emasoft/amcos-context-management

Context Management

Overview

Updates activeContext.md, records patterns, prepares memory for compaction.

Prerequisites

• Session memory initialized (amcos-memory-initialization)
• activeContext.md and patterns.md valid

Instructions

PROCEDURE 2: Update Active Context

Trigger: Task switch, decision made, question raised, milestone reached, or pre-compaction.

1. Identify the change type
2. Open activeContext.md
3. Update the relevant section with ISO timestamp
4. Write immediately (no deferred saves)

Update patterns: See 06-context-update-patterns in Resources

PROCEDURE 3: Record Discovered Patterns

Trigger: After identifying recurring patterns, anti-patterns, or effective solutions.

1. Identify pattern and categorize (Problem-Solution, Workflow, Decision-Logic, Error-Recovery, Configuration)
2. Open patterns.md, add entry with name, category, description, examples, date
3. Update pattern index; write immediately

Guide: See 05-record-patterns and 07-pattern-categories in Resources

PROCEDURE 6: Prepare for Context Compaction

Trigger: Context usage >70%, before long-running ops, or proactively.

1. Update all three memory files with current state
2. Run amcos_memory_manager.py validate
3. Write all files to disk
4. Create backup
5. Confirm ready

Safety: See 11-compaction-safety in Resources

Output

| Procedure | Result | |-----------|--------| | Update Context | Timestamped change in activeContext.md | | Record Pattern | New categorized entry in patterns.md | | Prepare Compaction | All files validated, backed up, ready |

Error Handling

| Issue | Resolution | |-------|------------| | Context out of sync | See 14-context-sync in Resources | | Validation fails pre-compaction | Fix errors first; never compact invalid memory | | Files corrupted | See 04-memory-validation in Resources |

Examples

# Update focus on task switch
uv run python scripts/amcos_memory_manager.py set-focus \
  --focus "Implementing config detection"

# Record a pattern
uv run python scripts/amcos_memory_manager.py add-pattern \
  --name "Retry with backoff" --category "Error-Recovery"

Checklist

Copy this checklist and track your progress:

• [ ] Update activeContext.md on focus changes
• [ ] Record discovered patterns in patterns.md
• [ ] Validate memory files before compaction

Resources

• 06-context-update-patterns — Update patterns
  • When you need to understand the purpose
  • Understanding update patterns overview
  • When switching tasks
  • When recording decisions
  • When adding questions
  • When reaching milestones
  • When preparing before compaction
  • For implementation examples
  • If issues occur
• 05-record-patterns — Pattern recording
  • Parts
  • Quick Navigation
  • Reading Order
• 07-pattern-categories — Pattern categories
  • Purpose
  • Category Definitions
  • Pattern Category Details
  • How to Choose Categories
• 11-compaction-safety — Compaction safety
  • Parts
  • Part 1: Preparation and Execution
  • Quick Reference
• 14-context-sync — Context sync
  • Overview
  • Part 2: Advanced Procedures and Troubleshooting
• 04-memory-validation — Validation