Extract Transcripts

Extracts readable markdown transcripts from Claude Code and Codex CLI session JSONL files.

Scripts

Claude Code Sessions

# Extract a single session
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_transcript.py <session.jsonl>

# With tool calls and thinking blocks
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_transcript.py <session.jsonl> --include-tools --include-thinking

# Extract all sessions from a directory
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_transcript.py <directory> --all

# Output to file
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_transcript.py <session.jsonl> -o output.md

# Summary only (quick overview)
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_transcript.py <session.jsonl> --summary

# Skip empty/warmup-only sessions
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_transcript.py <directory> --all --skip-empty

Options:

• --include-tools: Include tool calls and results
• --include-thinking: Include Claude's thinking blocks
• --all: Process all .jsonl files in directory
• -o, --output: Output file path (default: stdout)
• --summary: Only output brief summary
• --skip-empty: Skip empty and warmup-only sessions
• --min-messages N: Minimum messages for --skip-empty (default: 2)

Codex CLI Sessions

# Extract a Codex session
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_codex_transcript.py <session.jsonl>

# Extract from Codex history file
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/extract_codex_transcript.py ~/.codex/history.jsonl --history

Session File Locations

Claude Code

• Sessions: ~/.claude/projects/<project-path>/<session-id>.jsonl

Codex CLI

• Sessions: ~/.codex/sessions/<session_id>/rollout.jsonl
• History: ~/.codex/history.jsonl

DuckDB-Based Transcript Index

For querying across many sessions, use the DuckDB-based indexer:

# Index all sessions (incremental - only new/changed files)
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py index

# Force full reindex
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py index --full

# Limit number of files to process
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py index --limit 10

# List recent sessions
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py recent
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py recent --limit 20
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py recent --project myapp
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py recent --since 7d

# Search across sessions
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py search "error handling"
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py search "query" --cwd ~/myproject

# Show a session transcript
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py show <file_path>
python3 ~/.claude/skills/extract-transcripts/transcript_index.py show <file_path> --summary

Requirements: DuckDB (pip install duckdb)

Database location: ~/.claude/transcript-index/sessions.duckdb

Output Format

Transcripts are formatted as markdown with:

• Session metadata (date, duration, model, working directory, git branch)
• User messages prefixed with ## User
• Assistant responses prefixed with ## Assistant
• Tool calls in code blocks (if --include-tools)
• Thinking in blockquotes (if --include-thinking)
• Tool usage summary for Codex sessions