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1- Core Built-In Commands (Engine & Session Controls) Built-in commands execute instantly without sending a message to the model. They give you direct control over memory, model choices, and terminal execution.
Context & Memory Management
/context
: Opens a visual map showing context window usage. Use it to see what percentage of token budget is consumed by project files vs. conversation history.
/compact [instructions]
: Summarizes earlier turns in the chat to reclaim token space. You can append instructions like /compact preserve database migration notes.
/clear
: Wipes the current session history clean for a new task while keeping global memory files (CLAUDE.md) intact.
/memory
: Directly views and edits active CLAUDE.md guidelines.
Session Flow & Navigation
/plan [description]
: Switches Claude into Plan Mode. Prevents file modifications while Claude drafts a step-by-step strategy for high-level tasks. #
/btw [question]
: Asks a side question without adding it to the main conversation context or history. #
/rewind (alias /checkpoint)
: Rolls back file changes, conversation turns, or both to a prior checkpoint. #
/branch [name] / /fork
: Forks the current conversation into a new branch so you can experiment with alternative implementations without destroying your main timeline.
Execution Controls
/model [model]
: Hot-swaps models mid-session (e.g., jump from Sonnet for fast refactoring to Opus for complex math/architecture). #
/effort [level]
: Adjusts reasoning depth (e.g., low, medium, max) depending on task complexity. #
/cost / /usage / /stats
: Displays API token expenditures, daily rate-limit statuses, or long-term trends.
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2- Bundled & Custom Skills (AI Workflows) Skills are intelligent workflows. When you invoke a skill, it loads a structured prompt with specific tools, allowing Claude to execute multi-step logic or spawn parallel subagents.
Essential Shipped Skills
/simplify [focus]
: Spawns multiple review agents to analyze recently changed code for redundancies, edge-case bugs, or performance gains, then applies cleaner refactors automatically. #
/code-review / /security-review
: Runs automated multi-agent checks on pending diffs to identify security risks, anti-patterns, or subtle bugs. #
/batch [description]
: Decomposes large-scale, repetitive changes across an entire repository (e.g., "migrate 40 endpoint signatures to use Zod") into independent units running in separate worktrees. #
/loop [interval] [prompt]
: Periodically runs a task on a schedule (e.g., /loop 2m "check if the local build passes"). #
/debug [description]
: Reads system runtime/error logs to run structured troubleshooting.
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- How Skills Are Configured Under the Hood
When building custom skills in .claude/skills//SKILL.md or .claude/commands/, you control execution behavior via YAML Frontmatter:
Frontmatter Directives Key:
context: fork
: Runs the skill inside an isolated background subagent so your main chat remains clean. #
disable-model-invocation
: true: Prevents Claude from running this skill automatically during regular text turns—it will only run when you explicitly type /migration. #
allowed-tools
: Scopes down security permissions so the skill can only execute approved commands or file actions.