xxd

Files

SKILL.mdagentsreferencesscripts

Install

Install only this skill with npx skills

npx skills add alisonaquinas/llm-shared-skills --skill 'xxd' -g -y

Install the containing skill bundle

/plugin install shared-skills@llm-skills

Download xxd-skill.zip

This skill is bundled inside shared-skills. Use npx skills when you only want this skill, or install the bundle once to make every included skill available through the plugin marketplace flow. Browse the full skill bundle repository at github.com/alisonaquinas/llm-shared-skills.

Invoke

Invoke this skill after installation

/shared-skills:xxd

SKILL.md

name: xxd description: Create and reverse hexadecimal dumps. Use when the agent needs to inspect, analyze, or extract information from binary files or data structures.

Create and reverse hexadecimal dumps

Prerequisite Check

Run this before proposing forward or reverse hex workflows:

command -v xxd >/dev/null 2>&1 || xxd --version

If xxd is missing, surface that first and fall back to od for read-only inspection. Reverse conversion may need Vim or a machine that includes xxd.

Quick Start

Verify xxd is available: xxd --version or man xxd
Establish the command surface: man xxd or xxd --help
Start with a read-only probe: xxd file

Intent Router

Load only the reference file needed for the active request.

references/install-and-setup.md — Installing xxd on macOS, Linux, Windows
references/cheatsheet.md — Common options, output formats, usage patterns
references/advanced-usage.md — Advanced patterns, performance optimization
references/troubleshooting.md — Common errors, exit codes, platform differences

Core Workflow

Verify xxd is available: xxd --version
Start with safe, read-only operation: xxd [options] file
Validate output on test data before processing at scale
Document exact command and flags for reproducibility

Quick Command Reference

xxd --version                       # Check version
xxd --help                          # Show help
xxd file                            # Basic usage
xxd file | head                     # Limit output
man xxd                             # Full manual

# Read-only inspection with grouped bytes
xxd -g 1 firmware.bin | head

# Reverse a hex dump back into binary
xxd -r payload.hex restored.bin

# Read-only fallback on minimal systems
od -An -tx1 -v firmware.bin | head

Safety Notes

Area	Guardrail
Untrusted input	Validate files from untrusted sources before processing.
Large files	May consume memory on large files. Test with smaller samples first.
Output handling	Pipe output safely. Binary output may corrupt terminal.
Symlinks	Tool may follow or skip symlinks. Check man page for behavior.

Recovery note: if xxd is unavailable, be explicit that od can replace forward inspection but not xxd -r round-trips.

Source Policy

Treat the installed xxd behavior and man xxd as runtime truth.
Use upstream documentation for semantics.

Resource Index

scripts/install.sh — Install xxd on macOS or Linux.
scripts/install.ps1 — Install xxd on Windows or any platform via PowerShell.