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Correct answer: C. Your CLAUDE.md, auto memory, loaded skills and command output
Explanation
The principle — the window holds far more than the messages you can see.
Why the key is correct — Anthropic describes the context window as the working memory for a session, holding conversation history, file contents, command outputs, CLAUDE.md, auto memory, loaded skills and system instructions. Everything on that list competes for the same space, which is why a very long instruction file has a cost beyond being tedious to read.
Why the others are wrong — instruction files are not held separately. File contents already read do stay in the window. And imports are not dropped after launch; they load and remain.
Remember this — your instruction files are not free. They occupy the same room as the work.
Sources — Anthropic's Claude Code glossary.
Sources
“The working memory for a session, holding conversation history, file contents, command outputs, CLAUDE.md, auto memory, loaded skills, and system instructions.”
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