harness-sdk
Build an agent harness and control it end-to-end. Open-source SDK for production AI agents in Python & TypeScript - any model, any cloud.
Install / Use
claude mcp add strands-agents -- npx -y github:strands-agents/harness-sdkIf the server publishes to npm under a different name, use that package instead — check the repo README.
MCP Server
Model Context Protocol server
Quality Score
Category
AI & Machine LearningSupported Platforms
Our assessment of harness-sdk
harness-sdk scores 95/100 on our quality scale, 123rd of 965 AI & Machine Learning skills we index (top 13%).
Its MCP Server is 6.8 KB long, well organised into 10 sections with 7 code examples: a thorough specification that gives an agent plenty to work with.
With 9,057 GitHub stars, it is one of the more widely adopted skills in the catalogue.
Maintenance, license and trust
- The repository was last updated today, so harness-sdk is actively maintained.
- Our last check on 2026-10-20 found the source still online.
- It is released under the Apache-2.0 license, a permissive license that allows use, modification and commercial use with attribution.
- Its trust signals score 100/100, with no cautions. These come from repository metadata, not a code audit — read the skill file before letting an agent act on it.
Safety scan
No issues foundOur scan of the whole file found no instruction hijacking, hidden characters, credential access, data exfiltration or destructive commands. An AI review of the same text found nothing harmful.
AI review by kimi-k2.7-code on 2026-09-24. Automated pattern scan on 2026-09-24. It catches known dangerous patterns, not every risk — read a skill before letting an agent act on it.
harness-sdk compared with similar skills
All 4 of these similar skills score higher than harness-sdk; compare them before choosing.
| Skill | Score | Stars | Updated | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| harness-sdk (this skill)by strands-agents | 95 | 9.1k | today | MCP Server |
| claude-memby thedotmack | 100 | 113.5k | today | CLAUDE.md |
| Agent-Reachby Panniantong | 100 | 109.2k | today | CLAUDE.md |
| Understand-Anythingby Egonex-AI | 100 | 90.9k | 10d ago | CLAUDE.md |
| headroomby headroomlabs-ai | 100 | 78.9k | today | CLAUDE.md |
Frequently asked questions
- How do I install harness-sdk?
- Run
claude mcp add strands-agents -- npx -y github:strands-agents/harness-sdk. The install tabs above show the steps for each supported agent. - Which AI agents does harness-sdk work with?
- It is written for Claude Code and Claude Desktop, as a MCP Server file. Other agents that read the same format can often use it too.
- Is harness-sdk safe to use?
- Our scan of the whole file found no instruction hijacking, hidden characters, credential access, data exfiltration or destructive commands. An AI review of the same text found nothing harmful. It is Apache-2.0-licensed and scores 100/100 on trust signals. Skills are instructions an agent will follow, so read the file before installing it and do not approve commands you do not understand.
- Is harness-sdk still maintained?
- The repository was last updated today, so harness-sdk is actively maintained.
Skill content
View source on GitHubStrands Agents is a simple yet powerful SDK that takes a model-driven approach to building and running AI agents. From simple conversational assistants to complex autonomous workflows, from local development to production deployment, Strands Agents scales with your needs.
This monorepo contains the Python SDK, TypeScript SDK, documentation site, and supporting packages:
| Directory | Description |
|-----------|-------------|
| strands-py/ | Python SDK: agent loop, model providers, tools (PyPI · releases) |
| strands-ts/ | TypeScript SDK: agent loop, model providers, tools (npm · releases) |
| strandly/ | Developer CLI for local builds and workspace tooling |
| site/ | Source for the strandsagents.com documentation site (Astro/Starlight) |
| team/ | Governance and cross-SDK process docs (tenets, decisions, PR & compatibility guidelines, and designs/ proposals) |
Why Strands
Build an agent harness. Control it end-to-end.
- Build your way. Any model, any cloud. Context management, execution limits, and observability built in before you write a line of config. Swap backends when you scale; your code stays the same.
- Model agnostic. First-class support for Amazon Bedrock, Anthropic, OpenAI, and Gemini, plus many more providers and custom ones.
- Stay in control. The agent loop traces every decision by default. Hooks let you intercept any step to log it, validate it, or redirect it.
- Deliver outcomes that work. Guardrails catch mistakes before they run. Steering handlers let agents correct themselves instead of failing silently.
MCP, streaming, multi-agent patterns, and structured output are all built in.
Quick Start
Both SDKs default to the Amazon Bedrock model provider, so you'll need AWS credentials configured and model access enabled for Claude Sonnet. The Quickstart Guide covers configuring other providers (Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, Ollama, and more).
Python
Requires Python 3.10+:
pip install strands-agents strands-agents-tools
from strands import Agent
from strands_tools import calculator
agent = Agent(tools=[calculator])
agent("What is the square root of 1764")
The Python SDK README covers tools, model providers, MCP, and bidirectional streaming.
TypeScript
Requires Node.js 20+:
npm install @strands-agents/sdk
import { Agent } from '@strands-agents/sdk'
const agent = new Agent()
const result = await agent.invoke('What is the square root of 1764?')
console.log(result)
More in the TypeScript SDK README, including Zod-typed tools, structured output, and multi-agent patterns.
Documentation
For detailed guidance & examples, explore our documentation:
- User Guide
- Quick Start Guide
- Agent Loop
- Examples
- API Reference: Python · TypeScript
- Production & Deployment Guide
The docs themselves live in this monorepo under site/, and doc PRs are welcome alongside code changes.
Development
Git operations (commits, branches, PRs) are done from the repo root. Each package has its own toolchain:
Python SDK (strands-py/):
cd strands-py
pip install hatch
hatch test # run unit tests
hatch fmt # format & lint
TypeScript SDK (strands-ts/):
npm ci # install from repo root
npm run build # build
npm test # run unit tests
Documentation site (site/):
cd site
npm install
npm run dev # local dev server at http://localhost:4321/
Contributing ❤️
We welcome contributions! See our Contributing Guide for details on:
- Reporting bugs & features
- Development setup
- Contributing via Pull Requests
- Code of Conduct
- Reporting of security issues
Stay in touch with the team
Come meet the Strands team and other users on Discord
License
This project is licensed under the Apache License 2.0 - see the LICENSE.APACHE file for details.
Security
See CONTRIBUTING for more information.
Related Skills
claude-mem
113.5kPersistent Context Across Sessions for Every Agent – Captures everything your agent does during sessions, compresses it with AI, and injects relevant context back into future sessions. Works with Claude Code, OpenClaw, Codex, Gemini, Hermes, Copilot, OpenCode + More
Agent-Reach
109.2kGive your AI agent eyes to see the entire internet. Read & search Twitter, Reddit, YouTube, GitHub, Bilibili, XiaoHongShu — one CLI, zero API fees.
Understand-Anything
90.9kGraphs that teach > graphs that impress. Turn any code into an interactive knowledge graph you can explore, search, and ask questions about. Works with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot, Gemini CLI, and more.
headroom
78.9kCompress tool outputs, logs, files, and RAG chunks before they reach the LLM. 20% fewer tokens for coding agents, 60-95% fewer tokens for JSON, same answers. Library, proxy, MCP server.
Languages
Trust signals
From repository metadata: license, adoption, age and documentation. Not a code audit — see the Safety scan above for what the skill file itself contains.
