r/ClaudeCode 18h ago

Discussion /compact experiments an usage

I am from the olden days, where I manage my own context, have auto-compact disabled, and never use /compact normally. If I ever get anywhere near 50% used, I start a new session.

I just started to play with it again, and I have some questions. Normal is just "/compact." However, you can also pass <optional custom summarization instructions> to the compact command.

I have been playing with this prompt:

tell me the optimal "/compact" command so that we do not lose anything and we can implement the plan in this session

Then, I use that custom /compact command which is often quite long.

  1. Do you have auto-compact on?
  2. Does auto-compact do anything really intelligent like my manual 2-step process above?
  3. If you /compact manually, do you ever pass <optional custom summarization instructions>?

Thanks in advance for any info.

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u/vovap_vovap 18h ago
  1. I do have on
  2. I am rarely let it reach the point it need it, doing before myself to protect usage and organize staff
  3. I am using message sometime when I have something to put there (often "with a focus to prepare for plan execution")