Classify — Manual Classification & Review Queue

Classify runs the classification engine on knowledge entries and lets you triage the review queue for low-confidence predictions.

When to Use

/classify <entry_id> — classify a specific entry by ID
/classify --inbox — classify all unclassified inbox entries in batch (alias for --batch --entry-type inbox)
/classify --batch <filters> — classify entries matching composable filters in batch
/classify --review — triage entries awaiting human review
/classify (no args) — show usage help

Process

Step 1: Check MCP

See CONVENTIONS.md — skip if already confirmed this conversation.

Step 2: Dispatch to Mode

Invocation	Mode
`/classify <entry_id>`	Classify by ID
`/classify --inbox`	Batch inbox classification (alias for `--batch --entry-type inbox`)
`/classify --batch <filters>`	Batch classification with composable filters
`/classify --review`	Review queue triage
`/classify` (no args)	Show help

Optional flags (all modes):

Flag	Parameter	Description
`--project`	`<name>`	Filter by project name

Batch filter flags (--batch mode only):

Flag	Parameter	Description
`--source`	`<source>`	Filter by entry source (e.g. `claude-code`, `manual`, `import`, `inference`, `external`)
`--entry-type`	`<type>`	Filter by entry type (e.g. `inbox`, `github`, `feed`, `session`, etc.)
`--author`	`<name>`	Filter by author name
`--tag-prefix`	`<prefix>`	Filter by tag namespace prefix (e.g. `project/billing`)
`--project`	`<name>`	Filter by project name
`--unclassified`	(none)	Filter to entries with no tags and verification=unverified

Filters are composable with AND semantics. At least one filter is required when using --batch (reject bare --batch with no filters).

Mode A: Classify by ID

Step A1: Retrieve and Classify

Call distillery_get to retrieve the entry. If not found, tell the user to check the ID or use /recall.
Analyse the content and determine:
- entry_type: best fit from session, bookmark, minutes, meeting, reference, idea, inbox, person, project, digest, github, feed
- confidence: 0.0–1.0 based on how clearly the content fits
- reasoning: concise explanation
- suggested_tags: 2–5 keywords
Call distillery_classify with those values.

On MCP errors, see CONVENTIONS.md error handling — display and stop.

Step A2: Display Result

Show entry ID, type, confidence (as <n%> (<level>)), status, reasoning, and suggested tags. For reclassifications, show old and new classification side-by-side. If confidence is below threshold, note the entry was sent to the review queue.

Mode B: Batch Inbox Classification

--inbox is a convenience alias for --batch --entry-type inbox. It follows the same process as Mode B2 below with entry_type="inbox" pre-set.

Step B1: List Inbox Entries

Call distillery_list(entry_type="inbox", limit=50, output_mode="full", content_max_length=300). If --project was specified, also pass project=<name>. If empty, tell the user and stop.

Step B2: Classify Each Entry

For each entry (max 50), compute classification as in Mode A and call distillery_classify. Track counts: classified (active), review (pending_review), errors.

Step B3: Display Batch Summary

## Batch Classification Complete

| Entry ID | Preview | Type | Confidence | Status |
|----------|---------|------|------------|--------|
| <id>     | <first 60 chars>... | <type> | <n%> (<level>) | <active|review|error> |

Total: <N> processed — <classified> active, <review> review, <errors> errors

If any sent to review, suggest /classify --review.

Mode B2: Batch Classification with Filters

Step B2-1: Validate Filters

At least one filter flag must be present. If the user passed bare --batch with no filters, display an error: "At least one filter is required for --batch mode. See /classify for available filters." and stop.
Build the distillery_list arguments from the provided filters:

Flag	`distillery_list` parameter
`--source`	`source=<value>`
`--entry-type`	`entry_type=<value>`
`--author`	`author=<value>`
`--tag-prefix`	`tag_prefix=<value>`
`--project`	`project=<value>`
`--unclassified`	`verification="unverified"` (the empty-tags constraint is checked post-fetch in Step B2-2)

Step B2-2: List Matching Entries

Call distillery_list with the composed filters, plus limit=50, output_mode="full", content_max_length=300. If empty, tell the user no entries matched the filters and stop.

If --unclassified was specified, additionally filter the returned entries to only those with tags=[] (empty tags list). This is a post-fetch filter since the store does not support empty-tag queries directly.

Step B2-3: Classify Each Entry

For each entry (max 50), compute classification as in Mode A and call distillery_classify. Track counts: classified (active), review (pending_review), errors.

Step B2-4: Display Batch Summary

Use the same summary table format as Mode B Step B3.

Mode C: Review Queue Triage

Step C1: Fetch the Review Queue

Call distillery_list(status="pending_review", output_mode="review", limit=20). If --project was specified, also pass project=<name>. If empty, tell the user and stop.

Step C2: Determine Reviewer

Determine reviewer per CONVENTIONS.md author resolution.

Step C3: Triage Each Entry

For each entry, display: ID, type, confidence, author, date, reasoning, and a 200-char content preview. Prompt for action:

Key	Action	MCP Call
`a`	Approve — keep classification, set active	`distillery_resolve_review(action="approve")`
`r`	Reclassify — prompt for new type, validate against valid types (re-prompt once if invalid)	`distillery_resolve_review(action="reclassify", new_entry_type=...)`
`x`	Archive — remove from knowledge base	`distillery_resolve_review(action="archive")`
`s`	Skip — leave in queue	No MCP call

Always pass the reviewer name when calling distillery_resolve_review.

Step C4: Display Triage Summary

## Review Queue Summary

Entries reviewed: <total>
- Approved: <n>  |  Reclassified: <n>  |  Archived: <n>  |  Skipped: <n>

Mode D: Show Help (No Arguments)

Read references/modes.md for the help text to display.

Rules

Always check MCP availability first — stop if unavailable
Show help when invoked with no arguments
Retrieve the entry with distillery_get before classifying by ID
Display confidence as percentage with level label in all output (see references/modes.md for level thresholds)
For reclassifications, show old and new classification together
Batch mode: max 50 entries per invocation
Review mode: one entry at a time, accept s to skip
Validate reclassify type input; re-prompt once if invalid
Always show a summary after batch or review operations
On MCP errors, see CONVENTIONS.md error handling — display and stop
No retry loops — if a tool fails, report and continue to the next entry