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Prompt Assets

Prompt files and prompt formats that keep model instructions versioned with code.

How To Evaluate Entries​

Each entry in this family should make the following points clear:

  • What the convention is.
  • Where the file, URL, or protocol surface normally lives.
  • When a team should use it.
  • Adoption evidence from a public spec, canonical docs, or active ecosystem use.
  • Which example illustrates the convention, if one exists.
  • Related conventions that solve adjacent problems.

Registry Entries​

These conventions standardize how prompts are stored, versioned, and shared inside codebases, keeping them cleanly separated from application logic.

.prompty​

An asset class and open file format for prompts. Prompty files are modified Markdown documents with YAML frontmatter containing model configurations, inputs, and execution metadata, followed by the prompt template in Markdown.

Initially introduced by Microsoft, it is now adopted by tools like Promptflow, LangChain, and Semantic Kernel.

.prompt and system_prompt.txt​

A more informal but widespread convention across various LLM CLIs and custom toolchains. Storing prompts in .prompt files or system_prompt.txt keeps the prompt content out of the script file, making it easier for human developers to read and edit them like normal text documents.

  • Reference: Promptfoo natively parses .prompt files.