tools-only Navigator Marker Skill
Create context markers - save points that preserve conversation state so you can resume work later without re-explaining everything.
When to Invoke
Invoke this skill when the user:
- Says "save my progress", "create checkpoint", "mark this"
- Says "before I take a break", "save before lunch"
- Mentions "risky refactor ahead", "experiment with new approach"
- Says "end of day", "stopping for today"
- Before compacting context
DO NOT invoke if:
- User is asking about existing markers (use listing, not creation)
- Context is fresh (< 5 messages exchanged)
Execution Steps
Step 1: Check Navigator Structure
Verify .agent/.context-markers/ directory exists:
mkdir -p .agent/.context-markers
Step 2: Determine Marker Name
If user provided name:
- Use their name (sanitize: lowercase, hyphens for spaces)
- Example: "Before Big Refactor" → "before-big-refactor"
If no name provided:
- Auto-generate with timestamp:
marker-{YYYY-MM-DD}-{HHmm} - Example:
marker-2025-10-16-1430
Ask user for optional note:
Creating marker: [name]
Add a note? (optional - helps remember context later)
Example: "OAuth working, need to add tests"
Note:
Step 3: Generate Marker Content [EXECUTE]
IMPORTANT: You MUST actively capture ToM sections (User Intent, Corrections, Belief State).
Create marker document with this structure:
# Context Marker: [name]
**Created**: [YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM]
**Note**: [user's note or "No note provided"]
---
## Conversation Summary
[Summarize last 10-15 messages:
- What user was working on
- Key decisions made
- Problems solved
- Current progress state
]
## Documentation Loaded
[List docs that were Read during session:
- Navigator: ✅ .agent/DEVELOPMENT-README.md
- Task: TASK-XX-feature.md
- System: project-architecture.md
- SOPs: [if any]
]
## Files Modified
[List files with Write/Edit calls:
- src/auth/login.ts (implemented OAuth)
- src/routes/auth.ts (added endpoints)
- tests/auth.test.ts (created tests)
]
## Current Focus
[What user is working on right now:
- Feature: Authentication with OAuth
- Phase: Integration complete, testing pending
- Blockers: [if any]
]
## Technical Decisions
[Key architectural choices:
- Using passport.js over next-auth (better control)
- JWT tokens in httpOnly cookies (XSS protection)
- Redis for session storage (scalability)
]
## Next Steps
[What to do after restore:
1. Finish writing tests for OAuth flow
2. Add error handling for failed logins
3. Document setup in README
]
## User Intent & Goals (ToM) [CAPTURE ACTIVELY]
[Theory of Mind section - captures user's mental state for better restoration]
**⚠️ CRITICAL: Analyze conversation to extract these - do not leave empty!**
**Primary goal this session**:
[What the user was ultimately trying to accomplish - not just the surface task]
- Review conversation for "I want to...", "The goal is...", "We need to..."
- Infer from task context if not explicitly stated
**Stated preferences**:
[Any preferences expressed during session:
- Communication style (concise/detailed)
- Code patterns preferred
- Confirmation behavior wanted
]
- Look for "I prefer...", "Don't do...", "Always use..."
**Corrections made**:
[Important corrections that should persist:
- "Should be /users not /user (plural convention)"
- "Prefer functional components over class"
- "Always use TypeScript strict mode"
]
- Look for "No, I meant...", "Actually...", "Not X, use Y"
- These MUST be captured to avoid repeating mistakes
## Belief State [CAPTURE ACTIVELY]
[Captures mutual understanding state for accurate restoration]
**⚠️ CRITICAL: Infer from conversation - do not leave empty!**
**What user knows**:
[User's demonstrated knowledge level:
- Familiar with Express, new to Passport
- Knows about JWT, unfamiliar with refresh tokens
- Senior developer, skip basics
]
**Assumptions I made**:
[Key assumptions during session:
- Using Redis for sessions (confirmed by user)
- Auth endpoints follow /api/auth/* pattern
- Testing with Jest + React Testing Library
]
**Uncertainty areas**:
[Questions that weren't fully resolved:
- Not sure if user wants social logins beyond Google
- Rate limiting requirements unclear
- Error message format preferences unknown
]
## Loop State (if in loop mode)
[Capture loop mode state for resumption - skip if not in loop mode]
**Iteration**: [N]/[MAX] (e.g., 3/5)
**Phase**: [INIT|RESEARCH|IMPL|VERIFY|COMPLETE]
**State Hash**: [6-char hash for continuity]
**Completion Indicators**:
- [ ] Code committed
- [ ] Tests passing
- [ ] Documentation updated
- [ ] Ticket closed
- [ ] Marker created
**EXIT_SIGNAL**: [true/false]
**Stagnation Count**: [N]/[THRESHOLD]
## Knowledge Graph State (v6.0.0+)
[Capture graph state for restoration - skip if no knowledge graph]
**Check if graph exists**:
```bash
if [ -f ".agent/knowledge/graph.json" ]; then
python3 skills/nav-graph/functions/graph_manager.py --action stats --graph-path .agent/knowledge/graph.json
fi
Memories surfaced this session: [List memories that were queried or created:
- mem-001: "Auth changes break session tests" (surfaced)
- mem-002: "Use plural REST endpoints" (created from correction) ]
Concepts active: [Concepts relevant to current work:
- authentication
- testing
- api ]
Graph queries made: [Knowledge graph queries from this session:
- "What do we know about auth?" → 3 tasks, 1 memory ]
This allows restoration to re-surface relevant memories when resuming.
Restore Instructions
To restore this marker: ```bash Read .agent/.context-markers/[filename] ```
Or use: /nav:markers and select this marker
### Step 4: Save Marker File
Write marker to file:
Write( file_path: ".agent/.context-markers/[timestamp]_[name].md", content: [generated marker content] )
Filename format: `{YYYY-MM-DD-HHmm}_{name}.md`
Example: `2025-10-16-1430_before-big-refactor.md`
### Step 4.5: Verify Marker Creation
After creating marker, verify it was written successfully:
```bash
# Verify file exists and is non-empty
if [ -f ".agent/.context-markers/[filename]" ] && [ -s ".agent/.context-markers/[filename]" ]; then
# Calculate checksum for verification
checksum=$(md5 -q ".agent/.context-markers/[filename]" 2>/dev/null || md5sum ".agent/.context-markers/[filename]" | cut -d' ' -f1)
# Log to central marker log
echo "[$(date -u +"%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ")] ✅ Marker created: [filename] (checksum: $checksum)" >> .agent/.marker-log
echo "✅ Marker verified successfully"
else
echo "❌ Marker creation failed - file missing or empty"
exit 1
fi
Marker verification ensures:
- File exists on disk
- File has content (non-empty)
- Checksum logged for integrity verification
- Creation event logged to central log
Step 5: Confirm Creation
Show success message with verification details:
✅ Context marker created!
Marker: [name]
File: .agent/.context-markers/[filename]
Size: [X] KB (~[Y] tokens)
Checksum: [md5-hash]
Verified: ✅
This marker captures:
- Last [N] messages of conversation
- Files you were working on
- Technical decisions made
- Next steps to continue
To restore later:
- Start new session
- Say "load marker [name]"
- Or use /nav:markers to list all markers
Logged to: .agent/.marker-log
Scripts
create_marker.py: Generates marker content from conversation analysis
- Input: Conversation history (from Claude)
- Output: Formatted markdown marker
Common Use Cases
Before Lunch Break
User: "Save my progress, taking lunch"
→ Creates marker: "lunch-break-2025-10-16"
→ Captures current state
→ User resumes after lunch: "Load my lunch marker"
Before Risky Refactor
User: "Mark this before I refactor routing"
→ Creates marker: "before-routing-refactor"
→ If refactor fails, restore marker
→ If refactor succeeds, delete marker
End of Day
User: "End of day checkpoint"
→ Creates marker: "eod-2025-10-16"
→ Note: "OAuth done, tests tomorrow"
→ Next morning: "Load yesterday's marker"
Before Context Compact
Automatic (via nav-compact skill):
→ Creates marker: "before-compact-2025-10-16-1500"
→ Compact clears conversation
→ Marker preserves knowledge
→ Next session: Auto-offers to restore
Marker Best Practices
Good marker names:
lunch-break(clear when/why)before-api-refactor(indicates purpose)feature-complete(marks milestone)eod-friday(specific timing)
Bad marker names:
temp(not descriptive)marker1(meaningless)test(confusing)
When to create markers:
- ✅ Before breaks (lunch, EOD)
- ✅ Before risky changes
- ✅ Before context compact
- ✅ At milestones (feature complete)
- ❌ After every single message (noise)
- ❌ When context is fresh (< 5 messages)
Error Handling
Marker directory missing:
Creating .agent/.context-markers/ directory...
✅ Ready to save markers
Duplicate marker name:
⚠️ Marker "[name]" already exists
Options:
1. Overwrite (replace existing)
2. Append timestamp (create "[name]-v2")
3. Choose different name
Your choice [1-3]:
Insufficient context:
⚠️ Very little context to save (< 5 messages)
Markers work best when there's significant progress to preserve.
Continue anyway? [y/N]:
Success Criteria
Marker creation is successful when:
- Marker file created in
.agent/.context-markers/ - Filename is unique and descriptive
- Content includes: summary, loaded docs, files modified, next steps
- User knows how to restore marker later
- Marker is 2-5k tokens (comprehensive but efficient)
Notes
- Markers are git-ignored (personal session save points)
- Team members don't see each other's markers
- Markers can be deleted anytime with
/nav:markers clean - Typical marker size: 2-5k tokens (97.7% compression from 130k conversation)
This skill provides same functionality as /nav:marker command but with natural language invocation.