handoff

Writes a self-contained markdown handoff document so a fresh agent can resume work with full context.

1|Updated Jun 23, 2026
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/seal-harness/seal-harness --skill handoff-seal-harness
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: handoff
Source: https://github.com/seal-harness/seal-harness/tree/main/.agents/skills/handoff
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/seal-harness/seal-harness --skill handoff-seal-harness

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve? When an AI coding session ends, gets compacted, or moves to another machine, all accumulated context is lost and the next agent starts blind. This Skill captures the full state of the work — objective, status, decisions, required reading, and the next concrete action — into a single markdown document so a fresh agent can resume with zero context loss. ## Core Features & Use Cases - Structured Handoff Document: Generates a timestamped file at docs/handoffs/handoff-<date>.md following a 10-section template covering objective, definition of done, current status, required reading, key decisions, code map, verification commands, and remaining work. - Git State Capture: Records branch, uncommitted changes, stashes, and recent commits so the receiving agent is never surprised by the working tree. - Single Closing Sentence: Outputs exactly one line of the form "Read <file> and do <action>." that the user can paste directly into the next session. - Use Case: You are mid-way through implementing a feature and your context window is nearly full. Run the handoff to serialize everything into a document, then start a fresh session that reads one file and continues exactly where you stopped. ## Quick Start Ask the agent to write a handoff document for the current session so a fresh agent can resume the work.

Frequently Asked Questions about handoff

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I hand off an AI coding session to a new agent?

Run the handoff skill before ending the session. It writes a timestamped markdown document to docs/handoffs/ covering the objective, current status, key decisions, and required reading, then outputs one sentence telling the next agent which file to read and what to do.

What should a handoff document include for context transfer?

A handoff document should include the objective, definition of done, verified versus unverified work, git branch and uncommitted changes, required reading with file:line pointers, key decisions with rationale, verification commands, and one concrete next action.

How do I preserve context before AI context window compaction?

Trigger the handoff skill before compaction occurs. It serializes the session state into a single self-contained markdown file, so after compaction the agent can reload full context by reading that one document.

Does the handoff skill work with Seal Harness plan files?

Yes. If the project uses Seal Harness persistence, the skill reads docs/plans/active-plan.md, docs/context/project-context.md, and docs/context/execution-state.md, then links to them in the handoff rather than duplicating their content.

Why is a vague next action a problem in handoffs?

A vague action like "continue the work" gives the receiving agent no starting point. The skill requires the next action to name specific files, functions, or acceptance criteria so the fresh agent can begin immediately without re-investigating.