---
name: switch-mode
description: >
  Change engagement mode mid-session. Updates active-mode.env and last-mode so
  the next session launches in the new mode. Injects the new mode's workflow
  stance into the current conversation so it takes effect immediately (driver
  model cannot change without a relaunch).
allowed-tools: Read, Write, Glob, Bash(ls *), Bash(cat *)
---

# Switch Mode Skill

You are helping the user change their engagement mode.

## Pre-gathered context

### Available modes
!`ls ~/dev/claude/small-scripts/data/claude-profile/modes/`

### Current active-mode.env
!`cat ~/.claude-oreillyit/active-mode.env`

### Current last-mode
!`cat ~/.claude-oreillyit/last-mode`

## Instructions

The user wants to switch engagement mode. Follow these steps exactly.

### Step 1: Build the mode menu

Read each `.md` file in `/home/paul/dev/claude/small-scripts/data/claude-profile/modes/` using the Read tool.
From each file's frontmatter, extract:
- `name` — the mode identifier
- `tag` — display tag (same as name usually)
- `driver` — the driver model
- `escalates_to` — escalation model (or "none")

From the body, read the `## Purpose` section to get a one-line description.

Present a numbered menu like this (order: quick, deep, hybrid, orch, chat):

```
Available modes:

1. quick     [Sonnet]              One small focused job — get in, get out
2. deep      [Sonnet -> Opus]      Hard design/debug, plan-first, spec-driven
3. hybrid    [Haiku -> Opus]       Long sessions, cheap driver, escalate on demand
4. orch      [Sonnet]              Parallel container agents, orchestration focus
5. chat      [Haiku]               No project, just conversation
```

Mark the current mode (from `active-mode.env`'s `CLAUDE_MODE`) with `(current)`.

If `$ARGUMENTS` is non-empty and matches a mode name, skip the menu and go directly to Step 2 with that mode.

### Step 2: Confirm selection

Ask the user which mode number (or name) they want to switch to.
Wait for their response. If they already specified a mode in `$ARGUMENTS` or the menu was skipped, confirm it: "Switching to `<name>` mode — confirm? (y/n)"

### Step 3: Read the target mode file

Use the Read tool to read the full content of `/home/paul/dev/claude/small-scripts/data/claude-profile/modes/<name>.md`.

Extract all frontmatter fields:
- `name`
- `tag`
- `driver`
- `async_ok`
- `autoloop`
- `plan_mode_auto`
- `spec_driven`
- `escalates_to`

Compute the full mode file path: `/home/paul/dev/claude/small-scripts/data/claude-profile/modes/<name>.md`

### Step 4: Write active-mode.env

Write `/home/paul/.claude-oreillyit/active-mode.env` with this exact format (substitute the values from the frontmatter):

```
CLAUDE_MODE=<name>
CLAUDE_MODE_TAG=<tag>
CLAUDE_DRIVER=<driver>
CLAUDE_ESCALATES_TO=<escalates_to>
CLAUDE_PROJECT=
CLAUDE_TIME_HORIZON=2
CLAUDE_ASYNC_OK=<async_ok>
CLAUDE_AUTOLOOP=<autoloop>
CLAUDE_PLAN_MODE_AUTO=<plan_mode_auto>
CLAUDE_SPEC_DRIVEN=<spec_driven>
CLAUDE_MODE_FILE=/home/paul/dev/claude/small-scripts/data/claude-profile/modes/<name>.md
```

For `CLAUDE_PROJECT=` — leave the value empty (no project context is carried across a mode switch initiated mid-session; the user will set it at relaunch).

### Step 5: Write last-mode

Write `/home/paul/.claude-oreillyit/last-mode` with just the mode name and a trailing newline:

```
<name>
```

### Step 6: Adopt the new workflow stance

Read the full body of the new mode's `.md` file (everything after the closing `---` of the frontmatter). This is the mode's instructions to Claude.

Tell the user:

> Mode updated to `<name>`. The new mode will be fully active after `/clear` + relaunch (driver model `<current-driver>` cannot change mid-session).
>
> In this session, the following changes are active immediately:
> - **Workflow stance**: [summarise the key stance change in 1-2 sentences based on the mode body]
> - **Subagent policy**: [summarise from the Subagent policy section]
> - **Async policy**: [enabled / disabled based on async_ok]
> - **Plan mode**: [auto / manual / never, from plan_mode_auto]
>
> Adopting new stance now.

Then behave according to the new mode's body prose for the remainder of the session. The driver model (`<current-driver>`) is fixed — acknowledge this if the new mode's driver differs.

### Error handling

- If `$ARGUMENTS` is set but does not match any mode name: say "Unknown mode: `<arg>`. Available modes: quick, deep, hybrid, orch, chat." and show the menu.
- If the user picks their current mode: say "You are already in `<name>` mode. No change made." and stop.
- If a file write fails: report the error and tell the user to check permissions on `/home/paul/.claude-oreillyit/`.