google-agents-cli-adk-code

The Python side of building an agent with Google's kit: how to hand the agent a tool it can call, how to keep track of what it has been told partway through a job, and which worked example to copy rather than invent from scratch.

WHEN TO USE

SCOPE

USE FOR

Write tool functions, callbacks, and state management for an Agent Development Kit agent in Python.
Pick the right orchestration pattern for a multi-step agent, such as sequential or parallel execution.
Look up a full reference recipe for sandboxed code execution or cross-session memory.
Check the exact method signature of a class or function in an installed Agent Development Kit package.

NOT FOR

Scaffolding a new agent project — that's google-agents-cli-scaffold.
Deploying an agent to Agent Runtime, Cloud Run, or GKE — that's google-agents-cli-deploy.

This is a saved copy of the skill's SKILL.md instructions. It may differ from the upstream file or the version you install.

In this document (6)

ADK Code Reference

Activate /google-agents-cli-workflow first for required development phases and scaffolding steps.

1. Study Recipes (No Project Needed)

Read the topic index in references/samples.md before answering "how do I build X". Worked implementations exist for: sandboxed/per-user code execution, agent-loadable SKILL.md skills, cross-session memory, approval gates before risky actions, tool guardrails, per-user credentials, and scheduled/event-driven runs.

The index only gives you a name; the recipe is the code. Clone it and read its AGENTS.md before you implement anything it covers. Hand-writing a Docker or E2B sandbox wrapper, a skill loader, a moderation callback or a memory store — for a capability the index lists — means you stopped at the name.

2. Prerequisites for Writing Code

Do NOT write agent code until a project is scaffolded.

Verify project: run agents-cli info (proceed if config exists).
New project: run agents-cli scaffold create <name>.
Existing code: run agents-cli scaffold enhance ..

Language Support: This reference covers the Python ADK SDK. Support for other languages coming soon.

Quick Reference — Most Common Patterns

from google.adk.agents import Agent

def get_weather(city: str) -> dict:
    """Get current weather for a city."""
    return {"city": city, "temp": "22°C", "condition": "sunny"}

root_agent = Agent(
    name="my_agent",
    model="gemini-3.7-flash",
    instruction="You are a helpful assistant that ...",
    tools=[get_weather],
)

References

Use cheatsheets for common patterns. For deep knowledge, fetch the docs index or inspect the installed package.

Reference	When to read
`references/samples.md`	Topic-indexed catalog of ADK reference recipes. Read in workflow Phase 1 — before scaffolding and before writing code — maps a capability to the recipe that implements it.
`references/adk-python.md`	Core ADK API: `Agent`, tools, callbacks, plugins, state, artifacts, multi-agent systems, `SequentialAgent` / `ParallelAgent` / `LoopAgent`, custom `BaseAgent`, `ManagedAgent` (server-hosted first-party agents), A2A protocol, A2UI. Default for most agents.
`references/adk-workflows.md`	Graph-based Workflow API (ADK 2.0): nodes, edges, fan-out/fan-in, HITL, parallel processing. Use when you need explicit graph topology.
`curl https://adk.dev/llms.txt`	Docs index (every page title + URL). Fetch it, then `WebFetch` the specific page for anything beyond the cheatsheets.
Installed ADK package	Exact signatures and symbols — inspect the source (see "Inspecting ADK Source Code" in `references/adk-python.md`).

Related Skills

/google-agents-cli-workflow — Development workflow, coding guidelines, and operational rules
/google-agents-cli-scaffold — Project creation and enhancement with agents-cli scaffold create / scaffold enhance
/google-agents-cli-eval — Evaluation methodology, dataset schema, and the eval-fix loop
/google-agents-cli-deploy — Deployment targets, CI/CD pipelines, and production workflows

Local tool required

2 FOR THE AGENT

All items below are required.

01
Install the agents-cli tool
Install the agents-cli command-line tool with uv tool install google-agents-cli, as the frontmatter's requires.bins declares; it provides the agents-cli binary the scaffolding commands below run.
```
uv tool install google-agents-cli
```
02
Scaffold or verify the ADK project
Run agents-cli info to confirm a project exists; if not, run agents-cli scaffold create <name> for a new project or agents-cli scaffold enhance . to add ADK structure to existing code, before writing any agent code.
```
agents-cli info
```

Listed as free: Connected services may require an account or charge fees.
Installation: One command — usually under 2 minutes.

This skill ships inside the Google Agents CLI plugin.

Run this outside your AI tool, using Node.js 22.20.0 or newer. Skills CLI 1.7.2 skips skill selection; prompts cancel installation without an interactive terminal. If choosing Project when asked about installation scope, open your project's folder before running this.

Install checklist

Check selected tools if a picker appears; Claude Code may be unchecked under Additional agents. ↑/↓ moves, Space toggles selections, Enter confirms.
Without a tool picker, check Installing to: for your intended tool. Stop if it names a different tool.
If asked, choose Symlink (Recommended) for shared files or Copy to all agents for separate copies; review the summary before confirming installation.
Install the find-skills skill? defaults to Yes, adding another skill for all projects. Choose No if you don't want that extra installation.

Skills CLI 1.7.2 sends install data to skills.sh by default, including the source, skill names, target tools and file details; GitHub sources are reported only when GitHub confirms the repository is public, while other remote sources can also be reported. Confirmed-public GitHub sources also trigger a security-audit request. Before installing, set the environment variable DO_NOT_TRACK=1 or DISABLE_TELEMETRY=1 to disable both.

npx skills add google/agents-cli --skill "google-agents-cli-adk-code" --full-depth

After installing for Claude Code, open it in the installation project if you chose Project; Global makes the skill available across projects on this computer. Once Claude Code loads the skill, its description helps Claude decide when to use it.

If installation created a top-level skills folder that did not exist when your Claude Code session started, run /reload-skills in that session. Run it again after later changes in that folder.

What's inside

Files included with this skill.

View on GitHub

Same repository

google-agents-cli-deploy
This skill should be used when the user wants to "deploy an agent", "deploy my ADK agent", "set up CI/CD", "configure secrets", "troubleshoot a deployment", or needs guidance on Agent Runtime, Cloud Run, or GKE deployment targets, or binding an agent to an Agent Gateway. Covers deployment workflows, service accounts, rollback, and production infrastructure. Applies to any framework agents-cli deploys (ADK, LangChain, ...). Part of the agents-cli skills suite. Do NOT use for agent API code patterns (ADK: use google-agents-cli-adk-code), evaluation (use google-agents-cli-eval), or project scaffolding (use google-agents-cli-scaffold).Read full description
google-agents-cli-eval
This skill should be used when the user wants to "run an evaluation", "evaluate my agent", "evaluate my ADK agent", "write an eval dataset", "analyze eval failures", "compare eval results", "optimize agent", or needs guidance on the Agent Platform eval methodology and the Quality Flywheel. Covers eval metrics, dataset schema, LLM-as-judge scoring, and common failure causes. Applies to any agents-cli project, whatever framework the agent is written in. Do NOT use for agent API code patterns (ADK: use google-agents-cli-adk-code), deployment (use google-agents-cli-deploy), or project scaffolding (use google-agents-cli-scaffold).Read full description
google-agents-cli-observability
This skill should be used when the user wants to "set up tracing", "monitor my agent", "configure logging", "add observability", "debug production traffic", or needs guidance on monitoring deployed agents, including ADK (Agent Development Kit) agents. Covers Cloud Trace, prompt-response logging, BigQuery Agent Analytics, third-party integrations (AgentOps, Phoenix, MLflow, etc.), and troubleshooting. Part of the agents-cli skills suite. Do NOT use for deployment setup (use google-agents-cli-deploy) or API code patterns (use google-agents-cli-adk-code).Read full description
google-agents-cli-publish
This skill should be used when the user wants to "publish an agent", "publish my ADK agent", "register an agent with Gemini Enterprise", "publish to Gemini Enterprise", or needs guidance on the agents-cli publish gemini-enterprise command. Also use when the user wants to "manage agents in Agent Registry", "list/update/delete registered agents", or "register an MCP server". Covers ADK vs A2A registration modes, programmatic and interactive usage, flag reference, auto-detection from deployment metadata, Agent Registry fleet management, and troubleshooting. Part of the agents-cli skills suite. Do NOT use for deployment (use google-agents-cli-deploy).Read full description
google-agents-cli-scaffold
This skill should be used when the user wants to "create an agent project", "start a new ADK project", "build me a new agent", "add CI/CD to my project", "add deployment", "enhance my project", or "upgrade my project". Part of the agents-cli skills suite. Covers agents-cli scaffold create, scaffold enhance, and scaffold upgrade commands, template options, deployment targets, and the prototype-first workflow. Do NOT use for writing agent code (ADK projects: use google-agents-cli-adk-code) or deployment operations (use google-agents-cli-deploy).Read full description
google-agents-cli-workflow
This skill should be used when the user wants to "develop an agent", "build an agent using ADK", "run the agent locally", "debug agent code", "test an agent", "deploy an agent", "publish an agent", "monitor an agent", or needs the ADK (Agent Development Kit) development lifecycle and coding guidelines. Entrypoint for building ADK agents. Always active — provides the full workflow (scaffold, build, evaluate, deploy, publish, observe), code preservation rules, model selection guidance, and troubleshooting steps for ADK or any agent development.Read full description

ADK Code Reference

1. Study Recipes (No Project Needed)

2. Prerequisites for Writing Code

Quick Reference — Most Common Patterns

References

Related Skills

Local tool required

What's inside

More skills

google-agents-cli-deploy

google-agents-cli-eval

google-agents-cli-observability

google-agents-cli-publish

google-agents-cli-scaffold

google-agents-cli-workflow