everyinc__compound-engineering-plugin/docs/solutions/integrations/native-plugin-install-strategy.md

title, date, category, module, problem_type, component, symptoms, root_cause, resolution_type, severity, tags

title	date	category	module	problem_type	component	symptoms	root_cause	resolution_type	severity	tags
Native plugin install strategy for supported harnesses	2026-06-19	integrations	installer	integration_decision	installer	Formal standalone agent definitions are unevenly supported across coding-agent harnesses Custom Bun installs create extra update and cleanup behavior for users OpenCode and Pi can load skills directly from a git-backed package/plugin shape	evolving_platform_install_surfaces	install_strategy	medium	install-strategy native-plugins cursor codex copilot droid qwen gemini opencode pi

Native Plugin Install Strategy

Last verified: 2026-06-20

Compound Engineering now treats the plugin as a self-contained skills package. Specialist reviewer and researcher behavior lives in skill-local prompt assets under references/agents/ or references/personas/, and skills seed generic subagents with those files when the current harness exposes a subagent primitive. There are no formal standalone CE agents in the plugin surface.

The install strategy follows from that: prefer each harness's native plugin/package mechanism, avoid generated agent installs, and keep the Bun converter as repo tooling rather than the user-facing installer.

Summary

Harness	Current install path	Bun CLI needed?	Notes
Claude Code	Native plugin marketplace using .claude-plugin/marketplace.json and .claude-plugin/plugin.json	No	Claude remains the source plugin format.
Codex	Native Codex plugin install from a custom marketplace pointing at this repository root	No	Codex App users add the marketplace manually with no sparse path; Codex CLI users register the repo and install through /plugins. Skill-local personas avoid the old custom-agent copy step.
Cursor	Native Cursor Plugin Marketplace using .cursor-plugin/marketplace.json and .cursor-plugin/plugin.json	No	Users install from Cursor Agent chat with /add-plugin compound-engineering or marketplace search.
GitHub Copilot CLI	Native plugin marketplace using the existing Claude plugin metadata	No	Copilot translates the Claude plugin metadata itself.
Factory Droid	Native plugin marketplace pointed at the CE GitHub repository	No	Droid translates Claude Code plugins automatically.
Qwen Code	Native extension install from the CE GitHub repository and existing Claude plugin metadata	No	Qwen translates Claude Code extensions automatically.
OpenCode	Git-backed OpenCode plugin entry in opencode.json	No	.opencode/plugins/compound-engineering.js registers the CE skills directory directly.
Pi	Git-backed Pi package install from this repository	No	Root package.json exposes .pi/extensions/compound-engineering.ts and the CE skills directory. pi-ask-user is a recommended companion for richer prompts.
Gemini CLI	Native Gemini extension from this repository root	No	Root gemini-extension.json lets Gemini install the repository as a single extension.

Kiro is no longer a documented CE install target. Historical converter and cleanup code may remain for regression coverage or old artifact handling, but user-facing install docs should not advertise Kiro.

OpenCode

OpenCode can load plugins from git package entries in opencode.json. CE ships .opencode/plugins/compound-engineering.js, which resolves the repository's skills directory and appends it to OpenCode's skill paths.

Recommended config:

{
  "plugin": ["compound-engineering@git+https://github.com/EveryInc/compound-engineering-plugin.git"]
}

For local development, point OpenCode at this checkout:

{
  "plugin": ["/path/to/compound-engineering-plugin/.opencode/plugins/compound-engineering.js"]
}

This replaces the old custom OpenCode Bun install path for normal CE users. The converter can still exist as development or compatibility tooling, but it is not the primary install story.

Pi

Pi can install packages from git repositories. CE exposes a Pi package through root package.json:

{
  "pi": {
    "extensions": ["./.pi/extensions/compound-engineering.ts"],
    "skills": ["./skills"]
  }
}

Install:

pi install git:github.com/EveryInc/compound-engineering-plugin

Recommended companion:

pi install npm:pi-subagents
pi install npm:pi-ask-user

pi-subagents is required for CE workflows that dispatch reviewer, research, or implementation subagents. pi-ask-user is only for richer blocking question UX.

For local development:

pi -e /path/to/compound-engineering-plugin

Gemini CLI

Gemini can install the root extension directly because gemini-extension.json now lives at the repository root:

gemini extensions install https://github.com/EveryInc/compound-engineering-plugin

For local development, point Gemini at the checkout root so the extension sees gemini-extension.json, GEMINI.md, and skills/ together.

Bun Package Posture

The root package remains useful for:

• Repo development scripts and tests.
• OpenCode package metadata (main).
• Pi package metadata (pi field).
• Shared converter code and regression tests for historical or fixture targets.

It is not a public npm installer. Release automation should not publish @every-env/compound-plugin, and README install instructions should not rely on bunx.