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Scaffold an ark.json manifest in the current directory, or edit an existing one. Run this at the start of every new package, or anytime you need to update your manifest.
ark init [--yes] [--type <type>] [--category <category>] | Flag | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| --yes, -y | false | Skip interactive prompts, use defaults |
| --type | (prompt) | Package type: skill, agent, bundle, system, os |
| --category | (prompt) | Category: creative, business, research, engineering, personal, domain |
| --name | dir name | Package name (defaults to current directory name) |
Running ark init without flags launches an interactive prompt:
$ ark init Package name: my-agent Type (skill/agent/bundle/system/os): agent Category: business Description: Automates weekly report generation Author name: Jane Doe Author email: jane@example.com Author URL (optional): https://janedoe.dev Sale model (one-time/subscription): one-time ✓ Created ark.json ✓ Created CLAUDE.md (template) ✓ Created bin/install.sh (template) ✓ Created bin/verify.sh (template) ✓ Created README.md (template)
$ ark init --yes --type skill --category creative ✓ Created ark.json with defaults
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
| ark.json | Package manifest — required for all Ark operations |
| CLAUDE.md | Instructions loaded by Claude Code — your skill/agent logic goes here |
| bin/install.sh | Setup script run after download — copies files, sets permissions |
| bin/verify.sh | Post-install verification — checks the install succeeded |
| README.md | Human-readable docs — shown on the marketplace page |
If ark.json already exists, ark init shows the current values and lets you edit field by field. Press Enter to keep the current value.
$ ark init Ark — ark.json found name: my-agent version: 1.0.0 type: agent category: business description: Automates weekly reports author: Jane Doe <jane@example.com> license: proprietary Edit? (y/n) y Press Enter to keep current value. name: my-agent → version: 1.0.0 → 1.1.0 type: agent → ✓ Updated ark.json
ark.json (structure, setup, tags, etc.) are preserved.
{
"name": "my-agent",
"version": "1.0.0",
"type": "agent",
"category": "business",
"description": "Automates weekly report generation",
"author": {
"name": "Jane Doe",
"email": "jane@example.com",
"url": "https://janedoe.dev"
},
"sale": {
"model": "one-time",
"preferred_price": null
},
"platforms": ["claude-code"],
"requirements": {
"node": ">=18.0.0"
},
"setup": {
"installer": "bin/install.sh",
"post_install_check": "bin/verify.sh"
},
"tags": [],
"license": "proprietary"
}