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# addSkill

> Add and initialize a skill instance. Fails closed on invalid config.

[ref-skillbase]: /docs/server-sdks/reference/typescript/agents/skill-base

[ref-setup]: /docs/server-sdks/reference/typescript/agents/skill-base/setup

Add a skill to the manager. The call sequence is:

1. Deduplicate by instance key (multi-instance skills with the same key are
   skipped with a warning; single-instance duplicates throw).
2. Validate required environment variables — throws if any are missing.
3. Validate that the skill's `getParameterSchema()` returns a non-empty object.
4. Validate required NPM packages — throws if any cannot be imported.
5. Call [`setup()`][ref-setup] — **throws if it returns `false`**.
6. Mark the skill initialized and register it.

> **Note**
>
> `addSkill` **fails closed**: any validation miss or a `setup()` returning
> `false` throws and the skill is not registered. The wrapper methods
> `loadSkill` / `loadSkillByName` catch and convert the throw into a
> `[false, message]` tuple that matches the Python SDK's `load_skill` contract.

## **Parameters**

**`skill`** `SkillBase` — required

The skill instance to add.

---

## **Returns**

`Promise<void>`

## **Throws**

* `Error` — duplicate single-instance skill already loaded.
* `Error` — missing required environment variables.
* `Error` — `getParameterSchema()` returns an empty object.
* `Error` — missing required NPM packages.
* `Error` — `setup()` returned `false`.

> Add and initialize a skill instance. Fails closed on invalid config.