Agent Handoff

Overview

Use this cross-platform skill in Codex, Claude Code, or DeepSeek Harness (DSH) to establish repository-local continuity memory so a future agent can recover objective, status, decisions, validation, risks, and next actions without relying on previous chat history.

The handoff mechanism is repository-local by default. Do not edit user-level Codex, Claude Code, or DSH instructions, profiles, or settings unless the user explicitly asks for it.

Platform Installation

• Codex personal skill: install this folder at ~/.codex/skills/agent-handoff.
• Claude Code personal skill: install this folder at ~/.claude/skills/agent-handoff.
• Claude Code project skill: install this folder at <repo>/.claude/skills/agent-handoff.
• DSH personal skill: install this folder at ~/.dsh/skills/agent-handoff.
• DSH shared-agent skill: install this folder at ~/.agents/skills/agent-handoff.
• DSH project skill: install this folder at <repo>/.dsh/skills/agent-handoff or <repo>/.agents/skills/agent-handoff.

DSH does not discover ~/.codex/skills, ~/.claude/skills, or <repo>/.claude/skills; install or link the bundle into one of its roots above. The same SKILL.md, references/, and scripts/ are shared across platforms. agents/openai.yaml is Codex UI metadata and is ignored by Claude Code and DSH.

Runtime Prerequisites

• Reading and applying the Markdown instructions requires no extra runtime beyond the host agent.
• Running scripts/bootstrap_handoff.py or scripts/maintain_handoff.py requires Python 3.10 or newer.
• DSH itself requires Node.js but does not guarantee Python. When Python is unavailable, create or repair files manually from references/templates.md and perform capacity review from references/quality.md.

Layout Choice

• multi layout is the default for real projects. It creates AGENT_HANDOFF.md as a short index and .agent-handoff/*.md for state files.
• single layout is the legacy compact mode for small projects. It keeps all recovery state in AGENT_HANDOFF.md.
• Do not force-migrate an existing AGENT_HANDOFF.md. If it exists, preserve it and repair or migrate manually from repository facts.

Workflow

1. Inspect the repository before writing files.
2. Identify existing agent guidance files: AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, .claude/CLAUDE.md, .claude/rules/, .claude/settings.json, README files, docs, source roots, test configuration, and obvious subprojects.
3. If bootstrapping a new mechanism, prefer running scripts/bootstrap_handoff.py from this skill to create safe scaffolding and idempotent project handoff rule blocks.
4. If repairing or reviewing an existing mechanism, read references/quality.md, inspect the current files, then edit the repository files directly with factual updates.
5. Always keep the handoff content evidence-based. Use UNKNOWN for facts that cannot be verified from the repository or user request.
6. For multi layout, run scripts/maintain_handoff.py --repo <repo-root> --compact-if-needed after meaningful handoff updates and before closeout.
7. Re-read files you created or changed before reporting completion.

Default Files

• AGENT_HANDOFF.md: Required durable handoff state at the repository root.
• .agent-handoff/: Multi-document layout directory for snapshot, workspace, decisions, work log, validation, backlog, risks, and archive.
• AGENTS.md: Recommended shared Codex and DSH project instructions file. Merge a marked handoff protocol block; do not overwrite unrelated project guidance.
• .claude/CLAUDE.md: Recommended project-level Claude Code rules generated for repositories that use Claude Code. Merge a marked handoff protocol block; do not overwrite unrelated rules.
• AGENT_SESSION_PROMPTS.md: Optional reusable prompts for new window startup, continuation, closeout, and quality review.
• .gitignore: Optionally add local handoff files when the project does not want to commit them.
• .claude/settings.json: Claude Code only. Optionally merge safe read-only permission allow rules or advisory handoff hooks if the user explicitly asks.
• .claude/hooks/handoff-watch.mjs: Claude Code only. Optional event-aware advisory hook script installed only when the user asks for hook reminders.

Idempotency Rules

Use these markers for Codex/DSH AGENTS.md and Claude Code .claude/CLAUDE.md project-level handoff rules:

<!-- AGENT_HANDOFF_PROTOCOL:START -->
...
<!-- AGENT_HANDOFF_PROTOCOL:END -->

If both markers already exist, replace only the content between them. If the target file exists without markers, append the marked block after the existing content. Never duplicate the protocol block.

Do not overwrite an existing AGENT_HANDOFF.md with a template. Existing handoff state must be repaired by reading repository facts and editing stale or missing sections.

Bootstrap Script

Use the script for deterministic setup:

python <skill-dir>/scripts/bootstrap_handoff.py --repo <repo-root> --platform both --layout multi --session-prompts --gitignore

Useful flags:

• --repo <path>: Target repository root. Defaults to the current working directory.
• --platform codex|claude|dsh|both: Project rule target. codex and dsh update the shared AGENTS.md; claude updates .claude/CLAUDE.md; both updates both files and therefore covers all three hosts.
• --layout single|multi: Handoff structure. multi is default; single preserves the legacy single-file layout.
• --session-prompts: Create AGENT_SESSION_PROMPTS.md if missing.
• --gitignore: Add local handoff files to .gitignore if missing.
• --allow-readonly: Claude Code only. Merge safe read-only query permissions into .claude/settings.json.
• --install-hooks: Claude Code only. Install event-aware advisory handoff hook script and merge missing hook entries into .claude/settings.json. Hooks always exit 0, never block, never write handoff files, and only emit soft hookSpecificOutput.additionalContext or systemMessage reminders when needed.
• --skip-codex-rules: Do not create or update the shared Codex / DSH AGENTS.md rules. The legacy flag name is retained for compatibility.
• --skip-claude-rules: Do not create or update .claude/CLAUDE.md.
• --dry-run: Show planned changes without writing files.

After running the script, inspect the generated files and replace placeholder or UNKNOWN content with repository-based facts where possible.

Maintenance Script

Use the deterministic maintenance script for multi-document capacity control:

python <skill-dir>/scripts/maintain_handoff.py --repo <repo-root> --check
python <skill-dir>/scripts/maintain_handoff.py --repo <repo-root> --compact-if-needed
python <skill-dir>/scripts/maintain_handoff.py --repo <repo-root> --rotate

• --check is read-only and reports soft warnings or unresolved hard-limit findings.
• --compact-if-needed archives and normalizes an oversized parseable snapshot, then rotates oversized work-log, validation, and completed backlog records.
• --rotate skips snapshot compaction and rotates only eligible history records.
• Never rewrite an unparseable snapshot. Never delete risks mechanically. Preserve complete work-log sections and validation rows.
• The Claude hook does not run this script. It only reports capacity warnings and always remains read-only and non-blocking.

Capacity policy:

• Snapshot soft limit: 16 KiB or 240 lines.
• Snapshot hard limit: 32 KiB or 400 lines.
• Work log: 64 KiB or 30 dated sections.
• Validation history: 64 KiB or 200 table rows.
• Backlog and risks: 32 KiB each.
• Generated archive chunks: at most 128 KiB each.
• Legacy single layout: 32 KiB soft limit and 64 KiB hard limit; migrate to multi layout rather than adding complex in-file rotation.

Multi-Document Recovery Contract

In multi layout, a new agent must recover in this order:

1. AGENT_HANDOFF.md
2. .agent-handoff/snapshot.md
3. .agent-handoff/risks.md
4. .agent-handoff/backlog.md
5. .agent-handoff/validation.md when validation state matters
6. .agent-handoff/decisions.md when changing durable behavior or architecture
7. .agent-handoff/workspace.md when orientation or commands are needed
8. .agent-handoff/work-log.md when recent implementation details are needed
9. .agent-handoff/archive.md only for old context

snapshot.md is replace-in-place current state, not append-only history. Keep it short and action-oriented; use the dedicated files for decisions, validation, backlog, risks, and history. Archive the original before deterministic normalization, and leave the file unchanged when safe parsing is impossible.

References

Load only the references needed for the task:

• references/templates.md: Read when creating or manually repairing AGENT_HANDOFF.md or AGENT_SESSION_PROMPTS.md.
• references/codex-rules.md: Read when creating or updating the shared Codex / DSH AGENTS.md block.
• references/claude-rules.md: Read when creating or updating Claude Code .claude/CLAUDE.md.
• references/dsh-rules.md: Read when installing for DSH or checking DSH discovery and runtime boundaries.
• references/hooks.md: Read only when the user asks for hook-based enforcement.
• references/quality.md: Read when reviewing, compressing, repairing, or validating a handoff mechanism.
• templates/claude-settings-hooks.json: Claude Code hook settings snippet for manual review or installation.
• templates/handoff-watch.mjs: Claude Code event-aware advisory hook script template.
• scripts/maintain_handoff.py: Cross-platform read-only checks plus explicit snapshot compaction and history rotation.

Closeout

When this skill changes repository files, report:

• Files created or updated.
• Current handoff status.
• How the next agent should start.
• Any remaining UNKNOWN entries, risks, or user confirmations needed.