Auto-compact loses instructions from the last user request

Resolved 💬 3 comments Opened Feb 1, 2026 by roomi-fields Closed Feb 5, 2026

Description

When auto-compaction triggers during a conversation, the compacted context sometimes loses critical instructions from the user's most recent request.

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Have a long conversation that approaches the context limit
  2. Submit a multi-part request with specific instructions (e.g., "do X, then Y, then Z")
  3. Auto-compaction triggers during processing
  4. Observe that some of the instructions from the last request are missing from the compacted context

Expected Behavior

The most recent user request should be preserved in full, even after compaction. Instructions from the current turn should never be dropped.

Actual Behavior

After auto-compaction, Claude continues but appears to have "forgotten" some parts of the last request. This requires repeating the instructions.

Environment

  • Claude Code version: 2.1.x
  • Platform: WSL2 (Windows 11)
  • Terminal: VS Code integrated terminal

Impact

High - This causes wasted time and tokens as users need to repeat their requests. It's especially problematic for complex multi-step tasks.

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