shelf Docs

Sets

Sets are named groups of library skills that you borrow together in one step, such as frontend for your React, Playwright and accessibility skills. This page covers creating, nesting, borrowing and deleting them.

On this page

Create a set

terminal
shelf set save frontend react-best-practices playwright-testing -d "UI work in React apps"
Saved frontend (2 skills): playwright-testing, react-best-practices
Borrow it with `shelf borrow @frontend`

Set names follow the skill-name rules (lowercase letters, digits and single hyphens). Every skill must be in the library. -d sets a description; without it, an existing set keeps its description.

Saving a set that exists replaces its skills. To add one skill, save the set again with the full list.

Build on another set

A skill argument starting with @ includes every skill of another set:

terminal
shelf set save web @frontend api-design
Saved web (3 skills): api-design, playwright-testing, react-best-practices

The set stores the expanded list of skills, not a reference: changing frontend later doesn't change web.

List sets

terminal
shelf set list
NAME      SKILLS                                                        DESCRIPTION
backend   api-design, git-hygiene, sql-migrations                       
frontend  accessibility-audit, playwright-testing, react-best-practic…  UI work in React apps

Archived skills are left out of a set's list.

Borrow a set

terminal
shelf borrow @frontend
Borrowed playwright-testing (due 2026-11-06) → .agents/skills, .claude/skills
Borrowed react-best-practices (due 2026-11-06) → .agents/skills, .claude/skills

Each skill becomes an ordinary loan with its own due date, renewals and lockfile entry. Nothing about the set reaches the project: returning one skill doesn't affect the others, and the lockfile never mentions sets. You can mix sets and skills: shelf borrow @frontend pdf-tools. shelf keep @frontend keeps every skill of the set that the project borrows.

Delete a set

terminal
shelf set delete web
Deleted the set web

Deleting a set never touches loans or skills.

Where sets live

Sets are stored in your database (~/.shelf/shelf.db), like your library, so they are per machine. Agents use sets only when you name one; the guide tells them not to create or change sets unless asked.

In the dashboard, the Library page has a Sets section to create, edit and delete sets, and the borrow dialog has a chip per set.