropriate directory for your AI assistant:
 - Copilot: `~/.copilot/skills/excel-mcp/` or `~/.copilot/skills/excel-cli/`
 - Claude Code: `.claude/skills/excel-mcp/` or `.claude/skills/excel-cli/`
 - Cursor: `.cursor/skills/excel-mcp/` or `.cursor/skills/excel-cli/`
 - Windsurf: `.windsurf/skills/excel-mcp/` or `.windsurf/skills/excel-cli/`
-- Gemini CLI: `.gemini/skills/excel-mcp/` or `.gemini/skills/excel-cli/`
-- Codex: `.codex/skills/excel-mcp/` or `.codex/skills/excel-cli/`
-- Other agents: See agent documentation for skills directory location
 
 ### Method 4: Git Clone (Development)
 

skills/excel-cli/SKILL.md

@@ -101,6 +101,7 @@ If you see "File not found" or "Path not found" - STOP and report to user. Don't
 
 ## Reference Documentation
 
+- @references/behavioral-rules.md - Core execution rules and LLM guidelines
 - @references/anti-patterns.md - Common mistakes to avoid
 - @references/workflows.md - Data Model constraints and patterns
 

skills/excel-mcp/SKILL.md

@@ -140,11 +140,14 @@ Error responses include actionable hints:
 
 See `references/` for detailed guidance:
 
+- @references/behavioral-rules.md - Core execution rules and LLM guidelines
 - @references/anti-patterns.md - Common mistakes to avoid
 - @references/workflows.md - Data Model constraints and patterns
-- @references/excel_pivottable.md - PivotTable operations
-- @references/excel_powerquery.md - Power Query specifics
-- @references/excel_datamodel.md - Data Model/DAX specifics
-- @references/excel_table.md - Table operations
 - @references/excel_chart.md - Charts and formatting
+- @references/excel_conditionalformat.md - Conditional formatting operations
+- @references/excel_datamodel.md - Data Model/DAX specifics
+- @references/excel_powerquery.md - Power Query specifics
+- @references/excel_range.md - Range operations and number formats
 - @references/excel_slicer.md - Slicer operations
+- @references/excel_table.md - Table operations
+- @references/excel_worksheet.md - Worksheet operations