Terminology

Reinstate Terminology: Session Sync and Continuity Glossary

Reinstate uses precise terms for the identity, encryption, path-mapping, and compatibility boundaries of coding-agent session continuity. This glossary defines the current v0.1.0-rc.8 implementation and labels later roadmap concepts so a profile is not mistaken for an account, or native resume for cross-agent translation.

Last verified: July 27, 2026
Current release: v0.1.0-rc.8
Release status: pre-1.0 release candidate
Owner: Harjot Singh Rana

Current sync objects

Profile: A sync identity shared by deliberately configured devices. Its non-secretprofile_id selects one isolated remote storage prefix; it is not a hosted Reinstate account and does not contain storage credentials.
Snapshot: One immutable, encrypted capture of a selected agent session. A snapshot has a UUID, authenticated metadata, one adapter archive, a parent revision when one exists, and a content hash checked before restore.
Encrypted manifest: The age-encrypted remote index named manifest.age. Its decrypted v1 JSON maps each agent:session key to the current immutable snapshot and advances through conditional writes to detect conflicts.
Device: One independently configured Reinstate environment with its own device ID and local path mappings. Native Windows and WSL2 are separate devices even when they run on one physical computer.

Path and resume terms

Canonical project ID: A stable, non-secret project identity such as github.com/acme/app. Every device maps that same ID to its own absolute checkout path; the ID is not itself a filesystem path.
Structural path: A path stored in an adapter-recognized field that participates in session or project structure, such as cwd, filePath, orworkingDirectory. Reinstate does not rewrite path-shaped prose in prompts or responses.
Portable path token: A normalized placeholder—currently $${HOME} or$${REPO:<id>}—that a configured destination expands through its own local paths.
Native resume: Continuing a restored session with the agent vendor that created it. In Phase 1, Claude Code resumes Claude Code sessions and Codex resumes Codex sessions.

The lower-level path-mapping package also contains a $${WORK:<alias>}primitive. RC8 configuration and released adapters do not populate work aliases, so it is not a current CLI feature.

Planned continuity term

Portable handoff is not native resume.

A portable handoff is a planned, explicit, lossy checkpoint for continuing work in a different agent. It may carry goals, decisions, constraints, changed files, and validation state, but it will not silently translate one vendor's native transcript into another vendor's session format. Portable handoffs are not available in RC8.

Compatibility states

State	Meaning	Mutation behavior
`SUPPORTED`	The installed stable version and recognized layout are inside the tested range.	Export and restore may proceed after the other safety checks pass.
`UNTESTED`	The installation or layout is recognizable but outside current evidence.	Discovery may remain read-only; Phase 1 CLI mutations fail closed.
`UNSUPPORTED`	The environment, version, layout, or agent is known to be incompatible.	Export and restore stop.
`NOT_INSTALLED`	No local installation or expected session root was found.	No session mutation is attempted.

Current versus planned

RC8 implements encrypted same-vendor session sync for the currenttested Claude Code and Codex ranges. Universal session search, verified environment repair, portable handoffs, and universal non-secret agent configuration remain later roadmap phases. See thestatus-separated roadmap before treating a future term as a current command.