Compress

---
name: compress
description: Save this session to the vault and update the semantic memory index
user_invocable: true
---

# /compress

Context-aware session saving. Behavior adapts to home mode vs external project mode.

## Detect mode

Check if the current working directory is the Deus home directory (`~/deus`). If it is → **Home Mode**. Otherwise → **External Project Mode**.

## Resolve vault path

Read `~/.config/deus/config.json` and use the `vault_path` value. If the env var `DEUS_VAULT_PATH` is set, use that instead. All paths below use `$VAULT` to mean this resolved path.

## Check memory level (External Project Mode only)

> If External Project Mode: read `branches/external-mode.md` for memory level checks, redaction rules, and Step 0 scope.

Home mode: always proceed.

## Step 0 — Preserve permanent memories

Before saving the session log, scan the conversation for knowledge worth persisting beyond this session:

- Preferences or habits the user revealed
- Decisions made with lasting effect
- Things the user corrected or clarified
- Facts worth knowing in future sessions

Do **not** preserve one-off requests or temporary context.

**Where to save:** Update `$VAULT/CLAUDE.md` using the same compact `key: value` format as the file — no prose bullets. One line per insight. If nothing qualifies, skip silently.

External Project Mode scope: see `branches/external-mode.md`.

If `$VAULT/CLAUDE.md` exceeds 200 lines, archive old content to `$VAULT/CLAUDE-Archive.md`.

## Save session log

Review the conversation and create a session log at:
$VAULT/Session-Logs/YYYY-MM-DD/{topic}.md

Create the YYYY-MM-DD folder if it doesn't exist. The filename should be the topic only (no date prefix), since the date is already in the folder name.

Use this format:
```markdown
---
type: session
date: YYYY-MM-DD
topics: [topic1, topic2]
continues: "prior-session-filename.md"
superseded_by: "later-session-filename.md"
project_path: "<working directory path, or '~/deus' for home mode>"
tldr: |
  What happened (1 sentence). Key decision or outcome. Pending: X, Y.
decisions:
  - "chose X over Y: brief reason"
  - "rejected approach A: brief reason"
---

<!-- Full details — only loaded on demand -->

## Decisions Made
- ...

## Key Learnings
- ...

## Files Modified
- ...

## Pending Tasks
- [ ] ...
```

**Cross-linking multi-session investigations (`continues` / `superseded_by`):**
- Both fields are optional. Omit them for standalone sessions (the common case).
- Values are bare filenames (e.g. `auto-compress-bg-gate.md`) when the linked session is in the same date folder. For cross-date links, use a relative path from `Session-Logs/` (e.g. `2026-05-13/prior-topic.md`).
- `continues` — set when this session resumes a prior investigation. Value: the filename of the earlier session. When setting this field, also update the prior session's frontmatter to add `superseded_by` pointing to the new log.
- `superseded_by` — forward-pointer added retroactively to a prior session when a continuation is created. Not set directly; always set via the `continues` step above.

External Project Mode redaction: see `branches/external-mode.md`.

Rules for `decisions:` array:
- Maximum 3 items. Only include decisions that affect future sessions.
- Each item: quoted string, verb-first, ≤12 words.
- Omit the key entirely if no future-relevant decisions were made.

Keep `tldr` to 2–3 lines. Skip sections with no content.

## Post-save steps

After saving the session log:

1. **Update vault CLAUDE.md** (home mode only):

   a. Extract the one-liner tldr from the session log just saved (first line of the `tldr:` frontmatter field).

   b. Extract all unchecked `[ ]` items from the `## Pending Tasks` section of the session log. Also extract any checked `[x]` items — these are tasks completed during this session.

   c. In vault CLAUDE.md:
      - Update the `previous:` block as a rolling list of the last 3 sessions (parallel-safe, prepend-only):
        - Format each entry as: `  - "YYYY-MM-DD: <tldr one-liner>"` (date prefix + first line of tldr, ≤120 chars total)
        - Read the current `previous:` block. If it's a single line (`previous: "..."`), convert it to list format with that entry as the first item.
        - Prepend the new entry at the top of the list.
        - Trim to the 3 most recent entries (drop the oldest).
        - Replace the entire `previous:` block with the updated list.
        - If `previous:` doesn't exist yet, add it before `pending:`.
      - **Sync pending tasks from Linear** (preferred) or merge from session log (fallback):

        **Linear sync path** (preferred):
        Run: `python3 ~/deus/scripts/sync_linear_pending.py`
        The script handles caching, staleness detection, GraphQL query, sorting, and formatting.
        Capture its stdout. Keep the `pending:` key line itself, replace everything below it with the script's stdout.
        Prepend nothing -- the script includes the `# Source of truth` comment.
        **Replace** the entire `pending:` block with the script output. Linear IS the source of truth.
        If any `[x]` items from the session log reference a Linear identifier that is still in the active list, log a note but do NOT remove it -- the issue's state in Linear is authoritative.
        If the script exits non-zero, read `branches/fallback-merge.md` for the manual merge path.

        No hard item cap on `pending:`. Total file size is the governor: if `pending:` growth pushes CLAUDE.md over the 75-line check in step (d) below, the oldest non-critical items are archived per (d). Do NOT drop a live `[ ]` solely to hit a count limit.

   d. After writing, count total lines in CLAUDE.md. If > 75 lines: read the `critical:` list from the CLAUDE.md frontmatter — that is the authoritative set of protected keys. Identify the oldest non-critical content block (any line whose `key:` prefix is NOT in the `critical:` list) and move it to `$VAULT/CLAUDE-Archive.md` with a date header. Never archive lines whose key appears in `critical:`. If no `critical:` block exists in the frontmatter, fall back to refusing to archive and log a warning — missing schema is safer than guessing. When in doubt, prefer NOT archiving — a 5-line overshoot is fine; losing a load-bearing rule is not.

2. **Auto-redact sensitive patterns** (External Project Mode, standard memory level only):
   See `branches/external-mode.md` for redaction details. Skip in home mode.

3. **Index the session log** (always, if scripts are available):
   Run: `python3 ~/deus/scripts/memory_indexer.py --add "<full path to saved log>"`
   If the script fails, skip silently — the log is still saved.

4. **Extract atomic facts** (always, if scripts are available):
   Run: `python3 ~/deus/scripts/memory_indexer.py --extract "<full path to saved log>"`
   If the script fails, skip silently.

5. **Delete today's checkpoint** (always):
   Run: `find "$VAULT/Checkpoints" -name "$(date +%Y-%m-%d)-*.md" -delete 2>/dev/null`

6. **Pre-warm semantic cache** (always, background):
   Run: `python3 ~/deus/scripts/memory_indexer.py --query "recent work ongoing tasks" --top 2 --recency-boost > ~/.deus/resume_semantic_cache.txt 2>/dev/null &`

7. **Trigger session retrospective** (home mode only, background, opt-in):
   Read `branches/retrospective.md` for conditions and dispatch instructions. Skip silently if any check fails.

Confirm with the filename saved, number of pending tasks carried forward, redaction result (standard mode only), indexing result, atom extraction result, and whether a session retrospective was triggered (home mode only — report "retrospective triggered (background)" or "retrospective skipped: <reason>").