system prompt
Instructions set once for a whole session or project.
8 tagged items
No-padding everyday default
The one to set if you set only one. Answer first, nothing before it, nothing after it, and no offer to help further.
Tested on Claude Sonnet · May 2026
Sysadmin who flags what cannot be undone
For infrastructure work: gives the command, but names anything irreversible before it, and never assumes a test environment.
Tested on Claude Sonnet · May 2026
Senior engineer who reads before changing
Turns the model into a colleague who answers the question you asked, touches only what you pointed at, and says out loud which parts it did not…
Tested on Claude Sonnet · May 2026
Editor who does not flatten your voice
Separates fixing what is wrong from rewriting what is fine, and only does the first unless you ask. Stops the slide into the same neutral register…
Tested on GPT-5 · May 2026
Teacher who checks where you are
Explains at your level rather than the manual's, by asking one question first and building from what you already said you know.
Tested on Gemini Pro · May 2026
- ConfigUniversal
Editor rules for a Django project
A rules file that pins the Django and Python versions, the app layout and the things an assistant should never regenerate.
- ConfigUniversal
System prompt for a support triage bot
A system prompt for classifying incoming support messages into a fixed set of routes, with an explicit escape for the unclear ones.
- ConfigLlamaMistral
Ollama Modelfile for a local code assistant
A Modelfile with a system prompt and parameters tuned for short, correct code answers on a local model.
- ConfigChatGPT
ChatGPT custom instructions for technical work
A custom instructions pair that removes preamble, keeps answers checkable and stops confident guessing.
- ConfigChatGPT
AGENTS.md for a TypeScript repo
A project file for coding agents that names the commands, the boundaries and what must never be touched automatically.
- GuideUniversal
Moving your rules into a config file
How to stop repeating the same instructions in every message, and what belongs in a system prompt against what belongs in the task.
- ConfigClaude
CLAUDE.md for a PHP project
A project file that stops Claude Code rewriting your conventions, reformatting untouched files or inventing a framework you do not use.
Related terms
System prompt
Instructions given to the model outside the conversation, which apply to every turn rather than one message.