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The background writer updates project knowledge when the active agent does not publish current documents. This feature can use model quota from the selected agent account.

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Prerequisites

  • Install at least one supported agent CLI.
  • Authenticate the selected agent CLI.
  • Complete handshake setup.
Supported writers are claude, codex, opencode, and hermes.

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Configure the writer

1

Start the configuration

Run:
2

Enable automatic writing

Confirm that Handshake can use a background writer.
3

Select a writer

Select one of the detected agent CLIs.
4

Confirm the selection

Confirm the final configuration.
Handshake stores the configuration in ~/.handshake/authoring.json.

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Check the configuration

Run:
The output shows the enabled state, the selected writer, and queued authoring jobs.

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Change the writer

Run one of these commands:

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Test the writer

Run:
You can also test a specified writer:
This test checks that the CLI is installed and accepts a non-interactive command. It does not publish project knowledge.

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Disable the writer

Run:
Handshake continues to write factual checkpoints. It does not start background model runs.