SourceCanvas AI Skills

1. Install in your AI app

1. Download and extract a ZIP, then read SKILL.md. Place the complete named folder in one location below, not just the Markdown file.
2. Back up an existing same-name Skill before replacing it. Choose personal or project scope, not both.
3. Start a new AI session and check its Skill list; restart the app if necessary. For other Agent Skills-compatible apps, follow their current import instructions. MCP support alone does not imply Skill support.

Claude Code paths are not Claude Desktop instructions. In apps without Skill support, use the SKILL.md workflow as a manual prompt. Installing a Skill does not configure MCP.

2. Connect SourceCanvas for live preview

1. On a Mac, open SourceCanvas → Settings → MCP & AI Apps. Enable AI app connection and connect the app you intend to use.
2. Approve macOS Login Item prompts and check the connection in SourceCanvas. Reconnect MCP in your AI app and confirm tools such as list_formats and render_diagram are available.
3. For local file input/export, authorize only the needed folder in SourceCanvas and ensure it is inside the host's allowed workspace. The standard helper path is below; use the app's configuration for another install location.

/Applications/SourceCanvas.app/Contents/Helpers/sourcecanvas-mcp
serve --stdio

MCP uses local macOS stdio, not a remote URL. iPhone, iPad and Apple Vision Pro can open generated source files, but do not automatically receive Mac preview windows.

3. Try these requests

Create a diagram

$sourcecanvas-diagrams Draw a checkout flow with failure, retry and cancellation. Return Mermaid source. Mark unconfirmed business rules as assumptions.

Open a preview

$sourcecanvas-live-preview Preview that diagram in SC and keep updating the same window when I revise it.

Visualize task progress

$sourcecanvas-live-preview Investigate this login issue and show the investigation in SC. Update the same diagram when a cause is confirmed, a fix is implemented or tests finish. Show the first preview, then update in the background. Only mark evidenced work complete.

These examples use Codex's $ invocation. In Claude Code, replace $ with /. You can also name the Skill in your request. The authoring package has five editable examples; the preview package includes a two-revision API example.

4. Updates, exports and privacy

Keep one preview_id with increasing revisions. Show it once, then update in the background at meaningful milestones. Monitoring does not continue after the AI session stops.

A rendered image does not prove a window is visible. Check diagnostics and presentation output, then verify the UI. Preserve local drafts and ask before resolving conflicts.

Specify the export format and authorized destination. Do not overwrite existing files by default. Use self-contained PlantUML; do not bypass external-resource restrictions.

Local rendering does not change your AI host's data policy. Keep secrets and unnecessary personal data out of diagrams. Resolve purchase or verification messages in SourceCanvas Pro; the Skill cannot purchase for you.

Troubleshooting

Skill missing: check folder nesting and open a new session. MCP tools missing: check the local connection configuration and reconnect the AI app.

Timeout or no window: check the connection in SourceCanvas, then request the preview again. Do not repeatedly launch helper processes manually.

Gantt layout issue: check dates and dependencies, and use official Mermaid mode. Permission denied: authorize only the needed folder, not the entire disk.

Installation references and support