checkpointing

# Claude Code Checkpointing

## Overview

Claude Code includes an automatic checkpointing system that tracks file edits and allows users to recover from unwanted changes during development sessions.

## How Checkpointing Works

### Automatic Tracking

The system captures code states before each modification.

**Key features:**
- Every user prompt creates a new checkpoint
- Checkpoints persist across resumed conversations
- Automatic cleanup occurs after 30 days (configurable)

### What Gets Tracked

**Tracked:**
- Direct file edits via Edit tool
- File creations via Write tool
- File modifications by Claude

**Not tracked:**
- Files modified by bash commands (`rm`, `mv`, `cp`)
- Manual file modifications outside Claude Code
- Changes from concurrent sessions (unless they affect files the current session modified)

## Rewinding Changes

### Access Rewind Menu

**Keyboard shortcut:**
Press `Esc` twice (quickly)

**Slash command:**
```
/rewind
```

### Restoration Options

When you open the rewind menu, you have three options:

#### 1. Conversation Only
**Keeps:** All code changes
**Reverts:** Conversation history to selected checkpoint

**Use when:**
- You want to start conversation over
- Code changes are good
- You want to try different approach in conversation

#### 2. Code Only
**Keeps:** Conversation history
**Reverts:** Files to selected checkpoint

**Use when:**
- Recent changes broke something
- Want to undo code changes
- Conversation context is valuable

#### 3. Both Code and Conversation
**Reverts:** Everything to selected checkpoint (full rollback)

**Use when:**
- Complete do-over needed
- Both code and conversation went wrong
- Want to return to known good state

### Selecting a Checkpoint

Checkpoints are displayed with:
- Timestamp
- User prompt that created it
- Files affected
- Changes summary

Navigate with arrow keys and select with Enter.

## Use Cases

### Testing Different Approaches

**Scenario:** Try multiple implementation strategies without