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open-memex
Overview
Description from the maker (original English)
Local-first memory for AI coding agents — Markdown + SQLite FTS5, shared across editors via MCP.
PopNx MCP’s three pillars
These three are never merged into one score: opinions, measurements and popularity are different things.
- User voiceiNo reviews yetReviews open together with accounts in a later step
- Our basic checksi1 of 1 passedChecked from public information; code not scanned yet
- UsageiEarly↓ 1.3K/wk · ★ –
What you can do with it
We have not written a plain-language summary for this one yet. Below are the facts we read from the registry.
- Connection: Runs on your computer
- Transport: stdio
- Category: Developer tools
Install
Pick the AI app you use, then copy the settings.
Before you install
- Basic checks: 1 of 1 passed
- Runs on your computer with your user’s permissions (files, network, apps).
- The registry lists no key to fill in.
You need
- npmNode.js installed (for the npx command)
Which app do you use?
Pick your app above. We remember it, so next time the button says “Install in …”.
Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config, and paste this into claude_desktop_config.json
{
"mcpServers": {
"open-memex": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"open-memex",
"mcp"
]
}
}
}Run this in your terminal
claude mcp add open-memex -- npx -y open-memex mcpOr copy the settings yourself
Paste into .cursor/mcp.json in your project, or ~/.cursor/mcp.json
{
"mcpServers": {
"open-memex": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"open-memex",
"mcp"
]
}
}
}Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.
Or copy the settings yourself
Paste into .vscode/mcp.json in your project
{
"servers": {
"open-memex": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"open-memex",
"mcp"
]
}
}
}Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.
This one runs on your computer, and ChatGPT can only connect to servers on the internet. Pick another app.
Your choice stays on this device in a cookie; no account needed.
These settings are generated from the maker’s registry entry. If the README says otherwise, follow the README.
What it can do
Runs on your computer; the tool list appears in your AI app after you install it.
Basic checksi
We check information anyone can see; we have not read the code. Checks that do not apply are left out of the count. · Checked Nov 8, 2026
- ✓ Pass
Maker matches the repo
The registry name was verified with the GitHub account stoneskin, which owns the repo
- … Not checked yet
Still maintained
We have not read this repo from GitHub yet
- … Not checked yet
Has a licence
We have not read this repo from GitHub yet
- – Not applicable
Endpoint responds
This one runs on your computer; there is no internet endpoint
- – Not applicable
Sign-in with OAuth
Runs on your computer and uses local settings instead
- … Not checked yet
No hidden instructions in tool descriptions
Runs on your computer; we can only read tool lists from internet endpoints
Compared with others in Developer toolsi
- More stars than 0% of the other 4934 servers in this category
- Published to the registry more recently than 95% of the other 4934 servers in this category
- Basic checks equal to or better than 100% of the other 4934 servers in this category
Compared with every active server in this category in the registry. Stars count only when the publisher owns the repo.
Common questions
Is open-memex safe?
It passed 1 of 1 applicable basic checks. We have not read the code. Before adding a key or token, see what access the server asks for and use a key with only the permissions you need.
What keys or codes does it need?
The registry does not list a required key, though some servers ask you to sign in on first use.
Does it run on my computer or in the cloud?
It runs on your computer. Your AI app starts it when needed, and data does not pass through the maker’s servers (unless it calls an online service itself).
Is it still maintained?
The GitHub repo last changed –, and the latest version (0.9.0) reached the registry 2 days ago.
Which apps can use it?
Apps that support MCP, such as Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor and VS Code. You also need Node.js on your computer.
What can I use instead?
In the same category: GitHub, Desktop Commander, Cloudflare MCP
Alternatives
Servers in the same category from other makers, sorted by stars.
Reading a card:↓ Downloads per weeki★ GitHub starsiThree pillars: reviews · checks · usageiUpdated = latest version published to the registryi
Desktop Commander
MCP server for terminal commands, file operations, and process management
Runs on your computer
README from the maker
Open the README
Copied from the maker’s repo as written. PopNx MCP has not reviewed or endorsed it. HTML, images and scripts are removed. Links lead off this site.
open-memex
Persistent memory for your AI coding agents — on your machine, in plain Markdown, shared by every tool you code with.
中文文档
Every AI coding session starts from zero: you re-explain the project, the agent rediscovers the same gotchas, and yesterday's decisions vanish when the chat ends. open-memex gives your agents a memory that survives the session. Say "remember: we deploy on Fridays" once, and next week Copilot, Cursor, opencode, or Claude Code already knows — because they all read and write the same local memory on your machine.
- Free and open source (Apache-2.0). No account, no cloud, no telemetry — everything lives on your machine, in files you can open and edit.
- Local-first: memories are plain Markdown files (the source of truth) with a rebuildable SQLite keyword index. Nothing leaves your machine unless you explicitly share it.
- One memory, every agent: wire up several editors with one command; they share the same memory instead of keeping separate silos.
- Precise synonym search:
shipfindsdeploy,单点登录findsSSO— a curated multilingual map of equivalents is indexed with every memory at write time, so no related wording misses the right answer. Deterministic and auditable, no embedding model required. - A map, not just search: a derived knowledge graph connects your project memories — supersedes chains, shared tags, explicit mentions — and injects a compiled outline at session start, so the agent sees what's in memory without searching. Structural edges only, no LLM.
New here? This README takes you from install to a working memory in about a minute. The concept guide explains the mental model in depth once you're up and running.
Contents
- Quick start
- Core concepts
- Which editors, which features
- How it compares
- Installation
- Setting up your editor
- What
initchanges on your machine - Capture: how memories get saved
- Tools the agent gets
- Memory types
- Team workflow: sharing memories through Git
- Retrieval: how memories come back
- Security & data
- Limitations
- Upgrading
- Storage layout
- Config
- CLI reference
- Session working state
- Knowledge graph
- MCP server
- Scopes, in detail
- Troubleshooting
- FAQ
- Project status
Quick start
You need Node.js ≥ 22.14 (check with node -v). Then:
npm install -g open-memexopen-memex init
init detects the editors you have installed (VS Code, Cursor, opencode, and Visual Studio when your project has a solution file) and connects each one to open-memex. Restart your editor afterwards.
See it work (30 seconds):
open-memex add "This project deploys on Fridays"Now open a new chat in your editor and ask your agent: *"When does this project deploy?"* It already knows — no re-explaining. That round trip, capture once and recall forever, is the whole product. Everything below is detail.
Optional but recommended — check everything is wired up:
open-memex doctorCore concepts
Four ideas explain almost everything open-memex does.
1. Two scopes: `project` and `personal`. Every memory belongs to one of two places:
- project — knowledge about one codebase (decisions, constraints, lessons). Scoped to the current repo automatically; you never set this up by hand.
- personal — knowledge about *you* (preferences, habits) that applies in every project. It lives only on this machine and can never be shared into a repo.
Facts about you ("I prefer concise diffs") go to personal; everything else defaults to the current project.
2. Capture → recall. Memories are saved as small Markdown files, one fact each. On the first turn of every new session, open-memex hands your agent the most relevant ones automatically, so it starts the session already knowing them. The agent can also search the full memory on demand. You never have to "load" anything yourself.
3. Your files, your rules. The Markdown files are the source of truth — open them, edit them, delete them, grep them. The SQLite index next to them is just a search accelerator and rebuilds from the files at any time (open-memex reindex). Team sharing, when you want it, goes through the same review flow as code: nothing is shared automatically (see Team workflow).
4. Knowledge stays current. Facts change: decisions get reversed, tools get replaced, yesterday's gotcha gets fixed. open-memex doesn't let the old version quietly linger — memory_supersede replaces a memory with its newer version and keeps the chain, so retrieval serves the current fact while the history stays auditable. Merely stale memories can be deprecated, and open-memex audit reports duplicates, stale entries, and broken chains. Pruning is a feature, not housekeeping: shared memory rots without it.
Which editors, which features
open-memex talks to editors two ways: a native opencode plugin, and a standard MCP server that any MCP-capable editor can use. (MCP — Model Context Protocol — is the open standard editors use to give agents extra tools; open-memex appears in your editor as a set of memory_* tools.) What you get depends on which path an editor uses:
| Editor | Setup | Tools | Session-start recall | Keyword auto-capture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| opencode (native plugin, recommended) | open-memex init --client opencode --global | 6 core tools | Built in — first turn of every session | Yes — remember …, 记住… |
| VS Code (Copilot) | open-memex init --client vscode | All 12 via MCP | Via MCP guidance* | No — the agent saves when you ask |
| Cursor | open-memex init --client cursor | All 12 via MCP | Via MCP guidance* | No — the agent saves when you ask |
| Claude Code | claude mcp add open-memex -- open-memex mcp | All 12 via MCP | Via MCP guidance* | No — the agent saves when you ask |
| Visual Studio 2022 17.14+ / 2026 | open-memex init --client visualstudio | All 12 via MCP | Via MCP guidance* | No — the agent saves when you ask |
| Codex and other MCP clients | open-memex mcp --print-config | All 12 via MCP | Via MCP guidance* | No — the agent saves when you ask |
\* MCP has no hard session-start hook, so open-memex sends the agent guidance in the MCP handshake (including how many drafts are waiting) and init writes the fuller version into the editor's instruction files. In practice agents follow it; the opencode plugin is the only path with true built-in first-turn injection. The Tools section lists the 6 core tools and the 6 extra workflow tools, so the "6 vs 12" split is explicit.
All editors on the same machine read and write the same memory — a constraint captured in VS Code is respected in opencode; a lesson learned in Cursor shows up in Claude Code. (Different machines do not sync automatically; see the FAQ.)
init also installs an Agent Skill (a short instruction file that teaches skill-aware agents to use the CLI) for VS Code and Cursor, and for opencode in per-project MCP mode. With the opencode native plugin wired, no skill is installed there — the plugin already provides the memory tools, and a second instruction set only made agents chatty.
How it compares
| open-memex | Instruction files (CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md, …) | Cloud memory services | Chat history | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where it lives | Your machine + your repos | In the repo | Vendor servers | Gone when the chat ends |
| Who maintains it | Captured as you work; you review | You write and update by hand | The service | — |
| When facts change | Superseded, not silently stale — retrieval serves the current version, chain preserved | You hand-edit; stale copies linger | Varies; often silently stale | — |
| Works across AI tools | Yes — any MCP client (same machine) | One file per tool convention | Per-integration | No |
| Review before sharing | Yes — outbox + pull request | Yes — it's just files | Varies | No |
| Human-readable | Plain Markdown files | Yes | Dashboard / API | No |
Instruction files are great for a handful of standing rules — keep using them (open-memex can even draft one from your memories; see distill-agents below). open-memex covers the growing pile of decisions, lessons, and preferences that no one remembers to write down.
Installation
Requirements
- Node.js ≥ 22.14 (
open-memex doctorverifies this for you). The floor is the SQLite driver's:better-sqlite313 is built against Node-API 10, which Node gained in 22.14.0 — older Node segfaults on the first database open.
Install the CLI
npm install -g open-memexThat's the stable release. Installing the package may print a reminder to run open-memex init — the editor wiring is a separate step (see Setting up your editor), so don't worry if you don't see the reminder; just run init next.
Two alternatives:
- No install — run via npx:
npx -y open-memexruns any command without installing (e.g.npx -y open-memex init --client vscode). Slower to start, nothing to uninstall. - Alpha builds (newest features, rougher edges, for testers):
npm install -g open-memex@alpha. Check what's published withnpm view open-memex version(stable) andnpm view open-memex@alpha version(alpha).
If open-memex isn't found after installing, your PATH needs attention — see Troubleshooting.
From source (for contributors)
git clone -b main https://github.com/stoneskin/open-memex.gitcd open-memex npm install node --experimental-strip-types src/cli.ts
Setting up your editor
Run init from your project root (the top folder of the repo you're working in) so the project scope resolves to that repo:
open-memex init --yes…or without installing the package first:
npx -y open-memex init --yes
--yes accepts the recommended defaults for everything init asks about (editors to wire, auto-capture, first-turn recall). Leave it off if you want to answer each question. With no --client, init detects your installed editors and wires them all — one init covers every project. Prefer a single editor? Pass --client:
VS Code (Copilot):
open-memex init --client vscodeWrites the MCP server entry; reload the window afterwards and confirm the open-memex server is started in Copilot Chat's MCP panel. By default this writes a project-level .vscode/mcp.json (an interactive run asks which level you want); add --global for VS Code's *user-level* config inst
Only the beginning is shown; read the rest in the repo