release_sprint_item_claim
[MAINTENANCE] W1-I — voluntarily release a LIVE in_progress claim on a sprint item back to pending. Distinct from reconcile_stale_claims: that tool is for a claim whose owning session is dead/abandoned (multi-signal liveness classification); this is for a session that is still alive and has simpl...
This record as markdown: /tools/io-github-ajc3xc-meridian/release-sprint-item-claim.md
What release_sprint_item_claim does on Meridian
AI agents call release_sprint_item_claim to permanently remove resources in Meridian, typically in cleanup and lifecycle workflows. It does its job in a single call, and there is no undo.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
force | boolean | — | Release a DIFFERENT live session's claim anyway. Default false — an ownership mismatch is refused by default. |
reason | string | — | Optional human-readable reason, recorded in the audit trail only (never written to the item's own notes). |
item_id | string | Yes | The in_progress sprint item to release. |
project_id | string | — | |
session_id | string | Yes | The calling session's own identity. Must match the item's current actor unless force=true. |
project_name | string | — | Project name — an alternative to project_id; resolved to the id internally. project_id wins if both are given. |
Parameters from the server's own tool schema.
Why release_sprint_item_claim is rated Critical
An AI agent that decides to call release_sprint_item_claim doesn't hesitate, doesn't double-check, and doesn't stop at one. Whatever it removes from Meridian is gone. There is no undo for destructive operations.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs release_sprint_item_claim safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and Meridian, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For release_sprint_item_claim, this is the rule to start with:
release_sprint_item_claim is removed from the agent's tool list entirely, so the agent never calls it. The rest of the server keeps working.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect Meridian, apply this rule, and every release_sprint_item_claim call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about release_sprint_item_claim
[MAINTENANCE] W1-I — voluntarily release a LIVE in_progress claim on a sprint item back to pending. Distinct from reconcile_stale_claims: that tool is for a claim whose owning session is dead/abandoned (multi-signal liveness classification); this is for a session that is still alive and has simply decided not to work the item after all (wrong scope, superseded, claimed by mistake) and wants to hand it back to the board cleanly instead of going silent and letting it eventually get swept as stale. Only the session recorded as the item's current actor may release its own claim — a mismatch is refused (NOT_CLAIM_OWNER) unless force=true is explicitly passed. Also clears the item's claimed_at/actor columns (not just status) and releases any file/symbol resource locks the claim held. Returns a structured {blocked: true, error: ...} dict (NOT_IN_PROGRESS / NOT_CLAIM_OWNER / RACE_LOST) rather than raising when it can't proceed; on success returns {item_id, prior_actor, prior_claimed_at, released_resources, item}, plus kept_for_sibling_items when a lock was deliberately kept because another in_progress item held by the same session still declares that file/symbol. Persistent-state disclosure: on hosted Meridian, supplied text and project/session metadata -- including task log entries, pinned decisions, sprint items, notes, handoff/goal state, and HITL queue items -- are sent to and stored in Meridian's service, in an isolated per-tenant Postgres database (Neon); self-hosted deployments keep the same categories in the configured local SQLite/Postgres database. This data is visible in the dashboard and API, and may resurface in later project context or handoffs. Notes and pinned decisions can be deleted individually; task log entries and sprint items can be deleted via the dashboard/API (not exposed as an agent-facing tool); HITL queue items and handoff state have no per-record delete. Full removal of any of this data is available via project or account deletion, using the documented controls. Do not include secrets. It is categorised as a Destructive tool in the Meridian MCP Server, which means it can permanently delete or destroy data. Block by default and require explicit approval.
release_sprint_item_claim accepts 6 parameters: force, reason, item_id, project_id, session_id, project_name. Required: item_id, session_id. The full parameter table on this page comes from the server's own tool schema.
Register the Meridian MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for release_sprint_item_claim: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Meridian. Nothing to install.
release_sprint_item_claim is a Destructive tool with critical risk. Critical-risk tools should be blocked by default and only enabled with explicit human approval.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the release_sprint_item_claim rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for release_sprint_item_claim. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
release_sprint_item_claim is provided by the Meridian MCP server (@meridianmcp/mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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