Import conversations

Carina can copy visible conversation history from Claude Code and Codex into ordinary Carina conversations. The source files remain unchanged. This is a point-in-time import, not a live or bidirectional sync.

Import in the TUI

1. Open the importer

   Run carina, open /sessions, then choose Import conversations. You can also enter /import directly.

2. Choose what to scan

   Carina starts with Claude Code and Codex history for the current workspace. Press S to choose one source, or Tab to explicitly include all workspaces.

3. Review and select

   Each row shows the source, title, message count, and whether it is new, up to date, or unavailable. The preview shows both the source workspace and the Carina target workspace.

4. Confirm the local copy

   Select conversations with Space or Select all, choose Review import, and confirm. The result page shows exactly how many messages were added or skipped; open an imported conversation from there.

Imported user and assistant messages retain a Claude Code import or Codex import label in the transcript. They are historical context, not evidence that Carina ran the source tool calls.

Import from the CLI

Preview the current workspace before writing anything:

carina import list
carina import list --source claude-code
carina import list --source codex --json

Import one discovered source conversation, or every eligible conversation in the current view:

carina import apply --source claude-code --id SOURCE_CONVERSATION_ID
carina import apply --source codex --all

Use --workspace /path/to/repo to choose the Carina target workspace. --all-workspaces broadens discovery; it does not merge unrelated conversations into one workspace. For a non-default installation or a synthetic test fixture, pair --source-root /path/to/history with an explicit --source.

What Carina copies

Copied	Not copied or trusted
Visible user text	System or developer instructions
Visible assistant text	Hidden reasoning
Source name and conversation identity	Tool calls and tool results
Original message timestamp	Approval or permission settings
Source and target workspace provenance	Credentials, environment dumps, or binary attachments

Carina reads the selected local history through the daemon, records imported messages in its hash-chained audit log, and binds the new conversation to the shown target workspace with the safe-edit profile. A follow-up prompt receives a bounded, explicitly delimited untrusted imported conversation context. Imported instructions never become Carina authority.

Note

Import does not start Claude Code or Codex, require their credentials, upload the source history, or write back to it. Carina only reads local files during an explicit discovery or import action.

Check for new messages

Run Check again in the result page, reopen the importer, or repeat the CLI command. Carina uses stable source identity and per-message fingerprints, so an unchanged import creates no duplicate conversation or message. If the source appended messages, only the new visible messages are added.

Carina does not watch source files in the background. “Up to date” means up to date as of the last explicit check.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	What to do
No conversations found	Confirm the source and current workspace; use Tab or --all-workspaces only when you intend to scan other projects.
Source history is in a custom location	Use --source SOURCE --source-root /path/to/history.
Conversation is unavailable	Its recorded workspace is missing or outside the daemon’s allowed roots. Restore it, or use --all-workspaces --workspace /existing/target to discover it while choosing an existing target.
Some records were skipped	Unknown or malformed source records are reported as warnings when usable user/assistant text remains.
Conversation says up to date	No new visible messages were found. This is an idempotent no-op.
Import stops partway through	Resolve the reported error and run it again. Already recorded fingerprints are skipped.

After import, inspect the normalized transcript with carina items SESSION and verify the audit chain with carina audit verify SESSION.