Orchestrator Handoff
Evidence tier: P
Basis: Practitioner-backed session handoff, incident-transfer, and distributed coordination workflows.
Source IDs: Solo MCP scratchpad/process workflow; MemPalace durable-memory workflow; Naoray/skills orchestrator-handoff prior art.
Reviewed: 2026-05-12
Generate a handoff prompt when:
- User signals session-switch intent ("time for a handoff", "start a new orchestrator").
- Context window budget getting tight.
- In-flight work spans hours and benefits from a fresh PTY.
What the handoff captures
Pull from three sources + synthesize into one prompt:
- Solo state —
list_processes, todo_list completed=false, scratchpad_list, open timers.
- Git/PR state —
gh pr list, gh issue list, git log on active branches.
- MemPalace durable memory —
mempalace_search wing=<project> for locked decisions, north star, rulebooks, drawers recorded this session.
Output format
Write a scratchpad handoff/<project-slug>-<YYYY-MM-DD> with structure:
Required sections
- Session snapshot — date, orchestrator pid (will change in new session), what was shipped today.
- In-flight agents — list of running solo process IDs + what they're doing + how to harvest them.
- Active timers — pending idle-timers on which processes.
- Open PRs — per-PR: URL, state, who needs to act, link to review scratchpad.
- Open decisions — user-facing questions queued, with options + orchestrator's lean.
- Locked decisions (last 24h) — with MemPalace drawer IDs for depth.
- Active scratchpads — which ones new orchestrator should preserve vs. can archive.
- Next intended wave — what the orchestrator would dispatch next if it continued.
Optional sections (include when relevant)
- North star / project compass (cite drawer ID — don't duplicate content).
- Calibration data reference (task runtimes, reviewer reliability).
- Adopter context (who the users are, what they're waiting on).
Process
- Query
mcp__solo__whoami for orchestrator pid.
- Run state queries in parallel —
list_processes, todo_list, scratchpad_list, gh pr list, gh issue list, mempalace_search.
- Synthesize. Do NOT dump raw tool output — summarize.
- Write scratchpad
handoff/<slug>.
- Print the consumable prompt — a condensed instruction the user pastes into a new Claude Code session that starts with
/orchestrator-mode + /solo-orchestration invocation + references the handoff scratchpad.
Rules
- Handoff is a READ-ONLY synthesis. Do not stop in-flight agents. Do not archive scratchpads. Do not close processes.
- Don't echo MemPalace drawer contents into the scratchpad — just reference the drawer IDs. Keeps scratchpad small + durable.
- Handoff scratchpad naming:
handoff/<project-slug>-<YYYY-MM-DD>. If more than one per day, append -hhmm.
Example trigger invocation
User says: "time for a handoff" → orchestrator invokes this skill → produces scratchpad + prints 400-word prompt → user copies prompt into a fresh orchestrator session.
1---2name: orchestrator-handoff3description: Use when the user says "time for a handoff", "start a new orchestrator", asks to preserve session state, or context budget is tight during coordinated agent work. Inputs - current project, Solo process state, active todos/scratchpads/timers, open PRs/issues, recent git activity, and durable memory references. Do not use when the user only wants a brief status update or progress summary; answer that directly without producing a handoff artifact. Produces a read-only handoff scratchpad plus a paste-ready prompt for the next orchestrator session. Escalate if required state sources are unavailable, project identity is ambiguous, or the user wants agents stopped or repo state changed.4---56# Orchestrator Handoff78**Evidence tier**: P9**Basis**: Practitioner-backed session handoff, incident-transfer, and distributed coordination workflows.10**Source IDs**: Solo MCP scratchpad/process workflow; MemPalace durable-memory workflow; Naoray/skills orchestrator-handoff prior art.11**Reviewed**: 2026-05-121213Generate a handoff prompt when:14- User signals session-switch intent ("time for a handoff", "start a new orchestrator").15- Context window budget getting tight.16- In-flight work spans hours and benefits from a fresh PTY.1718## What the handoff captures1920Pull from three sources + synthesize into one prompt:21221. **Solo state** — `list_processes`, `todo_list completed=false`, `scratchpad_list`, open timers.232. **Git/PR state** — `gh pr list`, `gh issue list`, `git log` on active branches.243. **MemPalace durable memory** — `mempalace_search wing=<project>` for locked decisions, north star, rulebooks, drawers recorded this session.2526## Output format2728Write a scratchpad `handoff/<project-slug>-<YYYY-MM-DD>` with structure:2930### Required sections3132- **Session snapshot** — date, orchestrator pid (will change in new session), what was shipped today.33- **In-flight agents** — list of running solo process IDs + what they're doing + how to harvest them.34- **Active timers** — pending idle-timers on which processes.35- **Open PRs** — per-PR: URL, state, who needs to act, link to review scratchpad.36- **Open decisions** — user-facing questions queued, with options + orchestrator's lean.37- **Locked decisions (last 24h)** — with MemPalace drawer IDs for depth.38- **Active scratchpads** — which ones new orchestrator should preserve vs. can archive.39- **Next intended wave** — what the orchestrator would dispatch next if it continued.4041### Optional sections (include when relevant)4243- North star / project compass (cite drawer ID — don't duplicate content).44- Calibration data reference (task runtimes, reviewer reliability).45- Adopter context (who the users are, what they're waiting on).4647## Process48491. Query `mcp__solo__whoami` for orchestrator pid.502. Run state queries in parallel — `list_processes`, `todo_list`, `scratchpad_list`, `gh pr list`, `gh issue list`, `mempalace_search`.513. Synthesize. Do NOT dump raw tool output — summarize.524. Write scratchpad `handoff/<slug>`.535. Print the consumable prompt — a condensed instruction the user pastes into a new Claude Code session that starts with `/orchestrator-mode` + `/solo-orchestration` invocation + references the handoff scratchpad.5455## Rules5657- Handoff is a READ-ONLY synthesis. Do not stop in-flight agents. Do not archive scratchpads. Do not close processes.58- Don't echo MemPalace drawer contents into the scratchpad — just reference the drawer IDs. Keeps scratchpad small + durable.59- Handoff scratchpad naming: `handoff/<project-slug>-<YYYY-MM-DD>`. If more than one per day, append `-hhmm`.6061## Example trigger invocation6263User says: "time for a handoff" → orchestrator invokes this skill → produces scratchpad + prints 400-word prompt → user copies prompt into a fresh orchestrator session.
Naoray