Install and use your project harness

Give a coding agent the project guidance it needs to work with OwlMeans conventions. The harness includes tailored instructions, skills and memory support.

1. Open the project workspace and connect the stdio MCP server.
2. Call describe_harness for the intended agent to review the available guidance.
3. Confirm the directory where the files should be written.
4. Call install_harness with the matching harness and dir.
5. Start or refresh the agent session so it reads the installed guidance.
6. Ask it to inspect the project and current work before developing a feature.

{
  "dir": "/absolute/path/to/project",
  "harness": "codex",
  "mcpConfig": false
}

Supported harness selectors include claude-code, codex, copilot and opencode. Use the selector for your coding agent, not the chat product’s marketing name.

Keeping mcpConfig: false lets you retain an existing client-wide MCP configuration. Set it to true only when you intend the installer to write project MCP configuration and have reviewed that effect.

install_harness needs a host with local execution. It is not available from the hosted HTTP endpoint. describe_harness is an extension tool and is available only when the connected host supplies that extension.

Preserve the project’s guidance and memory in later source handoffs. Ask a new agent to read them first. See continue with another agent.

Names and marks

OpenAI, ChatGPT and related OpenAI marks belong to OpenAI; Codex is an OpenAI product. Usage policy.

Claude and Claude Code are Anthropic products; their names and marks remain with their respective owner. Usage policy.

Node.js, npx names and any associated marks remain with their respective owners or project maintainers. References identify products, standards or source examples. OwlMeans documentation does not imply sponsorship or endorsement by those owners.