Context Management
<metadata>- Load if: Always active (context management foundation)
- Prerequisites: @smith-guidance/SKILL.md
CRITICAL: Proactive Context Management (Primacy Zone)
<required>Agent role: Check context levels proactively, RECOMMEND actions to user.
Context lifecycle: explore → monitor → prepare (at warning threshold) → reset (at critical threshold)
To check context: Prompt "What is the current context usage?" to get percentage.
Agent RECOMMENDS - user executes the platform's context reset command.
</required>Platform Reference
- Claude Code: Warning 50%, Critical 60%,
Targeted: "Summarize from here" (Esc+Esc),
Action:
/clear(stop hook enforced) - Kiro: Warning 70%, Critical 80%, Compact Auto, Clear New session
- Cursor: Warning 70%, Critical 80%, Compact
/summarize, Clear New chat
Progressive Disclosure
<required>Loading order (cheapest first):
- Metadata scan: Glob/Grep for file locations
- Targeted read: Specific file sections only
- Full file: Only when actively modifying
- Broad explore: Delegate to subagent (isolated context)
- NEVER read entire directories without Grep filtering
- NEVER load full files when targeted sections suffice
- NEVER repeat file reads without using context
Serena MCP Preference
<required>When Serena MCP is available, prefer Serena tools over native tools:
Why: Kiro's readFile truncates, strReplace fails on duplicates. Serena's regex mode handles complex replacements reliably.
Tool preference:
- Reading:
search_for_pattern>find_symbol> nativereadFile - Writing:
replace_content(regex) >replace_symbol_body> nativestrReplace - Context savings: 99%+ reduction with symbol-level operations
Information Retention
<required>Always preserve:
- Task goals
- File:line locations
- Architectural decisions
- Incomplete work
Always discard:
- Verbose tool outputs
- Failed explorations
- Redundant file reads
Reference format: Use file:line (e.g., auth.ts:234) instead of embedding content
Ralph Loop Context Management
<required>Ralph burns ~1-3.5k tokens/iteration. At critical threshold, persist state to Serena memory before context reset.
See @smith-ralph/SKILL.md for full context strategy and retention criteria.
- @smith-guidance/SKILL.md - Core agent behavior
@smith-ctx-claude/SKILL.md- Claude Code:/clear(stop hook enforced)@smith-ctx-cursor/SKILL.md- Cursor: UI indicator,/summarize@smith-ctx-kiro/SKILL.md- Kiro: 80% auto-summarize, Serena memory@smith-serena/SKILL.md- Serena MCP for persistent memory
ACTION (Recency Zone)
<required>Proactive context checks:
- Periodically check context (platform-specific method)
- At warning threshold: Recommend context reset with retention criteria
- At critical threshold: Urgently recommend before degradation
- User executes command, agent continues with focused context
Before recommending context reset, prepare:
- Task requirements summary
- File paths with line numbers
- Key design decisions
- Remaining todos
Recommendation format:
Context at [X]%. Recommend context reset (see platform skill for command).
Keep: [task], [files], [decisions], [todos]
</required>