Ralph — archive

ralph-archive snapshots a Ralph run's artefacts into a timestamped folder, then resets the working directories for the next batch.

Ralph is the autonomous code-execution loop: per-iteration fresh Claude instance, no memory of previous work. Each run accumulates specs, logs, progress files in .ralph/. This command preserves them as .ralph/archive-YYYY-MM-DD-HHmm/ so the next run starts clean.

When to use

  • After a Ralph run completes (success or failure)
  • Before starting a new batch of specs
  • To preserve history before ralph-clean wipes the slate

What gets archived

From .ralph/ into .ralph/archive-{timestamp}/:

ItemNotes
specs/The entire spec directory
logs/All log files (claude_output_*, ralph*.log, stream logs)
live.logRalph live output
progress.jsonTask progress tracker
status.jsonRun status
fix_plan.mdIf it exists

What gets cleaned (post-archive)

Empty .ralph/specs/ and .ralph/logs/ are recreated. Runtime state files are deleted so the next run starts fresh:

  • .call_count, .last_reset, .ralph_session
  • .loop_start_sha, .exit_signals
  • .circuit_breaker_state, .circuit_breaker_history
  • monitor.log, monitor-report.md

Hard rules

  • Do NOT archive or clean AGENT.md, PROMPT.md, templates/, docs/, or shell scripts — persistent config.
  • Do NOT nest archives — skip existing archive-* folders.
  • Empty .ralph/specs/ with no logs/status → inform the user, nothing to archive.
  • Timestamp collision → append -2.