l3rowniecakez /mailbox — Persistent Agent Memory
Agents die. Knowledge survives. ψ/ remembers what ~/.claude/ forgets.
Team agents in Claude Code use ephemeral file-based mailboxes that die with the session. /mailbox adds a persistent layer in ψ/memory/mailbox/ — agents remember across sessions.
Usage
/mailbox # List all agent mailboxes
/mailbox read <agent> # Read agent's mailbox
/mailbox read-all # Read all mailboxes
/mailbox write <agent> "<subject>" "<msg>" # Write finding to agent
/mailbox orders <agent> "<instructions>" # Set standing orders
/mailbox load <agent> # Pre-load context for spawn prompt
/mailbox archive <agent> <team> # Archive session end
/mailbox clear <agent> # Clear mailbox (→ /tmp, not deleted)
How It Works
Storage: ψ/memory/mailbox/
ψ/memory/mailbox/
├── scout/
│ ├── standing-orders.md ← permanent instructions
│ ├── 2026-04-13_findings.md ← what scout found (append-only)
│ ├── 2026-04-14_findings.md ← next session's findings
│ ├── context.md ← saved working context
│ └── 2026-04-13_session-end.md ← archive marker
├── builder/
│ ├── standing-orders.md
│ └── 2026-04-13_findings.md
└── auditor/
└── standing-orders.md
Why ψ/, not ~/.claude/?
| Location | Owner | Lifetime | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
~/.claude/teams/ |
Claude Code | Session only | Team config, ephemeral mailbox |
~/.claude/tasks/ |
Claude Code | Session only | Task tracking |
ψ/memory/mailbox/ |
Oracle | Forever | Persistent agent knowledge |
Claude Code's data dies with the session. Our data lives in the vault. Nothing is Deleted.
Step 0: Run the Script
date "+🕐 %H:%M %Z (%A %d %B %Y)"
bash ~/.claude/skills/mailbox/scripts/mailbox.sh [command] [args]
The script handles all operations. Parse the user's /mailbox arguments and pass them through.
Commands
/mailbox list
Show all agents with mailboxes:
📬 Agent Mailboxes (ψ/memory/mailbox/)
scout 3 files orders: yes last: 2026-04-13
builder 1 files orders: no last: 2026-04-13
auditor 1 files orders: yes last: never
/mailbox read <agent>
Show an agent's mailbox — standing orders + latest findings:
📬 Mailbox: scout
📋 Standing Orders:
Always check security implications first. Report severity levels.
📝 Latest Findings (2026-04-13_findings.md):
## Session 4 findings
Found ghost agent bug in Claude Code...
Total files: 3
/mailbox write <agent> "<subject>" "<content>"
Append a finding to the agent's mailbox:
📬 Written to scout's mailbox: Session 4 findings
/mailbox orders <agent> "<instructions>"
Set permanent standing orders for an agent. These are pre-loaded into every spawn:
📋 Standing orders set for scout
/mailbox load <agent>
Output agent's context in a format ready to inject into a spawn prompt. Used by /team-agents when spawning agents with memory:
## Previous Context for scout
### Standing Orders
Always check security implications first.
### Last Session Findings
Found ghost agent bug in Claude Code...
/mailbox archive <agent> <team>
Mark session end. Called during /team-agents shutdown:
📦 Session archived for scout (team: whetstone-ops)
/mailbox clear <agent>
Move mailbox to /tmp (Nothing is Deleted):
📦 scout mailbox moved to /tmp/mailbox-scout-20260413_104500
Integration with /team-agents
On Spawn (auto-load)
When /team-agents spawns an agent, it pre-loads mailbox context:
CONTEXT=$(bash ~/.claude/skills/mailbox/scripts/mailbox.sh load scout 2>/dev/null)
Injected into the agent's prompt so it starts with memory.
On Shutdown (auto-archive)
When /team-agents shuts down, it archives each agent's session:
bash ~/.claude/skills/mailbox/scripts/mailbox.sh archive scout whetstone-ops
Standing Orders + Spawn
If scout has standing orders, every spawn includes them:
You are scout on team "whetstone-ops".
## Previous Context (from ψ/memory/mailbox/scout/)
### Standing Orders
Always check security implications first. Report severity levels.
### Last Session Findings
Found ghost agent bug in Claude Code. isActive() returns true always.
Scout starts every session knowing what it knows.
Rules
- ψ/ is home — all data lives in ψ/memory/mailbox/, never in ~/.claude/
- Append-only findings — each session appends, never overwrites
- Nothing is Deleted — clear moves to /tmp, not rm
- Standing orders persist — until explicitly changed
- Load is cheap — last 30 lines only, keeps spawn prompt small
- Agent identity = name — same name across sessions = same mailbox
- No secrets — never store tokens, passwords, or keys in mailbox
ARGUMENTS: $ARGUMENTS