## Review Packet choosing a snapshot

Noor needs to understand the fictional Harbor Notes review\,&#32;including an earlier draft and the nested checklist review\.

The first decision is not “text or HTML\?” It is&#32;**which state should the packet represent\?**

### Milestone\:&#32;Choose the layer before creating an artifact

**Need\.**&#32;Produce a reviewable account of the work\.

**Obstacle\.**&#32;A live\-context dump can omit earlier journal history while including current system and tool context\.&#32;A saved\-file export can include earlier history without reconstructing a running agent’s current prompt\.

Read the&#32;[Review Packet inspection recipe](<https://present-sketch-tp94.here.now/examples/review-packet/inspection-recipe.json>)\.&#32;Keep its interactive examples as reference\;&#32;the runnable public packet exercise uses the fictional saved journals\.

| Operation | Snapshot source | Output and important limit |
| --- | --- | --- |
| TUI&#32;`/dump` | Current live messages\,&#32;current system prompt\,&#32;configuration\,&#32;and tool inventory | Clipboard text\,&#32;plus an attempted temporary JSON sidecar\.&#32;Not an all\-journal export\. |
| Dump sidecar | Current messages after the session’s LLM conversion boundary\,&#32;plus current model\/configuration\,&#32;raw prompt\,&#32;and wire tool schemas | Persistent temporary JSON file\.&#32;Not an exact captured HTTP request\. |
| Slash&#32;`/export` | Session\-manager header\,&#32;all entries\,&#32;leaf\,&#32;current system prompt\,&#32;and tool names\/descriptions | Local HTML\;&#32;adjacent nested transcripts included by default\.&#32;TUI requests an OS open afterward\. |
| Terminal&#32;`--export` | Saved journal and adjacent nested transcripts | Local HTML and printed path\.&#32;No running&#32;`AgentSession`&#32;prompt\/tool inventory is reconstructed\. |

For valid saved inputs and distinct output paths\,&#32;dump and export do not append a “dumped” or “exported” journal entry\.&#32;Output creation is still a filesystem effect\.

**What changes\?**&#32;Choosing the operation determines which data is copied into another artifact\.

**What does not change\?**&#32;Neither operation is a conversation reset or a disclosure scrub\.

**Recorded check\.**&#32;The Harbor Notes dump contained current context but not the pre\-clear message\.&#32;HTML embedded pre\-clear history\.&#32;Live\-state HTML included explicitly fictional current system\/tool metadata\;&#32;file\-based HTML did not supply those top\-level live fields\.

**Failure and recovery\.**&#32;If the chosen snapshot does not contain the required evidence\,&#32;choose the correct layer\.&#32;Do not solve a missing\-history problem by claiming the live dump is complete\,&#32;and do not solve a privacy problem by hiding a viewer panel\.

**Self\-check\.**&#32;Noor needs the earlier blue\-cover discussion\.&#32;Is a post\-clear live dump sufficient\?

**Answer\:**&#32;Not necessarily\.&#32;The saved journal\/full HTML path retains that earlier entry\.

### What dump can contain

`AgentSession.formatSessionAsText()`&#32;passes current messages to&#32;`formatSessionDumpText`\.

Depending on what those messages contain\,&#32;the text can include\:

- System prompt blocks\.
- Model and thinking configuration\.
- Tool descriptions and parameter information\.
- User\,&#32;developer\,&#32;and assistant messages\.
- Stored thinking blocks and tool\-call arguments\.
- Tool results\.
- Bash and Python execution records\.
- Custom\/hook messages\.
- File\-mention contents\.
- Branch and compaction summaries\.

The formatter omits bash\/Python execution records marked&#32;`excludeFromContext`\.&#32;That omission is specific to this formatting path\.&#32;It is not a universal journal or export exclusion policy\.

When tool descriptors are already in the system prompt\,&#32;the formatter can avoid duplicating the separate tool inventory\.&#32;That does not make the information absent from the dump\.

Do not reproduce real system instructions\,&#32;private dumps\,&#32;credentials\,&#32;or hidden reasoning in a public workbook or issue packet\.&#32;This workbook uses fictional examples precisely so those risks can be taught without publishing them\.

### Milestone\:&#32;Account for the sidecar separately

**Need\.**&#32;Noor wants to know whether the dump produced another file that also needs review\.

**Obstacle\.**&#32;A clipboard\-oriented command can leave persistent temporary data behind\.

The following is a&#32;**non\-runnable reference**&#32;to the human command\.&#32;Do not run it against personal history as a workbook exercise\.

~~~text
/dump
~~~

The sidecar filename follows the source’s&#32;`omp-llm-request-`&#32;naming pattern under the operating system’s temporary directory\.

Its fields include\:

| Field | Review concern |
| --- | --- |
| `model` | Model metadata is more than a short display label\. |
| `thinkingLevel` | Configuration context\. |
| `serviceTier` | Per\-family request configuration\. |
| `systemPrompt` | Raw current prompt blocks can contain sensitive context\. |
| `tools` | Descriptions and wire schemas can disclose implementation details\. |
| `messages` | Converted current messages can contain sensitive content\. |

The sidecar is built locally at the conversion boundary\.&#32;It is not proof that a provider request occurred\,&#32;and it is not necessarily identical to the final provider\-specific payload after all later transformations\.

In the TUI\,&#32;the command attempts the sidecar first\,&#32;appends its path and a raw\-context warning to the text\,&#32;then copies that text to the clipboard\.

The shared plain\-output builtin returns the text instead of invoking the TUI clipboard path\.

**Recorded check\.**&#32;Sidecars were written from fictional live and in\-memory sessions\.&#32;Injected conversion failure left the plain transcript available\.&#32;No clipboard operation occurred in those tests\.

**Failure and recovery\.**

- Sidecar failure does not suppress the plain transcript\.
- The TUI source reports sidecar unavailability\;&#32;the plain\-output handler silently omits the failed sidecar path\.
- If clipboard copying fails after sidecar creation\,&#32;a sidecar may still exist\.
- A temporary filename does not mean automatic deletion after the command\.

Also\,&#32;zero live messages do not guarantee the text&#32;`No messages to dump yet.`&#32;The current formatter always produces a Configuration section\.&#32;The sidecar method explicitly returns no path for zero messages\,&#32;but the formatted text can still be nonempty\.

**Self\-check\.**&#32;Does&#32;`--no-session`&#32;mean&#32;`/dump`&#32;cannot leave anything on disk\?

**Answer\:**&#32;No\.&#32;In\-memory conversation formatting can still write a temporary sidecar\.

**Source anchors\:**&#32;`packages/coding-agent/src/session/agent-session.ts`&#32;—&#32;`formatSessionAsText`\,&#32;`dumpLlmRequestToTmpDir`\,&#32;`exportToHtml`\;&#32;`packages/coding-agent/src/session/session-dump-format.ts`&#32;—&#32;`formatSessionDumpText`\;&#32;`packages/coding-agent/src/slash-commands/builtin-collaboration.ts`&#32;—&#32;`dump`\,&#32;`export`\;&#32;`packages/coding-agent/src/modes/controllers/command-controller.ts`&#32;—&#32;`handleDumpCommand`\.
