yq | Alison's LLM Skills Marketplace | Alison's LLM Skills Marketplace

Files

SKILL.mdagentsreferences

Install

Install only this skill with npx skills

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

Install the containing skill bundle

/plugin install shared-skills@llm-skills

Download yq-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:yq

SKILL.md

name: yq description: > Process YAML, XML, and TOML files using jq-like filtering syntax. Use when the task involves format conversion, data extraction, filtering, or in-place editing across YAML, XML, and TOML files. yq wraps jq to handle YAML input/output, xq handles XML transcoding, and tomlq handles TOML files.

yq: Data Format Processor

Process YAML, XML, and TOML files using jq-compatible filtering syntax. yq acts as a bridge between jq's powerful filtering and the diverse data formats used in modern development.

Prerequisite Check

Run this before proposing yq filters or in-place edits:

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

For the Python-wrapper form of yq, also verify jq when filters depend on it:

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

If yq is missing, surface that first. Fall back to jq for JSON-only work, xq for XML, or plain text tools only when reduced coverage is acceptable.

Intent Router

Load reference files for depth on specific topics:

Topic	File	Load when...
Install & Setup	`references/install-and-setup.md`	Getting started with yq installation and initial configuration
Quick Reference	`references/quick-reference.md`	Need common flags, commands, and command-line options
Usage Patterns	`references/usage-patterns.md`	Learning filtering, format conversion, and data manipulation techniques
Examples & Recipes	`references/examples-and-recipes.md`	Looking for practical examples and real-world workflows

Quick Start

Basic yq Workflow

Extract data — Filter YAML/XML/TOML using jq syntax: yq .foo.bar file.yml
Convert formats — Convert between formats: yq -o json file.yml or yq -y file.json
Edit in place — Modify files directly: yq -i '.foo = "new"' file.yml
Preserve structure — Use -Y (roundtrip) for custom YAML tags and folded strings

Common Commands

yq .foo.bar file.yml                    # Extract nested field as JSON
yq -y .foo file.yml                     # Extract as YAML output
yq '.[] | select(.status == "active")' file.yml   # Filter array elements
yq -i '.version = "2.0"' file.yml       # Modify and save in-place
yq -o json file.yml                     # Convert YAML to JSON
yq -o yaml file.json                    # Convert JSON to YAML
xq .book.author file.xml                # Process XML with xq
tomlq .database.host file.toml          # Process TOML with tomlq
yq -Y -i '.description |= split("\n")' file.yml   # Preserve tags during edit

# Verify the runtime before edits
yq --version
jq --version

# Safe read-only extraction before in-place edits
yq -o json '.services.api.image' docker-compose.yml

Key Features

jq-compatible filtering — All jq syntax works on YAML/TOML/XML
Roundtrip mode — -Y preserves custom YAML tags and formatted strings
Format conversion — Seamlessly convert between JSON, YAML, TOML, XML
In-place editing — -i flag modifies files directly, with backup if needed
Streaming — Process stdin/stdout like jq for pipeline chaining

Related References

Load Quick Reference for command flags, options, and jq filter examples
Load Usage Patterns to understand filtering, modification, and format conversion techniques
Load Examples & Recipes for practical workflows and troubleshooting
Recovery note: when yq is unavailable, say which reduced path still works. jq covers JSON, xq covers XML, and shell text tools lose structural guarantees.