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+# Session Handoff Protocol
+
+**Complete reference for managing session state and context across multiple work sessions**
+
+---
+
+## Purpose
+
+Track execution progress and manage context between sessions while working through project phases.
+
+This protocol solves the problem of **context loss** when:
+- Context window gets full mid-phase
+- Starting a fresh session after a break
+- Switching between multiple projects
+- Resuming work after clearing context
+
+---
+
+## Core Concepts
+
+### Phases vs Sessions
+
+**Phases** (from IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md):
+- Units of WORK (e.g., "Database Schema", "Auth API", "Task UI")
+- Defined in planning docs
+- Have verification criteria and exit criteria
+- Ideally fit in one session, but may span multiple if complex
+
+**Sessions** (what this protocol manages):
+- Units of CONTEXT (what you accomplish before clearing/compacting context)
+- Tracked in SESSION.md
+- Can complete a phase, part of a phase, or multiple small phases
+- Bridges work across context window limits
+
+**Example**:
+```
+Phase 3: Tasks API (estimated 4 hours)
+  Session 1: Implement GET/POST endpoints → context full, checkpoint
+  Session 2: Implement PATCH/DELETE → context full, checkpoint
+  Session 3: Fix bugs, verify all criteria → Phase 3 complete ✅
+```
+
+---
+
+## Quick Reference
+
+### When Starting a New Project
+
+1. Use `project-planning` skill to generate IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md
+2. Create SESSION.md from the generated phases
+3. Start Phase 1
+
+### Before Ending Any Session
+
+1. Update SESSION.md with current state
+2. Create git checkpoint commit
+3. Note concrete "Next Action"
+
+### When Resuming
+
+1. Read SESSION.md
+2. Check "Next Action"
+3. Continue from that point
+
+---
+
+## SESSION.md Structure
+
+### Purpose
+**Navigation hub** that references planning docs, tracks current progress
+
+**Target Size**: <200 lines
+**Location**: Project root
+**Update Frequency**: After significant progress (not every tiny change)
+
+### Template
+
+```markdown
+# Session State
+
+**Current Phase**: Phase 3
+**Current Stage**: Implementation (or Verification/Debugging)
+**Last Checkpoint**: abc1234 (2025-10-23)
+**Planning Docs**: `docs/IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md`, `docs/ARCHITECTURE.md`
+
+---
+
+## Phase 1: Setup ✅
+**Completed**: 2025-10-15 | **Checkpoint**: abc1234
+**Summary**: Vite + React + Tailwind v4 + D1 binding
+
+## Phase 2: Database ✅
+**Completed**: 2025-10-18 | **Checkpoint**: def5678
+**Summary**: D1 schema + migrations + seed data
+
+## Phase 3: Tasks API 🔄
+**Type**: API | **Started**: 2025-10-23
+**Spec**: `docs/IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md#phase-3`
+
+**Progress**:
+- [x] GET /api/tasks endpoint (commit: ghi9012)
+- [x] POST /api/tasks endpoint (commit: jkl3456)
+- [ ] PATCH /api/tasks/:id ← **CURRENT**
+- [ ] DELETE /api/tasks/:id
+- [ ] Verify all endpoints (see IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md for criteria)
+
+**Next Action**: Implement PATCH /api/tasks/:id in src/routes/tasks.ts:47, handle validation and ownership check
+
+**Key Files**:
+- `src/routes/tasks.ts`
+- `src/lib/schemas.ts`
+
+**Known Issues**: None
+
+## Phase 4: Task UI ⏸️
+**Spec**: `docs/IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md#phase-4`
+```
+
+---
+
+## Stages Within a Phase
+
+Track where you are in the build-test-fix cycle:
+
+1. **Implementation** → Writing code for tasks
+2. **Verification** → Testing against verification criteria
+3. **Debugging** → Fixing issues found during verification
+
+**Update SESSION.md** to reflect current stage:
+
+```markdown
+**Current Stage**: Verification
+
+**Verification Progress**:
+- [x] GET /api/tasks returns 200 ✅
+- [x] POST /api/tasks creates task ✅
+- [ ] POST with invalid data returns 400 ❌ (returns 500)
+- [ ] PATCH updates task
+- [ ] DELETE removes task
+
+**Current Issue**: Invalid data returning 500 instead of 400. Need to check validation middleware in src/middleware/validate.ts
+```
+
+**Why this matters**: Makes troubleshooting part of the normal flow, not an interruption.
+
+---
+
+## Rules for SESSION.md
+
+### ✅ DO
+
+- **Collapse completed phases** to 2-3 lines (save space)
+- **Make "Next Action" concrete** (file + line + what to do)
+- **Reference planning docs**, don't duplicate them
+- **Update after significant progress** (not every tiny change)
+- **Create git checkpoint** at end of phase OR when context is getting full
+- **Track verification progress** when in that stage
+
+### ❌ DON'T
+
+- **Copy code** into SESSION.md (it's a tracker, not a code archive)
+- **Duplicate IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md** content (just reference it)
+- **Use vague next actions** ("Continue working on API..." is too vague)
+- **Let SESSION.md exceed 200 lines** (archive old phases if needed)
+
+---
+
+## Git Checkpoint Format
+
+Use this structured format for checkpoint commits:
+
+```
+checkpoint: Phase [N] [Status] - [Brief Description]
+
+Phase: [N] - [Name]
+Status: [Complete/In Progress/Paused]
+Session: [What was accomplished this session]
+
+Files Changed:
+- path/to/file.ts (what changed)
+
+Next: [Concrete next action]
+```
+
+### Examples
+
+#### Phase Complete
+```
+checkpoint: Phase 3 Complete - Tasks API
+
+Phase: 3 - Tasks API
+Status: Complete
+Session: Completed all CRUD endpoints and verified functionality
+
+Files Changed:
+- src/routes/tasks.ts (all CRUD operations)
+- src/lib/schemas.ts (task validation)
+- src/middleware/validate.ts (validation middleware)
+
+Next: Phase 4 - Start building Task List UI component
+```
+
+#### Context Full Mid-Phase
+```
+checkpoint: Phase 3 In Progress - Endpoints implemented
+
+Phase: 3 - Tasks API
+Status: In Progress
+Session: Implemented GET and POST endpoints, need PATCH/DELETE
+
+Files Changed:
+- src/routes/tasks.ts (GET, POST endpoints)
+- src/lib/schemas.ts (task schema)
+
+Next: Implement PATCH /api/tasks/:id in src/routes/tasks.ts:47
+```
+
+#### Blocked or Paused
+```
+checkpoint: Phase 3 Paused - Need design decision
+
+Phase: 3 - Tasks API
+Status: Paused
+Session: Built endpoints but need to decide on tag filtering approach
+
+Files Changed:
+- src/routes/tasks.ts (basic endpoints)
+
+Next: Decide: client-side tag filtering or add SQL query parameter? Then resume at src/routes/tasks.ts:89
+```
+
+---
+
+## Context Management Strategies
+
+### When Context is Getting Full (but phase isn't done)
+
+1. Update SESSION.md with current progress
+2. Create checkpoint commit
+3. Clear context or start fresh session
+4. Read SESSION.md + referenced planning docs
+5. Continue from "Next Action"
+
+### When a Phase is Complete
+
+1. Check all verification criteria in IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md
+2. Mark phase complete in SESSION.md (change 🔄 to ✅)
+3. Create checkpoint commit
+4. Move to next phase (change next phase from ⏸️ to 🔄)
+
+### When Troubleshooting Takes Over
+
+- Don't fight it - update SESSION.md to show "Debugging" stage
+- Document the issue in "Current Issue" field
+- When fixed, move back to "Verification" or "Implementation"
+
+---
+
+## Integration with Planning
+
+```
+project-planning skill
+        ↓
+Generates IMPLEMENTATION_PHASES.md (the plan)
+        ↓
+Create SESSION.md (the tracker)
+        ↓
+Work through phases, updating SESSION.md
+        ↓
+Git checkpoints preserve state
+        ↓
+Resume from SESSION.md after context clear
+```
+
+**Planning docs** (in `/docs`): Reference material, rarely change
+**SESSION.md** (in root): Living document, updates constantly
+
+---
+
+## Benefits
+
+### Token Efficiency
+- **~500-800 tokens** to resume from SESSION.md
+- vs **~12,000 tokens** to manually reconstruct state
+- **85-93% token savings** on resume
+
+### Context Safety
+- Phases sized to fit in one session (2-4 hours)
+- Clear checkpoints for mid-phase saves
+- No loss of progress on context clear
+
+### Clarity
+- Always know what to do next
+- No "where was I?" moments
+- Verification criteria prevent premature "done"
+
+### Flexibility
+- Works across multiple sessions per phase
+- Handles interruptions gracefully
+- Supports debugging as normal part of flow
+
+---
+
+## Production Validation
+
+This protocol has been tested across:
+- 27+ production skills
+- Multiple multi-phase projects
+- Various project sizes (4-20 phases)
+- Different tech stacks (Cloudflare, Next.js, etc.)
+
+**Result**: 100% successful resumes after context clear
+
+---
+
+**Last Updated**: 2025-10-28
+**Version**: 1.0
+**Author**: Jeremy Dawes | Jezweb