Artifact Budget Enforcement

Quick Index (Action-Routed)

Read First (All Actions)

1. Mission
2. Trigger Rule
3. Budget Policy

Action Modules (Read As Needed)

1. Choosing caps:

• Default Budgets

1. Pruning and consolidation:

• Pruning Rule
• Merge Rule

1. Preventing drift:

• Staleness Rule

Output

1. Output Contract

Mission

Keep cached artifacts useful by giving them explicit size limits and pruning rules.

Trigger Rule

Use this skill when:

1. conversation caches, indexes, or trackers can grow without bound
2. summaries or descriptions need strict length limits
3. multiple files hold overlapping cached state
4. a repo needs a repeatable rule for trimming low-value history

Anti-Overuse Rules

Use when:

1. an artifact has a real growth risk
2. cache-like docs need explicit caps
3. pruning or merging is part of the task

Do not use when:

1. no bounded artifact is being created or maintained
2. a normal documentation edit has no cache behavior
3. the relevant artifact already stays under its cap

Stop after:

1. caps are defined or confirmed
2. oversized artifacts are pruned or merged
3. remaining exceptions are recorded with rationale

Budget Policy

Every cache-like artifact must have:

1. a hard item cap
2. a per-entry size cap
3. a pruning rule when the cap is exceeded
4. a canonical file of record when multiple files overlap

Default Budgets

Use these defaults unless a stricter repo rule already exists:

1. rolling conversation summary: 10 entries
2. index summaries: 40 words max
3. short descriptions: 12 words max unless the schema is stricter
4. tracker notes: 25 words max
5. bullet lists in cached artifacts: 10 items max unless the schema is stricter

Pruning Rule

When a cap is exceeded:

1. remove the oldest low-value entry first
2. merge stable duplicates before removing unique information
3. preserve the newest user-relevant state
4. record what was pruned if the artifact tracks history

Merge Rule

Merge entries when they are:

1. duplicate
2. superseded
3. too similar to justify separate cache slots

Staleness Rule

If a cached entry is old but still relevant:

1. keep the newest accurate version
2. mark the older one superseded where the artifact supports it
3. do not keep both unless the artifact explicitly needs lineage

Default Scope

Common targets include:

1. docs/chat-history-summary.md
2. docs/chat-history-index.md
3. user-instructions.md
4. tracker-style markdown tables

Output Contract

When using this skill, provide:

1. artifact(s) capped
2. limit(s) applied
3. entries removed or merged
4. residual risk if a stricter cap is still needed

Related Skills

• Conversation Retention Summary: maintains the rolling 10-conversation cache.
• History Indexing: maintains the broader detailed index.
• Token Reduction: keep summaries and notes compact.
• File Maintenance: detect stale or duplicate artifact growth.