Skip to content

Skills and Tools (OpenClaw + MCP)

This document defines how we design ConnectSoft-focused OpenClaw skills/tools and when MCP servers are appropriate.

Principles

  • Small, composable skills beat monolith skills.
  • Explicit inputs/outputs (files created, commands executed, summary produced).
  • Allowlists for repos, paths, and tool capabilities.
  • Approval gates for any action that changes shared state (push/publish/production edits).

OpenClaw configuration basics

OpenClaw reads config from ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json and validates it strictly against its schema.

Common operational commands:

  • openclaw config get <path>
  • openclaw config set <path> <value>
  • openclaw config unset <path>
  • openclaw doctor
  • openclaw logs

See also: https://docs.openclaw.ai/configuration.

ConnectSoft skill set (initial)

RepoSyncSkill

Purpose: clone/fetch allowed repos from Azure DevOps into the local repos folder.

Outputs:

  • updated local clones
  • a sync report (repo, branch, old/new commit SHAs)

IndexBuildSkill

Purpose: build/refresh the semantic index over the allowlisted repos.

Outputs:

  • index artifacts under ...\\indexes\\
  • an index report (repos, SHAs, exclusions)

DotnetLibraryIncubatorSkill

Purpose: propose, scaffold, build, and test a new library using ConnectSoft.LibraryTemplate.

Outputs:

  • a generated library under ...\\runs\\<runId>\\...
  • build/test/pack outputs and artifact paths

When to use MCP servers

Use MCP when you need structured access to external systems beyond local git + CLI:

  • Azure DevOps work items (create/update/query)
  • PR metadata, checks, pipelines
  • documentation search/fetch in controlled ways

Note

Start with local git for repo sync. Add an Azure DevOps MCP server only when you need structured work item / PR automation.

  • Tool access limited to:
  • C:\\OpenClaw\\workspaces\\connectsoft\\repos\\
  • C:\\OpenClaw\\workspaces\\connectsoft\\runs\\
  • C:\\OpenClaw\\workspaces\\connectsoft\\indexes\\
  • Block network calls except:
  • Azure DevOps git remotes
  • explicitly allowed documentation sources
  • Require mention/pairing/allowlist on inbound channels.