---

name: context-preservation description: Activates during long sessions or before context compaction. Manages attention markers and ensures critical information survives memory compression.

Context Preservation System

Long session detected or compaction imminent. Preserve critical context.

Attention Marker System

Marking Critical Information

Wrap important information that MUST survive compaction:

Copy<!-- ATTENTION -->
[Critical information here]
<!-- /ATTENTION -->

What to Mark

Always Mark:

• Key architectural decisions
• Blocking issues and their workarounds
• Environment-specific configurations
• User preferences discovered during session
• Critical file paths or endpoints
• Authentication/connection details (sanitized)

Never Mark:

• Verbose explanations
• Intermediate debugging output
• Temporary state
• Information easily re-discovered

Example Attention Blocks

Copy<!-- ATTENTION -->
Decision: Using PostgreSQL over SQLite for production
Reason: Need concurrent connections for API
Config: DATABASE_URL in .env.production
<!-- /ATTENTION -->

Copy<!-- ATTENTION -->
Blocker: Tests require REDIS_URL environment variable
Workaround: export REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379
File: .env.test needs this added
<!-- /ATTENTION -->

Pre-Compaction Checklist

Before context is compressed, ensure:

1. All blocking issues are marked with ATTENTION
2. Key decisions are documented
3. Current task state is checkpointed
4. Critical paths/files are noted
5. Any user preferences are preserved

Checkpoint Format

Use /checkpoint command or the hook will auto-checkpoint:

Copy## Current Task
[What we're working on]

## Completed
- [x] Step 1
- [x] Step 2

## Next Steps
- [ ] Step 3
- [ ] Step 4

## Critical Context
[ATTENTION blocks here]

Recovery After Compaction

When resuming after compaction:

1. Check .claude/memory/attention.md for preserved items
2. Check .claude/memory/checkpoint.md for task state
3. Review CLAUDE.md for current focus
4. Continue from checkpoint

Memory File Locations