Setting up NeqSim Agents and Skills
This is the canonical start-here page for using NeqSim agentic AI: install the
neqsim CLI, install the public community agents and skills into VS Code with
GitHub Copilot, and — for organizations — set up your own private enterprise
agent and skill pages.
Human review is always required for engineering conclusions. Agents help you screen, organize, calculate, and draft — they do not replace engineering judgement.
1. How agents and skills fit together
NeqSim core → core skills → community skills → (enterprise skills) → agents
- Skills are markdown files of reusable engineering methods (code patterns, design rules, correlations). They contain the engineering knowledge.
- Agents are role/workflow definitions that orchestrate skills. They declare
the skills they need (
required_skills) and are invoked from Copilot Chat.
| Layer | Repository | Access |
|---|---|---|
| Library + CLI | equinor/neqsim | Public |
| Community agents | equinor/neqsim-community-agents | Public |
| Community skills | equinor/neqsim-community-skills | Public |
| Enterprise agents/skills | your company’s private repos | Private |
2. Prerequisites
- GitHub account and a GitHub Copilot subscription with a modern LLM.
- Visual Studio Code with the GitHub Copilot and GitHub Copilot Chat extensions (or use GitHub Codespaces in the browser).
- Local development also needs Git, Python 3.8+ (add to PATH), Java (JDK), and Maven.
Tip: activate a Python virtual environment before installing so the
neqsimcommand lands on PATH.
3. Install the neqsim CLI
Windows (PowerShell):
git clone https://github.com/equinor/neqsim.git
cd neqsim
py -3 -m venv .venv
.\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1 # activate FIRST so 'neqsim' lands on PATH
.\install.cmd # pure-batch installer; works on locked-down machines
macOS / Linux:
git clone https://github.com/equinor/neqsim.git && cd neqsim
python3 -m venv .venv && source .venv/bin/activate
./install.sh
Restart the terminal (or fully quit and reopen VS Code) so PATH updates apply, then verify:
neqsim --help
If neqsim is not found, use python -m neqsim_cli --help and see
devtools/README.md.
4. Install the community agents into VS Code
The public catalog is used by default — no login required.
neqsim agent install --all --vscode --force
--allinstalls all community agents;--vscodeexports them into GitHub Copilot Chat;--forceoverwrites stale exports (safe to re-run after updates).- Installing an agent automatically installs the skills it declares in
required_skills.
Browse or install individually:
neqsim agent list # list community agents
neqsim skill list # list community skills
neqsim agent search hydrate # search by name/tag/skill
neqsim agent install <name> --vscode # install one agent
neqsim skill install <name> --vscode # install one skill (standalone)
neqsim agent doctor --target vscode # verify exports
5. Use the agents
Open Copilot Chat in VS Code, type @ to see installed agents, and describe
your task in plain language. Examples: @solve.task, @thermo.fluid,
@process.model, @flow.assurance, @pvt.simulation.
For agentic task-solving (task folders, notebooks, reports) see AGENTS.md and docs/development/TASK_SOLVING_GUIDE.md.
6. Set up your own private enterprise agents and skills
Companies keep proprietary methods, plant data, private tag names, internal URLs,
and project-specific design bases out of the public repos by building their own
private enterprise agent and skill pages on top of the public community
content. Engineers then register those private catalogs with the neqsim CLI
(browser SSO) and install community + enterprise together:
neqsim agent private-init --repo <company>/<company>-neqsim-enterprise-agents --catalog-path enterprise-agents.yaml --login
neqsim skill private-init --repo <company>/<company>-neqsim-enterprise-skills --catalog-path enterprise-skills.yaml
neqsim agent install --all --vscode --force # community + enterprise
Full company setup, catalog format, discovery, and governance: Enterprise Agent and Skill Repositories.
7. Learn more
- Skills Guide — full skill authoring and install walkthrough
- Enterprise Agent and Skill Repositories — private company setup
- VISION_AGENTS.md — what belongs in core vs. community
- .github/skills/README.md — quick contribution guide
- community-agents.yaml / community-skills.yaml — the catalogs