New session shortcuts
Start a new session from a project or existing session while reusing the right launch settings.
New session shortcuts help you start a related session without re-checking every launch option.
They are useful when you are already working in a project or looking at a session and want another agent session with the same setup.
Where shortcuts appear
You can start a prefilled new session from:
- a project group in the session list, using the project + action
- the Session info screen, using New session with same setup
Both shortcuts open the normal new-session screen. You can still review or change anything before sending the first prompt.
Project shortcuts
The project + action is designed for the common case:
- you are working in a project
- you want a second session in that same project
- you want it to use the setup you most recently used there
When enabled, Happier looks at the newest session in that project group and uses its launch configuration to seed the new-session screen.
This means the shortcut can reuse the setup from the most recent session in that project, instead of falling back to whatever you last selected globally in another project.
New session with same setup
The New session with same setup action appears on a session's Session info screen.
Use it when you want the next session to mirror one specific session, for example:
- you hit a side issue and want another agent to investigate it
- you want a second attempt with the same backend, model, and permission posture
- you want to keep the same project, profile, and provider-specific options without manually checking each control
Unlike the project + action, this action uses the session you are viewing, not the newest session in the project group.
What gets reused
Shortcuts reuse launch selections from the source session where those selections are available.
That can include:
- machine
- folder
- engine or backend
- profile
- transcript storage choice
- permission mode
- model choice
- provider session mode, such as Plan
- provider config option overrides, such as reasoning effort
- MCP selection
- connected-service choices
- terminal-related launch options
- provider-specific backend mode, when the provider exposes one
The shortcut does not send a prompt by itself. It only prepares the new-session screen.
What does not get reused
Shortcuts intentionally do not continue the source conversation.
They do not reuse:
- the source session transcript
- the source session id
- the source session resume target
- the source session's pending messages
- the source session's current running state
If you want to continue an inactive session, use resume instead. If you want to branch conversation history, use session forking or replay.
Existing drafts
If you already have a new-session draft, a contextual shortcut does not blindly replace the whole thing.
Happier preserves draft content such as the typed prompt and automation draft, then replaces the launch selections with the shortcut's source session configuration.
For example, if your draft says:
"Investigate the failing checkout flow"
and you click New session with same setup from a Codex session in /repo/app, the prompt remains in the composer, but the new-session screen switches to that session's machine, folder, engine, model, permissions, and related session options.
Selections that would conflict with the source session are reset or replaced. This includes stale resume targets and worktree checkout choices from the previous draft.
This behavior keeps your written intent while making the shortcut authoritative for where and how the new session should start.
Setting: Remember last project session selections
The project + shortcut is controlled by Remember last project session selections.
Find it in:
- Settings
- Session
- New session modal
The setting is on by default.
When it is on:
- project + uses the newest session in that project group as the source configuration
- existing composer draft content is preserved
- launch selections come from the project session
When it is off:
- project + only preselects the project machine and folder
- the normal new-session defaults and draft behavior apply
The Session info action is always explicit: if you choose New session with same setup, that session's setup is used for the new-session screen.
How this differs from global remembered settings
Happier still has normal new-session defaults and drafts.
The shortcut behavior is more specific:
- normal New Session uses the current draft/defaults
- project + can use the newest session in that project
- New session with same setup uses the exact session you are viewing
This avoids a common problem: settings from a different project accidentally shaping a new session in the project you are currently working on.
Common use cases
Investigate a side issue
You are in a feature session and discover a separate bug.
Open Session info for the current session, choose New session with same setup, and type a focused prompt for the side issue.
Run a second agent in the same project
Use the project + action from the session list.
Happier keeps you in the same project context and, when enabled, reuses the newest project session's engine, model, permissions, profile, and options.
Keep project-specific backend choices separate
One project might use a configured ACP backend, while another uses a built-in provider.
With Remember last project session selections on, project shortcuts use the latest setup from that project instead of a global last-used backend from somewhere else.
Keep a prompt but move it to the right setup
If you already typed a prompt in the new-session screen, then realize you want it launched with the same setup as an existing session, use the contextual shortcut.
The prompt stays; the launch selections are replaced by the session configuration.