Rules
Rules are Markdown instructions that Ingot adds to the agent's context. Ingot reads its own .ingot folder, AGENTS.md, and the rules folders of other AI tools you may already have, without changes.
AGENTS.md
An AGENTS.md at the project root is always included. Use it for how to build, test and structure the project.
The .ingot folder
| Path | Purpose |
|---|---|
.ingot/rules/*.md or *.mdc | rules |
.ingot/skills/<name>/SKILL.md | skills the agent loads when relevant |
.ingot/commands/*.md | slash commands: review.md becomes /review |
.ingot/mcp.json | project MCP servers (MCP) |
.ingot/agents/ | custom agent definitions |
.ingot/hooks/ | hooks |
.ingot/memories/ | project memories |
.ingot/settings.json | workspace settings |
Rule frontmatter
---
description: React component conventions
globs: src/components/**/*.tsx
alwaysApply: false
---
- Named exports only.
- Props types live in Component.types.ts.
| Field | Effect |
|---|---|
alwaysApply: true | included in every chat |
globs | included when a matching file is in context |
description | lets the agent pull the rule in when it's relevant |
Global rules
Put rules, skills and commands in ~/.ingot/ to use them in every project. When a project and the global folder define the same rule or command, the project wins.
Existing setups
Ingot also reads the legacy .alloy folder and the rules folders other AI tools create in a project, so a repository that already has rules works on day one.