memtrace-session-continuity

name

memtrace-session-continuity

description

Catch up on everything that changed in an indexed source-code repo since the last session, using stored session anchors and Memtrace change memory. Use when the user asks to continue, catch up, resume, see what changed while away, recover prior context, or orient at session start without guessing timestamps. Do not use git log, Grep, or manual file search for catch-up; Memtrace provides session anchors and change memory.

Overview

Session continuity for agents. Store a timestamp from your last session and call get_changes_since to see exactly what happened since then — then drill into details with get_evolution if needed.

Core principle: Persist a since timestamp (or the until from your last catch-up call). Never invent a days parameter.

Steps

1. Find or bootstrap the session anchor

Look for a stored anchor from your last session:

{
  "repo_id": "memdb",
  "since": "2026-04-13T10:43:00Z"
}

If you have no anchor yet (first run), call list_indexed_repositories. Use last_episode_time from the repo entry as a bootstrap since value, or ask the user how far back to look.

2. Call get_changes_since

{
  "repo_id": "memdb",
  "since": "2026-04-13T10:43:00Z"
}

Optional: pass until to cap the upper bound (defaults to now).

Required param is since — not last_episode_id, not days. Same time formats as get_evolution.from ("7d ago", ISO-8601, etc.).

Full parameter spec for every Memtrace tool: references/mcp-parameters.md (bundled at the memtrace-skills plugin root).

3. Interpret the response

Response shape: see Output below. Act on totals.episode_count:

totals.episode_count	Action
0	Nothing changed — safe to proceed
1–20	Review each episode's touched_files and change counts
Many episodes	Scan touched_files for overlap with your task; drill down with get_evolution

4. Decide whether changes are relevant

episodes returned
├── Any touched_files overlap your current task area?
│   ├── YES → call get_evolution(from: since, mode: compound) for hotspots
│   └── NO  → safe to continue
└── Need per-commit detail?
    └── get_evolution(from: since, mode: recent, limit: 100)

5. Always persist the new anchor

Store the until value from the response (or the latest episode's reference_time) for next session:

{
  "repo_id": "memdb",
  "since": "2026-04-13T14:22:00Z"
}

Output

get_changes_since returns:

Field	Meaning
episodes[]	Each episode since since, with touched_files, nodes_added/removed, reference_time
totals.episode_count	How many episodes in the window — 0 means nothing changed
since / until	The resolved window boundaries

{
  "since": "2026-04-13T10:43:00Z",
  "until": "2026-04-13T14:22:00Z",
  "episodes": [
    { "reference_time": "2026-04-13T12:05:00Z", "touched_files": ["src/engine/page_cache.rs"], "nodes_added": 4, "nodes_removed": 1 }
  ],
  "totals": { "episode_count": 1 }
}

Common mistakes

Mistake	Reality
Passing last_episode_id or days	get_changes_since requires since — a timestamp string
Using get_evolution without from	Always pass from (e.g. "7d ago") — never omit it or use days
Expecting status, by_module, or session_anchor in the response	Not in the current shape — use episodes[] and totals
Discarding the stored since timestamp	Without it, next session reverts to guessing
Calling this repeatedly within one session	Call once at session start; reuse the result for the rest of the session