/agent-context-budget

name: agent-context-budget
description: Use when an agent task needs bounded context packets, checkpoint-aware compaction, a fresh-session primer, or policy-controlled child results without loading raw logs into the primary session.

agent-context-budget

Prepare bounded context for a task without inventing a second budget source. Numeric limits come from the policy referenced by the current TaskCheckpoint. The public contract and commands are documented in ../../docs/public-harness-contract.md.

Use this skill for

• A task that may spawn a delegated executor or reviewer.
• A transcript approaching its configured checkpoint boundary.
• A fresh session that needs a compact, evidence-linked primer.
• Results or logs that are too large for the primary-agent context.

Do not use it to summarize away unresolved failures, human decisions, raw scientific evidence, or security findings.

Inputs

• Goal and task id.
• Readable agent policy.
• Current TaskCheckpoint.
• Evidence and artifact paths needed by the next role.
• Optional existing .coord/plan.yml and approved memory events.

If the policy is configured but unreadable, stop. If the optional agent-collab-harness package is unavailable, do not start an autonomous loop or child spawn; prepare the packet for human-controlled execution instead.

Workflow

1. Validate policy and checkpoint:

agent-collab policy validate --policy <policy-ref> --json agent-collab checkpoint validate --checkpoint <checkpoint-ref> --json

2. Record current observed metrics in the checkpoint. Do not estimate a lower number to fit the policy. 3. Run policy evaluation before a child spawn:

agent-collab policy evaluate \ --policy <policy-ref> \ --checkpoint <checkpoint-ref> \ --json

4. Obey the result:

• continue and spawn_allowed=true: create the bounded task packet.
• checkpoint: write a checkpoint/primer. A v2 slice with auto_continue

advances atomically and resumes under the same goal; v1 returns control. For v2 scope=action with context_compaction_required, perform local context maintenance without asking for renewed approval: preserve full artifacts, acceptance evidence, failures, and authorization; build a smaller linked packet or use native compaction, record measured sizes, then re-evaluate. Do not spawn or advance a slice while this context gate is pending.

• stop or spawn_allowed=false: do not spawn. Respect v2 decision scope;

exhaustion of one action does not prohibit safe primary-agent diagnosis. 5. Put only decision-relevant material in the packet:

• goal and acceptance contract
• explicit files and tools in scope
• direct evidence references
• current recorded human decisions
• relevant interfaces or schemas

6. Keep raw logs and complete artifacts at paths. Include a short failure excerpt only when it is needed to diagnose the next action. 7. After a result returns, update observed metrics and evaluate again.

Outputs

• .coord/context_<NNN>.md: round-specific packet plan.
• .coord/session_primer.md: bounded fresh-session digest.
• Updated TaskCheckpoint at the plan's checkpoint_ref.

These are scratch artifacts by default. Promote a checkpoint snapshot only when the repository explicitly needs it for resume, shipping, or acceptance evidence. Agent boundaries do not imply commits.

Packet shape

Context packet — <task id>

Policy

• policy_ref: <path>
• policy_hash: <sha256>
• checkpoint_ref: <path>

Goal <one bounded objective>

Recorded decisions

• <gate / actor / decision / action hash>

Evidence

• <path or stable source locator>

Scope

• may read: <paths>
• may write: <paths>
• must not touch: <paths>

Acceptance

• <runnable check>

Return contract

• concise summary
• files changed
• tests run
• risks and blockers
• raw logs by path only

Invariants

• Policy values have one machine-readable source.
• v2 slice counters reset only through checkpoint advance; goal totals and

accepted evidence never reset. Retain the stricter explicit native/host limit.

• Reserve child capacity for required independent review. Completed children

release active concurrency; the host's actual capacity also limits spawning.

• No silent retry, model switch, context discard, or result truncation.
• Compaction changes active context, not cumulative usage or failure history.

If safe compaction is unavailable, report that limitation, not a generic request to continue. Never clear an ambiguous legacy blocker automatically.

• Missing evidence is reported as missing, not summarized as success.
• A decline, cancellation, timeout, error, or null result remains non-success.
• Recall systems may suggest context; they do not override repository state or

recorded human decisions.