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# pai pause

> Save state and display safe-exit instructions for the current session.

Writes a ## Continue checkpoint to the project's TODO.md.
Use `pai pause all` to pause every live session via AIBroker.

## Synopsis

```
pai pause [target] [options]
```

## Arguments

| Argument | Kind |
|----------|------|
| `[target]` | optional |

## Options

| Option | Description | Default |
|--------|-------------|---------|
| `--dry-run` | Preview changes without writing them |  |
| `--body-file <path>` | File holding the checkpoint markdown to persist ('-' reads stdin). Required unless --no-body. |  |
| `--session-id <uuid>` | Claude Code session UUID — recorded as the `claude --resume` handle |  |
| `--no-body` | Deliberately write a metadata-only checkpoint (no content) |  |
| `--exit` | (pause all only) Also send /exit to each session after pausing |  |
| `--only <name>` | (pause all only) Pause just the sessions whose name or id contains <name>. For rehearsing the real thing against one session before trusting it with every open tab — a dry run exercises enumeration but never sends anything, which is exactly how a broken send survived until it was needed. |  |
| `--wait <ms>` | (pause all only) Max milliseconds to wait for a session to finish its checkpoint before /exit. Not a fixed delay — sessions are exited as soon as they return to the prompt, and any still busy at the deadline are left open rather than killed mid-write. (default: 180000) | `180000` |

## See also

[`pai audit`](audit.md) · [`pai backup`](backup.md) · [`pai clear-names`](clear-names.md) · [`pai config`](config.md) · [`pai daemon`](daemon.md) · [`pai db`](db.md) · [`pai end`](end.md) · [`pai help`](help.md) · [`pai identity`](identity.md) · [`pai kg`](kg.md) · [`pai launch`](launch.md) · [`pai mcp`](mcp.md) · [`pai memory`](memory.md) · [`pai notify`](notify.md) · [`pai observation`](observation.md) · [`pai obsidian`](obsidian.md) · [`pai project`](project.md) · [`pai projects`](projects.md) · [`pai registry`](registry.md) · [`pai restore`](restore.md) · [`pai session`](session.md) · [`pai sessions`](sessions.md) · [`pai setup`](setup.md) · [`pai shell-init`](shell-init.md) · [`pai skill`](skill.md) · [`pai task`](task.md) · [`pai topic`](topic.md) · [`pai update`](update.md) · [`pai worker`](worker.md) · [`pai zettel`](zettel.md)

Run `pai help <area>` to read any of these in the terminal.