context-compression

name	context-compression
description	Manage and compress conversation context in long sessions. Detect when context is growing large, summarize completed work phases, archive old findings while preserving key decisions. Prevents context degradation.
when_to_use	When a session has 20+ turns, when context feels repetitive, when the agent is losing track of earlier work, or when the user says 'summarize what we've done'. NOT for short sessions.
effort	low

Context Compression — Long Session Management

Keep sessions productive by compressing completed work while preserving key decisions.

Overview

Long sessions (30+ turns) cause context degradation — the AI loses track of earlier work, repeats itself, or forgets decisions. Context compression proactively summarizes completed phases so the context window stays focused on active work.

Token Impact: Recovers 5,000-15,000 tokens in long sessions by replacing verbose tool outputs with semantic summaries.

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When to Compress

Signal	Action
Session has 20+ turns	Consider proactive compression
Agent repeats earlier suggestions	Context is saturated — compress now
User says "we already discussed this"	Compress immediately
Switching to a new phase of work	Compress the completed phase
Large tool output (500+ lines)	Micro-compact the output

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Compression Levels

Level 1: Micro-Compact (Tool Output)

Compress individual tool outputs while retaining semantic content:

❌ Before (raw grep output — 200 lines, ~4,000 tokens):
src/auth/jwt.ts:15: import { verify } from 'jsonwebtoken'
src/auth/jwt.ts:23: export function validateToken(token: string) {
src/auth/jwt.ts:24:   try {
src/auth/jwt.ts:25:     const decoded = verify(token, SECRET)
... (195 more lines)

✅ After (micro-compact — 5 lines, ~100 tokens):
Grep results for "jwt": Found 8 files, 42 matches.
Key files: src/auth/jwt.ts (main JWT logic), src/middleware/auth.ts (middleware),
src/api/login.ts (token creation). Token validation at jwt.ts:23-40.
Error handling at jwt.ts:42-55. Secret loaded from env at jwt.ts:8.

Level 2: Phase Summary

Replace a completed work phase with a summary:

❌ Before (full research transcript — ~3,000 tokens):
[turn 1] Read package.json...
[turn 2] Read src/index.ts...
[turn 3] Grep for "auth"...
[turn 4] Found 8 files related to auth...
[turn 5] Read src/auth/jwt.ts...
... (10 more turns of exploration)

✅ After (phase summary — ~200 tokens):
## Research Phase Complete
- Project: Next.js 15 app with JWT auth
- Auth files: 8 files in src/auth/, src/middleware/, src/api/
- Token flow: login → create JWT → store in httpOnly cookie → validate in middleware
- Bug location: src/auth/jwt.ts:45 — expiry check uses `<` instead of `<=`
- Decision: Fix the comparison operator, add edge case test

Level 3: Session Checkpoint

Full session summary for long-running work:

## Session Checkpoint (Turn 35)

### Completed
- [x] Researched auth system (8 files, JWT flow mapped)
- [x] Fixed token expiry bug in jwt.ts:45
- [x] Added edge case test in jwt.test.ts
- [x] Verified: all 42 tests passing

### In Progress
- [ ] Update API documentation
- [ ] Review related middleware

### Key Decisions
1. Keep httpOnly cookies (not localStorage) for token storage
2. Use `<=` for expiry check to include exact-moment expiry
3. Add 5-minute grace period for clock skew

### Files Modified
- src/auth/jwt.ts (line 45: comparison fix)
- tests/auth/jwt.test.ts (added 3 edge case tests)

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Compression Protocol

Step 1: Identify Completed Phases

What work is DONE and won't be revisited?
→ Research findings already synthesized
→ Implementation already verified
→ Decisions already made and applied

Step 2: Extract Key Information

From the completed phase, preserve:
✅ Decisions made and WHY
✅ File paths and line numbers of changes
✅ Key findings that inform ongoing work
✅ Error messages or test results (summarized)

Discard:
❌ Step-by-step tool invocation details
❌ Full file contents that were read
❌ Exploratory dead-ends that didn't lead anywhere
❌ Verbose error stack traces (keep the message only)

Step 3: Write Summary

Use the Phase Summary format above.
Keep to 100-300 tokens per completed phase.
Include enough detail to resume work without re-reading.

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Best Practices

1. Compress phases, not facts — Individual decisions should stay, full transcripts should go
2. Preserve "why" over "what" — Why a decision was made matters more than the exact commands run
3. Never auto-compress — Always tell the user "I'm summarizing the completed research phase to keep context focused"
4. Keep file references — Always preserve file paths and line numbers in summaries
5. Checkpoint on phase transitions — Natural compression point when switching from research to implementation