Manager + Local — Delegation Wrapping Skill Reference (v1.0.0)

Overview

When you have both manager and local installed, wrap multi-step manager delegation chains inside local breadcrumbs. The result: crash-recoverable, cross-context, auditable delegation chains.

This is a Claude-behavior skill. No code integration between the servers. Claude calls local's breadcrumb tools at the right moments to wrap manager orchestrations in a tracked operation. The discipline is in Claude's behavior.

Without wrapping, a delegation chain is invisible context-window state. Context resets — the chain is gone. With wrapping, the breadcrumb is on disk. Any agent calls breadcrumb_status and sees: what the chain is doing, which steps completed, which files changed, what comes next.

---

When to Wrap

Wrap when ALL are true:

1. 3+ manager tasks as part of a coordinated effort
2. Total expected duration exceeds ~2 minutes
3. Work may need resuming in a different context

When NOT to Wrap

---

The Wrapping Sequence

1. local:breadcrumb_start     — BEFORE the first manager call
2. manager:task_submit/etc    — the actual delegation
3. local:breadcrumb_step      — AFTER each delegated unit completes
4. Repeat 2-3 for each delegation
5. local:breadcrumb_complete  — when all delegations done

Start the Breadcrumb

Before the first manager call. Not after. Not during.

local:breadcrumb_start(
  title="Refactor auth module | targets: src/auth/jwt.py, src/auth/session.py, tests/test_auth.py",
  steps=["implement JWT middleware", "write tests", "update compat shim", "integration test"]
)

Log Each Completion

After each task completes, immediately breadcrumb_step. Always populate files_changed — this is what makes resumption work. If the task output doesn't list files, call manager:task_explain(task_id=...).

local:breadcrumb_step(
  step="implement JWT middleware",
  result="success — jwt.py created (145 lines), __init__.py updated",
  status="success",
  files_changed=["src/auth/jwt.py", "src/auth/__init__.py"]
)

Complete

local:breadcrumb_complete(
  summary="Auth refactored to JWT. 4 tasks, all succeeded. Files: jwt.py, session.py, test_auth.py, __init__.py."
)

---

Breadcrumb Title Discipline

Pattern: <verb> <what> | targets: <file1>, <file2>, ...

Good:

"Refactor auth → JWT | targets: src/auth/jwt.py, src/auth/session.py, tests/test_auth.py"
"Deploy server v2.4 | targets: servers/my-server.exe"
"Add WebSocket support | targets: src/tools/websocket.rs, src/main.rs, Cargo.toml"

Bad (useless to the next session):

"Fix things"          "Refactor"           "Update code"
"Run some tasks"      "Manager delegation"  "Work on the project"

Name the crate, module, binary, or files. Specificity is not optional.

---

One Active Breadcrumb at a Time

Local enforces single-active. If the user interrupts with new work:

Option A — close to done (1-2 steps left): Finish current, then start new.

Option B — significant work remains or new request is urgent: Abort with a reason that includes what completed, what remains, and files changed so far.

local:breadcrumb_abort(
  reason="User redirected to urgent deploy. Auth refactor on step 2/4. \
    Done: JWT middleware, tests. Remaining: compat shim, integration test. \
    Files changed: src/auth/jwt.py, tests/test_auth.py."
)

Never leave an orphan. An active breadcrumb with no recent steps looks like a crash. Abort explicitly if abandoning.

---

Failure Handling

Never skip a failed step. The failure is the most important step to record.

1. Log it:

local:breadcrumb_step(
  step="write tests",
  result="failed — codex: ImportError: no module named 'pytest_asyncio'",
  status="failed"
)

2. Decide:

3. If retrying, log BOTH the failure AND retry result:

local:breadcrumb_step(step="write tests", result="failed — missing pytest_asyncio", status="failed")
manager:task_retry(task_id="task_xyz", additional_context="pip install pytest-asyncio first")
local:breadcrumb_step(step="write tests (retry)", result="success — 12 tests passing", status="success",
  files_changed=["tests/test_auth.py", "requirements.txt"])

4. If aborting, include what succeeded:

local:breadcrumb_abort(
  reason="Tests failed after 2 retries. Done: JWT middleware (jwt.py). \
    Failed: test suite (test_auth.py). Not started: compat shim, integration. \
    Rollback applied via task_rollback."
)

---

Handoff and Resumption

Breadcrumbs survive everything: Desktop restart, context reset, agent handoff, user reopening hours later. The breadcrumb is on disk, not in any context window.

Resume Sequence

New session, first call:

local:breadcrumb_status()
→ title: "Refactor auth → JWT | targets: ..."
→ completed: ["implement JWT middleware", "write tests"]
→ next: "update compat shim"
→ files_changed: ["src/auth/jwt.py", "src/auth/__init__.py", "tests/test_auth.py"]

Pick up at the next step. Zero rework.

Agent Handoff

Chat started it, Code finishes it:

1. Code calls local:breadcrumb_status, sees the active chain
2. Code resumes at next step, continues breadcrumb_step logging
3. Code calls breadcrumb_complete when done

The breadcrumb IS the handoff artifact for delegation chains.

---

Worked Example: 4-Step Auth Refactor

User: "Refactor auth to JWT. Update middleware, write tests, add backward compat, run integration tests."

# 1. Start breadcrumb
local:breadcrumb_start(
  title="Refactor auth → JWT | targets: src/auth/jwt.py, src/auth/session.py, tests/test_auth.py",
  steps=["implement JWT middleware", "write test suite", "update compat shim", "integration tests"]
)

# 2. First delegation
task_1 = manager:task_submit(
  prompt="Create JWT auth middleware in src/auth/jwt.py. HS256, extract user_id+roles, \
    401 on invalid/expired, config via JWT_SECRET + JWT_EXPIRY_SECONDS env vars.",
  backend="claude_code", working_dir="C:/project"
)
manager:task_watch(task_ids=[task_1.task_id], timeout=300)

local:breadcrumb_step(
  step="implement JWT middleware",
  result="success — jwt.py created (138 lines), __init__.py updated",
  status="success", files_changed=["src/auth/jwt.py", "src/auth/__init__.py"]
)

# 3. Second delegation
task_2 = manager:task_submit(
  prompt="Write pytest suite for JWT middleware in tests/test_auth.py. \
    Cover: valid, expired, malformed, missing header, role extraction.",
  backend="codex", working_dir="C:/project", wait=true
)

local:breadcrumb_step(
  step="write test suite",
  result="success — test_auth.py created (89 lines), 7 cases passing",
  status="success", files_changed=["tests/test_auth.py"]
)

# 4. Third delegation
task_3 = manager:task_submit(
  prompt="Update src/auth/session.py: backward-compat shim, detect session-token \
    headers, translate to JWT. Don't break existing auth.",
  backend="claude_code", working_dir="C:/project"
)
manager:task_watch(task_ids=[task_3.task_id], timeout=300)

local:breadcrumb_step(
  step="update compat shim",
  result="success — session.py updated (+42 lines)",
  status="success", files_changed=["src/auth/session.py"]
)

# 5. Fourth delegation
task_4 = manager:task_submit(
  prompt="Run full integration tests. Verify JWT + session backward compat end-to-end.",
  backend="claude_code", working_dir="C:/project", wait=true
)

local:breadcrumb_step(
  step="integration tests",
  result="success — 23 tests passing, 0 failures",
  status="success"
)

# 6. Complete
local:breadcrumb_complete(
  summary="Auth refactored to JWT. 4 delegations (claude_code + codex), all succeeded. \
    Files: jwt.py (new), session.py (updated), test_auth.py (new), __init__.py (updated). \
    23 integration tests passing. Backward compat shim in place."
)

If context reset after step 4: New session calls breadcrumb_status, sees 3 steps done, next is "integration tests." Submits that one delegation, logs the step, completes the breadcrumb. Three steps preserved, zero repeated.

---

Combining with Loafs

Loaf = manager-level coordination (subtask DAG, dependencies, decisions). Breadcrumb = local-level tracking (step log, files_changed, crash recovery). Use both when doing task_run_parallel with a loaf:

local:breadcrumb_start(title="Auth rewrite | targets: src/auth/*.py", steps=["submit", "watch", "close"])
loaf = manager:create_loaf(name="Auth Rewrite", goal="JWT migration")
manager:task_run_parallel(loaf_id=loaf.id, tasks=[...])
local:breadcrumb_step(step="submit", result="4 tasks submitted", status="success")
manager:task_watch(task_ids=[...], timeout=600)
local:breadcrumb_step(step="watch", result="all 4 complete", status="success", files_changed=[...])
manager:loaf_close(loaf_id=loaf.id, summary="...")
local:breadcrumb_complete(summary="Auth rewrite done. Loaf coordinated 4 tasks, all succeeded.")

---

Anti-Patterns

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Troubleshooting

"breadcrumb_status shows a delegation I didn't start"

Previous session crashed. Check completed steps. Resume, abort, or check manager:task_list for still-running tasks.

"Task completed but I forgot to breadcrumb_step"

Call manager:task_explain(task_id=...), log retroactively. Order matters less than completeness.

"Files in breadcrumb look wrong"

Task wrote to unexpected paths. Check manager:task_output, task_rollback if needed, re-delegate with clearer constraints.

"Have both a loaf and breadcrumb — which is truth?"

Loaf = task-level detail. Breadcrumb = operation-level progress. Trust each for its domain.

"Breadcrumb active but all tasks finished"

Context crashed between task_watch return and breadcrumb_complete. Check manager:task_list, log missing steps retroactively, complete the breadcrumb.

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Quick Reference Card

WRAP RULE:  3+ delegated steps → breadcrumb BEFORE first manager call
TITLE:      "<verb> <what> | targets: <file1>, <file2>, ..."
SEQUENCE:   breadcrumb_start → manager calls → breadcrumb_step each → breadcrumb_complete
FAILURE:    Log failed step → retry/abort → log retry result
RESUME:     breadcrumb_status → read completed/next → pick up
INTERRUPT:  Complete current OR breadcrumb_abort with reason
ONE RULE:   One active breadcrumb at a time. Always.

Breadcrumb before delegation. Log every step including failures. Include files_changed. Never leave orphans.