# Claude Cowork skills, plugins and connectors, and how open source Kortix owns them

> In the open-source Kortix AI Operating System, a Claude Cowork skill becomes a markdown file and a config line in a git repo you own. Inside Cowork itself, skills and plugins live in your Claude account and follow the account across surfaces.

URL: https://claudecoworkalternative.com/claude-cowork-skills

## What changes when skills move into a repo

Cowork and OpenWork cells come from each vendor's own pages; the Kortix column quotes Kortix.

| | Kortix | Claude Cowork | OpenWork |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Open source | Yes. Open source. Read it, fork it, audit it. | No. | Yes. The desktop app is open source. |
| Where skills live | `skills/<name>/SKILL.md` in the project git repo. | In your Claude account as installed plugins. | SKILL.md folders in the workspace's .opencode/skills/. |
| How you share them with a team | One git repo the team clones; grants in kortix.yaml. | An admin turns on sharing; share to people or groups. | Share skills and plugins from OpenWork Cloud or a self-hosted control plane. |
| Versioning and rollback | Git history: diff any change, roll back any part. | Recipients pick up your latest version at next use. | Commit the skill folders to a shared repository to version them. |
| Connectors and credential handling | Credentials are brokered server-side and never enter the machine. | Connectors call through Anthropic's cloud, not your local network. | Admins add MCP servers; members never see server URLs or tokens. |
| Review before it goes live | Session work reaches main through a change request. | Permissions can require approval before significant actions. | Runs in folders you authorize; edits land in your local files. |

## What a skill or plugin is in Claude Cowork

A skill in Claude Cowork is a folder of instructions that Claude loads when a task needs it. A plugin bundles skills, connectors and sub-agents into one install. Anthropic's help center says you add one from the Customize menu: open the Plugins tab, then the Discover tab, then Add; in Cowork you open the Cowork tab first. Plugins need a paid plan, and the skills a plugin carries work in chat and in Cowork alike ([Use plugins in Claude](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/13837440-use-plugins-in-claude)).

## Where that configuration lives

A plugin you add in chat or in the desktop app is saved to your Claude account rather than to your computer, so it follows you into Cowork and into Claude Code when you sign in with the same account. On Team and Enterprise plans an owner can switch on skill and plugin sharing, and then you share a plugin you uploaded with specific people or with a group; each recipient gets a view-only copy and enables it themselves. An update you make later reaches them at their next use, and you can stop sharing at any time ([Team and Enterprise plans](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/13455879-use-claude-cowork-on-team-and-enterprise-plans)).

## What a team wants from that layer

When a skill encodes how a company does one job, the team that owns the job usually wants the skill in a repository, reviewed with the rest of its configuration and with a change it can undo. Cowork keeps that layer in the product and with the account. A connector in Cowork also reaches external services through Anthropic's cloud, not through your local network, as Anthropic documents on the [Cowork product page](https://claude.com/product/cowork).

## How open-source Kortix represents the same layer

Kortix is the open-source AI Operating System: your agents, their skills, company memory, and connectors in one git repo you own. An agent is a markdown file under `agents/` for its behavior plus an `agents.<name>` block in `kortix.yaml` for what it may reach, and a skill is a folder with a `SKILL.md` inside it. Connectors and triggers are declared in the same manifest, so the whole operating layer is text a person can read:

```yaml
kortix_version: 2
default_agent: support
agents:
  support:
    file: agents/support.md
    connectors: [helpdesk]
    secrets: [HELPDESK_API_KEY]
    skills: [kortix-cli, triage]
    kortix_permissions: [project.session.read, project.review.submit]
```

Session work reaches `main` through a change request, and merge is default-deny for agents, so a change to a skill or a connector is a diff a person reads before the team gets it. The [Kortix docs](https://kortix.com/docs) carry the full manifest reference, and [Kortix on GitHub](https://github.com/kortix-ai/suna) is open to read and fork. A team that wants the layer on its own network can follow the [installation guide](/install) and the [self-hosting guide](/self-hosting). The [comparison page](/comparison) sets the options side by side. If you are weighing the two products, [Read the comparison](https://kortix.com/blog/kortix-vs-claude-cowork).

## The same layer as commands

`terminal`

```sh
$ kortix connectors apps gmail
$ kortix connectors add gmail --provider composio --app gmail --apply
$ kortix connectors connect gmail
$ kortix connectors sync
```

Source: https://kortix.com/docs/connect/connectors

From the Kortix connectors documentation.

## Questions about Cowork skills

### Can you share a Claude Cowork skill with your team?

Yes, on Team and Enterprise plans. An owner turns on skill and plugin sharing, then you share a plugin you created with specific people or a group, and each recipient gets a view-only copy they enable themselves.

### Where are Claude Cowork plugins stored?

Plugins you add are saved to your Claude account, not to your computer, so they are available in chat, Cowork and Claude Code when you sign in with the same account.

### Can you version-control agent configuration?

In Claude Cowork that configuration lives in the product and the account. In the open-source Kortix AI Operating System, agents, skills and connectors are files in a git repo, so you diff a change and roll it back.

### What are Kortix skills?

A Kortix skill is a folder with a `SKILL.md` file that encodes how a company does one job, and an agent's `skills` grant in `kortix.yaml` decides which skills it may load.

## Run the agent layer in a repo you own.

Start with one skill and grow from there.

[Try Kortix](https://kortix.com) · [Compare the options](https://claudecoworkalternative.com/comparison)

Open source · Any model, your keys · Self-host, VPC, or on-prem