Old conversation content affects a new task: should you start a new chat or summarize the history?

Separate expired requirements from valid inherited context

Symptoms include using the previous project's brand, treating old rules as current, or returning to the old topic despite a new objective. Save a specific wrong answer and list requirements to retain separately from expired content. Application memory or summaries hidden by the interface may also be included and should be distinguished from ordinary conversation messages.

Check history summaries and knowledge-base versions

Inspect the final system prompt and message order to identify how old requirements are represented. Without raw-request access, compare a minimal fresh conversation with the original but do not infer the internal memory implementation from that alone. Also check for old retrieved documents before attributing a knowledge-version error to conversation contamination.

Capture the current task in a minimal new conversation

Summarize the current subject, valid constraints and unfinished work, then provide that summary with necessary sources in a new conversation. Retain the original for recovery without clearing other projects. Applications should not treat a history summary as new user authorization; give expired requirements explicit validity conditions rather than expecting the model to infer priority.

Retest conflicts between the old and current subject

Retest the original old-brand or old-rule failure, confirm that the current subject is used, and ensure required inherited constraints were not lost. An occasional correct answer in a fresh chat does not locate the cause; compare fixed evidence and sampling settings where possible. Record the adopted task summary for future checks.

Products differ in history compaction and long-term memory, and users may not control every mechanism. This page reads no private conversations and verifies no product's internal storage. Redact sensitive examples; do not delete conversations or knowledge files still in use merely to remove old requirements.