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handoff

Generates a self-contained handoff prompt transferring session context to a new session.

13|1|Updated Feb 9, 2026
Search Tags:#workflow#markdown#claude#handoff#session#prompt generation#context transfer
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/vedang/dotagents --skill handoff-vedang
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent▼
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: handoff
Source: https://github.com/vedang/dotagents/tree/main/claude/skills/handoff
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/vedang/dotagents --skill handoff-vedang

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve? Long agent sessions accumulate context that is lost when starting fresh, forcing users to manually re-explain decisions, file paths, and constraints. This Skill distills the current conversation into a focused prompt a new session can act on immediately. ## Core Features & Use Cases - Context Extraction: Reviews the conversation and keeps only task state, key decisions with reasons, exact file paths, relevant commands, open problems, and constraints. - Structured Prompt Template: Produces a Markdown prompt with Goal, Context, Relevant files, Constraints, and First step sections. - Automatic Persistence: Saves the prompt to .agents/handoff-YYYYMMDDThhmmss.md (or /tmp/ when the working directory is not writable) and shows the command to launch the new session. - Use Case: After a long debugging session, generate a handoff prompt so a fresh session can continue fixing the issue without re-reading the entire history. ## Quick Start Ask the agent to create a handoff prompt for the goal you want the next session to pursue, then start the new session with the saved file.

Frequently Asked Questions about handoff

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

FAQPage Schema
How do I transfer context from one agent session to a new one?▼

Run the handoff skill with the goal for the new session. It reviews the current conversation, extracts the task state, decisions, file paths, and constraints, then writes a self-contained Markdown prompt you pass to the new session.

What should a session handoff prompt include?▼

A handoff prompt should include the goal, relevant prior decisions and their reasons, exact file paths touched, constraints and ruled-out approaches, and a concrete first step. Dead ends and superseded details should be dropped.

Where is the handoff prompt file saved?▼

The prompt is saved to .agents/handoff-YYYYMMDDThhmmss.md in the current working directory. If that directory is not writable, it falls back to the /tmp/ directory, and the saved path is shown to the user.

When should I use a handoff prompt instead of continuing the session?▼

Use it when the conversation has grown long or drifted, and a fresh session with a focused prompt would be more effective. It is less useful for short tasks where the full context still fits comfortably.

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