Plugins

What Plugins Are

• A plugin is one installable unit that packages a setup and moves it between people
• Bundles all components: skills, sub-agents, hooks, MCP server configs, language server protocol servers, background monitors, themes, and settings. json slice
• Allows teams to share trusted setups instead of copying and pasting between machines

Installation Methods

• Individual session: /plugin install organization-name/plugin-name
• Team setup: Add a private marketplace once with /plugin marketplace add organization/cloud-plugins, then all installs resolve through it with centralized discovery, version tracking, and updates

How Plugins Work

• Run code on your machine with your privileges
• Hooks fire on every matching tool call
• Pre-tool use and stop hooks execute whether you read them or not
• Components run alongside your configuration (no overwrites)
• Skills, agents, and commands are namespaced under the plugin name to prevent clashes
• First hooks stack together—both plugin and your own hooks fire on every tool call

Security & Trust Considerations

• Install only from sources you truly trust—plugins can ship hooks that call out to network administrators without warning in your configuration
• Community plugins undergo Anthropic automated review, but reviewed ≠ trusted
• Official marketplace is curated separately
• Read plugin details before installing—check what it actually does
• Settings. json is limited; Cloud Code only honors agent and sub-agent status line keys
• Setting agent promotes a plugin's sub-agent to main thread, changing Cloud Code's default behavior

Building & Packaging Plugins

• Manifest file: . cloudplugin. json (optional but recommended)
• Required field: name only
• Include: version, description, author
• Directory structure mirrors . cloud format: skills (one folder per skill), agents (one markdown file per sub-agent), hooks, . hooks. json, . mcp. json at plugin root
• Name namespaces skills as company-name/skill-name
• Version like any other dependency

Best Practices

• Read before you install
• Package your . cloud directory the moment it works
• One manifest, one install reaches your entire team

Takeaways

• Plugins bundle all components (skills, agents, hooks, configs) into one installable unit that teams can share instead of copying setups between machines
• Install plugins only from sources you truly trust—they run with your privileges and can execute hooks that call out to networks without warning
• Read plugin details before installing to understand what it actually does; community review is automated but doesn't mean it's trustworthy for your use case
• Plugins namespace their skills and agents under the plugin name to prevent conflicts, and hooks stack with your own hooks to fire on every matching tool call
• Package your . cloud directory with a . cloudplugin. json manifest (name required) to instantly share your setup across your entire team