edit-agent

Edit Copilot Studio agent settings, instructions, or configuration. Use when the user asks to change agent instructions, display name, conversation starters, AI settings, or generative actions toggle.

View SKILL.md on GitHub → Source repository Provider profile

Provider: Microsoft 365 Copilot Path in repo: skills/edit-agent/SKILL.md

Skill body

Edit Agent Settings/Instructions

Modify agent metadata (agent.mcs.yml) or configuration (settings.mcs.yml).

Instructions

Auto-discover the agent directory:
```
Glob: **/agent.mcs.yml
```
NEVER hardcode an agent name. If multiple agents found, ask which one.
Identify what the user wants to change and read the appropriate file:
- Instructions, display name, conversation starters, AI settings → agent.mcs.yml
- GenerativeActionsEnabled, authentication, recognizer, capabilities → settings.mcs.yml
If the user wants to change the AI model, run the schema lookup tool first:
```
node ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../scripts/schema-lookup.bundle.js models
```
Use the output to determine the correct modelNameHint and provider values. CRITICAL: Do NOT include kind in the model block — the agent-level schema uses CurrentModelsNoKind.
Read the current file before making any changes.
Make the requested changes using the Edit tool.

Editable Fields in `agent.mcs.yml`

Field	Description	Example
`displayName`	Agent’s display name	`displayName: My Agent`
`instructions`	System prompt / personality	Multi-line YAML with `\\|`
`conversationStarters`	Suggested conversation starters	Array of `{title, text}`
`aISettings.model.modelNameHint`	Model hint (run `models` command for convention)	`Sonnet46`, `GPT5Chat`
`aISettings.model.provider`	Model provider (required for non-OpenAI)	`Anthropic`

Editable Fields in `settings.mcs.yml`

Field	Description	Example
`GenerativeActionsEnabled`	Enable generative orchestration	`true` / `false`
`authenticationMode`	Auth mode	`Integrated`, `None`
`authenticationTrigger`	When to auth	`Always`, `AsNeeded`
`accessControlPolicy`	Access control	`ChatbotReaders`
`configuration.aISettings.*`	AI capabilities	Various booleans
`configuration.settings.*.content.capabilities.webBrowsing`	Web browsing	`true` / `false`

Writing Effective Instructions

For detailed guidance on writing knowledge-aware instructions, grounding directives, citation control, and scope enforcement, see instructions-guide.md.

Fields to NEVER Modify

schemaName — This is the internal Power Platform identifier. Changing it breaks the agent.
publishedOn — Managed by the platform.
template — Managed by the platform.
language — Changing this can corrupt the agent.

If the user asks to change any of these, warn them.

Example: Update Instructions

instructions: |
  You are a customer support agent for Contoso Ltd.

  Guidelines:
  - Be professional and empathetic
  - Always verify the customer's identity first
  - Escalate billing issues to a human agent

Skill frontmatter

user-invocable: false argument-hint: allowed-tools: Bash(node *schema-lookup.bundle.js *), Read, Edit, Glob context: fork agent: copilot-studio-author