task-tracker

name	task-tracker
description	Plan, track, and resume multi-step work across sessions. Use this skill when the user wants to break a project into tasks, track what's done, pick up where they left off, or manage dependencies between steps. Also use when the user asks to plan work, create a checklist, or resume an interrupted session — even if they don't explicitly say "task" or "todo."
compatibility	Requires Python 3.
allowed-tools	Bash(${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/:*) Read

Task Tracker

Skill base directory: ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}

Persist task state across LLM sessions using markdown files in .claude/tasks/. Helps agents plan and remember what they're working on, and track progress through multi-step work.

Quick Start

Scripts are located in ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/. Use the full path when invoking:

# Initialize in current project
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py init

# Add tasks
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "Implement user authentication"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "Write login tests" --parent 01-implement-user-authentication

# Work through tasks
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py start 01-implement-user-authentication
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py done
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py next

Directory Structure

Tasks are stored as markdown files. The filesystem hierarchy represents task hierarchy:

.claude/tasks/
  01-auth-login/
    00-index.md                    # Parent task metadata
    01-create-login-form.md        # Subtask (leaf)
    02-session-management/
      00-index.md                  # Nested parent
      01-implement-jwt.md          # Leaf
      02-add-refresh-tokens.md     # Leaf
  02-deploy-staging.md             # Top-level leaf task

Key rules:

• Leaf tasks (no children) → .md files
• Parent tasks (have children) → directories with 00-index.md
• Adding a subtask to a leaf automatically promotes it to a directory
• Removing the last child automatically demotes back to a file

Task File Format

Each task is a markdown file with YAML frontmatter:

---
status: pending
created: 2026-01-06T10:30:00+00:00
updated: 2026-01-06T11:45:00+00:00
deps:
  - 01-auth-login
approach: Use bcrypt for passwords, JWT for sessions
criteria:
  - Login endpoint returns JWT
  - Invalid creds return 401
files:
  - src/routes/auth.ts
  - src/middleware/jwt.ts
---

# Implement session management

Optional longer description here.

## Notes

### 2026-01-06T10:30:00+00:00

Discovered we need to handle token refresh.

### 2026-01-07T14:00:00+00:00

Redis cluster mode requires different client config.

Statuses

Status	Meaning
pending	Not started
in_progress	Currently working on
blocked	Waiting on external factor
complete	Done
wont_do	Cancelled/skipped

Planning Fields

Optional fields for AI agent context preservation:

Field	Purpose
approach	How to implement (the plan)
criteria	What "done" means (list)
files	Where to look (list of paths)

These help an agent resume work across sessions without re-discovering context.

Commands

All output is JSON. Use ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py for all commands.

Initialize

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py init

Creates .claude/tasks/ directory.

Add Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "Task title"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "Subtask title" --parent 01-parent-task
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "Task with deps" --deps 01-auth-login 02-database
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "With description" --description "Detailed info"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "With approach" --approach "Use existing auth middleware"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "With criteria" --criteria "Tests pass" "Docs updated"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "With files" --files src/auth.ts src/middleware.ts

Adding a subtask to a leaf task automatically promotes it to a directory.

Remove Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py remove 01-auth-login              # Remove task
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py remove 01-auth-login/02-session   # Remove subtask

Removing the last child of a parent automatically demotes it back to a file.

Update Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py update 01-auth-login --title "New title"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py update 01-auth-login --status complete
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py update 01-auth-login --deps 02-database
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py update 01-auth-login --approach "Changed to use Redis"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py update 01-auth-login --criteria "Cache hits > 90%"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py update 01-auth-login --files src/cache.ts

List Tasks

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py list
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py list --status pending
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py list --status in_progress

Show Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py show 01-auth-login
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py show 01-auth-login/02-session

Returns task details including dependency status.

Get Next Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py next

Returns the next task to work on using depth-first logic:

1. If in_progress task has pending subtasks → first pending subtask
2. Otherwise → first pending task with satisfied dependencies

Start Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py start 01-auth-login

Sets status to in_progress and records start time. Warns (but allows) if dependencies incomplete.

Complete Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py done                  # Current in_progress task
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py done 01-auth-login    # Specific task

Block/Unblock Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py block 01-auth-login --reason "Waiting on API spec"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py unblock 01-auth-login

Add Note

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py note 01-auth-login "Discovered edge case X"
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py note 01-auth-login/02-session "Harder than expected"

Attach learnings, context, or decisions to a task. Notes are timestamped and preserved for future sessions.

View All Notes

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py notes

Returns all notes chronologically across all tasks - a project journal showing what you learned over time.

Move Task

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py move 01-auth-login/03-feature --parent 02-backend
${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py move 02-backend/01-api                             # Move to top level

Moves a task to a new location and updates any dependency references.

Dependencies

Tasks can depend on other tasks by path:

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py add "Deploy" --deps 01-auth-login 02-database-setup

Dependencies are soft-blocking:

• next skips tasks with incomplete dependencies
• start warns but allows starting with incomplete deps

Rendering for Humans

Use task-render.py to generate readable markdown:

${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task-render.py

Output:

# Tasks

## In Progress
- **01-auth-login** Implement feature
  _Approach: Use JWT tokens_
  > Discovered we need auth middleware first
  - **01-auth-login/01-create-form** Create login form

## Pending
- **02-deploy-staging** Deploy _(depends on: 01-auth-login)_

## Completed
- [x] **01-auth-login/02-session** Add session management

JSON Output Format

Success

{
  "ok": true,
  "task": { ... }
}

Error (exit code 1)

{
  "ok": false,
  "error": "Task not found: 01-missing"
}

List

{
  "ok": true,
  "tasks": [ ... ],
  "count": 5
}

Gotchas

• Task IDs are derived from titles: Renaming a task changes its ID (slug). Any dependencies referencing the old ID must be updated (the move command handles this, but manual edits do not).
• Adding a subtask promotes a leaf to a directory: If 02-deploy.md exists and you add a subtask, the file becomes 02-deploy/00-index.md. Removing the last child demotes it back. This is automatic.
• next skips blocked tasks silently: If next returns nothing, check whether remaining tasks have unsatisfied dependencies.
• All script output is JSON: Parse with jq or similar. Human-readable output uses task-render.py separately.

Typical Workflow

1. Starting a session: Run ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py next to see what to work on
2. Resuming after time away: Run ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py notes to review learnings
3. Beginning work: Run ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py start <id> on the task
4. Breaking down work: Add subtasks with --parent
5. Capturing learnings: Run ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py note <id> "text" when you discover something
6. Completing: Run ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py done when finished
7. Repeat: Run ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/task.py next for the next task

References

For more detailed guidance, use the Read tool to load:

• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/references/markdown-format.md - The task file format specification
• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/references/project-breakdown.md - How to decompose projects into atomic tasks