dehydrate

name	dehydrate
description	Captures and persists current session context for later restoration. Triggers: "dehydrate this session", "serialize session state", "save session snapshot", "pause and resume later".
version	2
tier	lightweight
args	[restart]

Captures and persists current session context for later restoration.

Usage:

• /dehydrate — Save context to file, stay in session
• /dehydrate restart — Save context to file, restart Claude with fresh context

[!!!] INVOCATION (READ THIS):

• This skill is invoked via the Skill tool, NOT via Bash.
• Correct: Skill(skill: "dehydrate", args: "restart")
• WRONG: engine session dehydrate (this does not exist)
• WRONG: Bash("/dehydrate restart") (slash commands are not shell scripts)

[!!!] CRITICAL BOOT SEQUENCE:

1. SKIP LOADING STANDARDS — Context is likely at overflow. DO NOT read extra files.
2. EXECUTE: FOLLOW THE PROTOCOL BELOW EXACTLY.
3. MINIMIZE I/O: The protocol specifies exactly what minimal commands are allowed.

⛔ GATE CHECK — Do NOT proceed to Phase 1 until ALL are filled in:

Output this block in chat with every blank filled:

Boot proof:

• COMMANDS.md — §CMD spotted: ________
• INVARIANTS.md — ¶INV spotted: ________
• TAGS.md — §FEED spotted: ________

[!!!] If ANY blank above is empty: STOP. Go back to step 1 and load the missing file. Do NOT read Phase 1 until every blank is filled.

Dehydrate-specific check (LOW-I/O skill — context near overflow):

• Active session dir: ________
• Extra files loaded: none

Dehydration Protocol (Context Compressor)

Role: You are the Context Archivist. Goal: To package the current session's entire state into a portable summary and a list of required files. Trigger: When the user says "Dehydrate", "Serialize", "Pause", or asks to save context. Also triggered by PreToolUse hook at 90% context overflow.

1. Context Inventory (Pre-Flight)

Action: Before writing the summary, gather the inventory from CURRENT CONTEXT ONLY.

[!!!] CRITICAL: DO NOT READ EXTRA FILES. Context is already near overflow. Use ONLY what's already loaded in your context window:

• Recall files you've already read this session
• Recall the session directory from §CMD_MAINTAIN_SESSION_DIR output
• Recall contextPaths from §CMD_PARSE_PARAMETERS output
• DO NOT call Read tool to load files just to inventory them

Minimal I/O Allowed:

1. List Session Dir (1 command): Execute ls -F sessions/[CURRENT_SESSION]/ to see what artifacts exist.
2. Review from Memory: Look back at the chat history for §CMD_PARSE_PARAMETERS output to recall contextPaths and preludeFiles.
3. Identify Criticals: Any file mentioned in preludeFiles OR generated in the session folder (especially DETAILS.md, _LOG.md, _PLAN.md) is MANDATORY to list in Required Files section — but do NOT read them now.

§CMD_VERIFY_PHASE_EXIT — Phase 1

Output this block in chat with every blank filled:

Phase 1 proof:

• Session directory: ________
• Session dir listed: ________
• Context paths recalled: ________
• Critical files identified: ________

---

2. The Summary Phase (Markdown Output)

Action: Generate the summary in Markdown format. Content:

1. Header: "# DEHYDRATED CONTEXT (Session Handover)\nThis content contains the high-level summary, handover notes, and immediate next steps."
2. The "Big Picture" (High Level Task):
   • Ultimate Goal: What is the single main objective of this entire session/feature? (e.g., "Implement seamless graph swapping without audio glitches").
   • Strategy: What architectural or implementation path are we taking? (e.g., "Using double-buffering for nodes").
   • Status: How far along is the overall mission? (e.g., "50% - Core logic done, integration tests pending").
3. User Interaction History:
   • Sentiment: Was the user satisfied with recent progress? (e.g., "Happy", "Frustrated", "Impatient").
   • Key Directives: Did the user explicitly ask to avoid something or focus on something? (e.g., "User explicitly forbade using any types" or "User wants to focus on performance first").
   • Recent Feedback: specific quotes or summaries of the last few user messages.
4. Last Action Report (Specifics):
   • Last Task: What exactly was the agent doing when stopped? (e.g., "Debugging AudioWorklet.ts race condition").
   • Last Log Entry: Which _LOG.md was updated? What timestamp/entry?
   • Outcome: Did the last action Succeed, Fail, or Hang?
   • State: Is the code currently compilable? Are tests passing?
5. Handover Instructions: Specific instructions for the next agent.
6. Next Steps: Bulleted list of immediate tasks.
7. Required Files (Context List):
   • Path Conventions (CRITICAL — use correct prefix):

     Prefix	Resolves To	Contains
     ~/.claude/	User home ~/.claude/	Shared engine (skills, standards, agents, scripts)
     .claude/	Project root .claude/	Project-local config (settings, project standards)
     sessions/	Project root sessions/	Session directories (logs, plans, dehydrated context)
     packages/, apps/, src/	Project root	Source code

   • Instruction: "List all files that must be read to restore context."
   • MANDATORY: You MUST list every .md file found in the session directory (Logs, Plans, especially DETAILS document).
   • MANDATORY: You MUST list every file from the original preludeFiles list.
   • Source Code: Comprehensive list of relevant code, tests, and config files touched during the session.
   • Guidance: It is better to include too much context than too little. If in doubt, include it.
   • WARNING: Do NOT confuse ~/.claude/ (shared engine) with .claude/ (project-local). They are different directories.

§CMD_VERIFY_PHASE_EXIT — Phase 2

Output this block in chat with every blank filled:

Phase 2 proof:

• Sections populated: ________ / 7
• Session .md files listed: ________
• Original preludeFiles listed: ________
• Path conventions table: ________
• Extra files read: ________ (should be none)

---

3. Final Output (File + Optional Restart)

Action: Write the dehydrated context to file, then trigger restart if requested or overflow-triggered.

Step 3a: Write to File (ALWAYS)

Action: Write the full dehydrated markdown to DEHYDRATED_CONTEXT.md in the session directory using log.sh.

engine log --overwrite sessions/[CURRENT_SESSION]/DEHYDRATED_CONTEXT.md <<'EOF'
# DEHYDRATED CONTEXT (Session Handover)
[FULL CONTENT HERE]
EOF

Step 3b: Display in Chat

Action: Output a summary in chat so the user can see what was captured.

• Show the section headers and key points (not necessarily the full content).
• State the file path as a clickable link per ¶INV_TERMINAL_FILE_LINKS (Full variant): "Dehydrated context saved to [link]"

Step 3c: Trigger Restart (Overflow OR User Request)

Condition: Execute this step if ANY of these are true:

1. Dehydration was triggered by context overflow (PreToolUse hook blocked you with "CONTEXT OVERFLOW" message)
2. User passed restart argument (e.g., /dehydrate restart)

Action:

1. Save current phase — Determine which phase of the skill protocol you were in and save it:

   engine session phase sessions/[CURRENT_SESSION] "Phase X: [Name]"
   

   • Look at your recent work to determine the phase (e.g., "Phase 3: Execution", "Phase 5: Build Loop")
   • This tells the restarted Claude where to resume

2. Trigger restart — Call session.sh restart to spawn fresh Claude:

   engine session restart sessions/[CURRENT_SESSION]
   

WARNING: This command will:

1. Set .state.json status to ready-to-kill
2. Kill the current Claude process
3. Spawn a fresh Claude with the skill invocation + rehydration instructions

Step 3d: Confirm (No Restart)

Condition: ONLY if no restart was triggered (manual dehydration without restart argument). Action: State "Dehydrated to sessions/[CURRENT_SESSION]/DEHYDRATED_CONTEXT.md"

§CMD_VERIFY_PHASE_EXIT — Phase 3

Output this block in chat with every blank filled:

Phase 3 proof:

• DEHYDRATED_CONTEXT.md written: ________
• Summary displayed: ________
• Restart condition: ________ (met / not met)
• Action taken: ________ (phase saved + restart triggered / confirmation output)