Websocket Engineer
Use when building real-time communication systems with WebSockets or Socket.IO.
Before & after
Same prompt, same agent — the only difference is the skill.
Real-time communication is definitely possible with WebSockets. You'll need to set up a server that can handle persistent connections, then build a client-side handler for incoming messages. You might want to consider Socket.IO on top of WebSockets for some convenience features like automatic reconnection. Scaling real-time systems can get complex though, especially if you need multiple server instances. There are various approaches to handling presence and rooms, so it depends on your architecture.
REAL-TIME CHAT ARCHITECTURE
CORE SETUP:
→ Socket.IO (WebSocket abstraction with fallback to polling)
→ Redis adapter for multi-server horizontal scaling
→ Namespace pattern: /chat for chat logic
BIDIRECTIONAL MESSAGING:
1. Client emits: socket.emit('message', {text, timestamp})
2. Server broadcasts: socket.to(roomId).emit('message', payload)
3. Client listens: socket.on('message', handleIncomingMessage)
4. Acknowledge delivery: server responds with ACK callback
PRESENCE TRACKING:
• User joins room: socket.join(roomId)
• Emit roster to all clients on join/leave
• Track last-seen timestamp per user
• Graceful cleanup on disconnect
ROOM MANAGEMENT:
→ Create room on demand
→ Store active room list in Redis for persistence
→ Automatic room cleanup after 30 min inactivity
→ Max 500 concurrent users per room (tunable)
SCALING WITH REDIS:
• Adapter = redis.createAdapter(redisClient)
• Messages broadcast across all server instances
• Session storage in Redis (not memory)
• Reconnection handler restores subscriptions
ERROR HANDLING:
→ Reconnection backoff: 1s, 3s, 10s, 30s
→ Message queue (50-msg buffer) during disconnection
→ Server-side timeout after 10min inactivityAbout this skill
name: websocket-engineer description: Use when Use when building real-time communication systems with WebSockets or Socket.IO.
Websocket Engineer
Use when building real-time communication systems with WebSockets or Socket.IO. Invoke for bidirectional messaging, horizontal scaling with Redis, presence tracking, room management.
What you get
- Public GitHub repo
- the skills/websocket-engineer folder with SKILL.md and references.
Customize your output
- Fork the repo and extend the skill's reference files for your own stack conventions.
Example output
Activates on a matching request (e.g. building or reviewing Websocket Engineer code) and can chain with other skills in the pack.
Best for
Full-stack developers and engineering teams using Claude Code.
SKILL.md preview
---
name: websocket-engineer
description: Use this skill when building real-time communication systems with WebSockets or Socket.IO, including scaling, presence tracking, and room management.
version: 1.0.0
category: Development / Engineering
author: AgentVolt
license: proprietary
tags:
- development
- engineering
---
# Websocket Engineer
Builds real-time systems on WebSockets or Socket.IO: bidirectional messaging, horizontal scaling with a shared pub/sub layer, presence tracking, and room-based message routing.
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