記事公開日
Where Should You Define Kiro Settings? — Mastering Global, Workspace, and Powers Layers
Key Takeaways
Understand the three configuration layers of Kiro—Global, Workspace, and Powers—and learn how to use them effectively for your development workflow.
- Understanding the Three Layers: A clear breakdown of Global, Workspace, and Powers and their respective scopes.
- Priority and Overriding Rules: Learn the precedence of settings when multiple configurations conflict.
- Leveraging for Team Development: How to build a unified development environment across your entire team.
- Table of Contents
Introduction: What is Kiro's Config Hierarchy?
Hello. I'm Matsuura from the DX Solution Sales Division.
When you start using Kiro, you'll encounter various features like "Steering," "MCP," and "Powers."
Where you place these settings determines their scope and priority.
In this article, I will explain the differences and best practices for Kiro’s three configuration layers (Global, Workspace, and Powers) with clear diagrams.
What You Will Learn
- Differences and scopes of Global, Workspace, and Powers layers
- Setting priority and overriding rules
- How to choose between personal, project, and task-specific settings
- Effective configuration management for team development
- Practical examples and best practices
Target Audience
- Users confused about where to put Kiro settings
- Developers managing multiple projects with Kiro
- Teams looking to standardize Kiro configurations
- Users wanting to understand how to leverage "Powers" effectively
1. Overview of the Three Layers
Kiro has three layers for configuration files. Each serves a different purpose and scope.
graph TB
classDef globalBox fill:#fff3e0,stroke:#ef6c00,stroke-width:2px
classDef workspaceBox fill:#e8f5e9,stroke:#2e7d32,stroke-width:2px
classDef powersBox fill:#e3f2fd,stroke:#1565c0,stroke-width:2px
User["👤 User"]
subgraph Global ["Global Settings
(~/.kiro/)"]
direction TB
G1["Project Agnostic
• Personal preferences
• Common MCPs"]:::globalBox
end
subgraph Workspace ["Workspace Settings
(Project/.kiro/)"]
direction TB
W1["Project Specific
• Team rules
• Project-local MCPs"]:::workspaceBox
end
subgraph Powers ["Powers
(Task Specific)"]
direction TB
P1["Triggered by Keywords
• AWS Dev
• Documentation"]:::powersBox
end
User --> Global
User --> Workspace
User --> Powers
Global -.->|"Always Applied"| Result["🎯 Final Configuration"]
Workspace -.->|"Applied within Project"| Result
Powers -.->|"Applied when Activated"| Result
Comparison of the Three Layers
| Layer | Location | Scope | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global | ~/.kiro/ | All projects | Personal preferences |
| Workspace | [Project Root]/.kiro/ | Current project | Project/Team standards |
| Powers | Install Directory | Active session | Task-specific optimization |
Configuration Types and Supported Layers
| Config Type | Global | Workspace | Powers | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steering | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | Rules controlling AI behavior |
| MCP | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | External tool integration |
| Ref Documents | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | Spec docs, guides, and manuals |
<File Locations>
・Steering files: Place in steering/ directory
・MCP: Define in settings/mcp.json
・Ref Documents: Place in docs/ for Powers, or anywhere in the project for Workspace.
2. Global Settings: Personal Preferences
2-1. What are Global Settings?
Global settings are personal configurations applied across all projects. These are stored in ~/.kiro/ in your home directory.
2-2. Structure
~/.kiro/
├── steering/
│ ├── personal-preferences.md # Personal style
│ └── common-rules.md # Universal rules
└── settings/
└── mcp.json # Global MCP config
2-3. What to Put in Global Settings
| Content | Reason | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Preferences | Same across all work | Comment style, naming conventions |
| Common MCPs | Always needed tools | Web Search, Filesystem MCP |
| Language | Consistent interaction | Respond in Japanese, date formats |
3. Workspace Settings: Project-wide Standards
3-1. What are Workspace Settings?
Workspace settings are applied specifically within a project. They reside in the .kiro/ directory at the root of your repository.
3-2. Structure
my-project/
├── .kiro/
│ ├── steering/
│ │ ├── project-rules.md # Team rules
│ │ ├── coding-standards.md # Coding guidelines
│ │ └── architecture.md # Design patterns
│ └── settings/
│ └── mcp.json # Project-specific MCP
├── src/
└── package.json
3-3. What to Put in Workspace Settings
| Content | Reason | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Team Rules | Unified team workflow | Commit message conventions |
| Project MCPs | Context-specific tools | GitHub MCP, Slack MCP |
| Tech Stack | Project selection | Frameworks, libraries used |
4. Powers: Task-Specific Packages
4-1. What are Powers?
Powers are packages of settings optimized for specific tasks. They bundle Steering, MCPs, and documents together and activate automatically when keywords are detected.
graph LR
User[👤 ユーザー] -->|「CloudFormation
テンプレートを作成して」| Kiro[🤖 Kiro]
Kiro -->|キーワード検知| Switch{判定}
%% 分岐処理
Switch -.->|ヒットせず| DocPower[📝 ドキュメント用Power
❌ 起動しない]
Switch ==>|「CloudFormation」にヒット| AWSPower[☁️ AWS開発用Power
✅ 起動]
%% 適用結果へのフロー
AWSPower --> Result[✅ 適用されるルール
・CloudFormation記述規約
・AWS Documentation MCP]
%% スタイル定義
classDef active fill:#e3f2fd,stroke:#1565c0,stroke-width:2px,color:#000
classDef inactive fill:#f9f9f9,stroke:#d0d0d0,stroke-width:1px,stroke-dasharray: 5 5,color:#aaaaaa
classDef resultBox fill:#fff3e0,stroke:#ef6c00,stroke-width:2px
%% クラス適用
class DocPower inactive
class AWSPower active
class Result resultBox
The biggest advantage of Powers is "bringing only the tools you need to the desk at the exact moment you need them."
5. Priority and Overriding Rules
5-1. Application Order
When conflicting settings exist across layers, they are applied in the following order of precedence:
graph LR
classDef lowPriority fill:#f9f9f9,stroke:#999,stroke-width:1px
classDef midPriority fill:#e8f5e9,stroke:#2e7d32,stroke-width:2px
classDef highPriority fill:#e3f2fd,stroke:#1565c0,stroke-width:3px
Global["Global
(Lowest)"]:::lowPriority
Workspace["Workspace
(Medium)"]:::midPriority
Powers["Powers
(Highest)"]:::highPriority
Global -->|Override| Workspace
Workspace -->|Override| Powers
Powers --> Result["Final Settings"]
Summary: Maximize Efficiency by Understanding Layers
By mastering Global, Workspace, and Powers layers, you can build a seamless development environment for both solo and team projects.
↓QES will continue to share insights about Kiro, so stay tuned!
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