memory · harperreed — Claude Code skill: semantic memory for your agent
A skill that keeps agent notes in SQLite with embeddings and pulls them back by meaning. Useful when project context has to survive across sessions.
npx skills add harperreed/dotfiles --skill memory -a claude-codeWhat memory does
The skill exposes five MCP tools. mcp__memory__store writes a note with tags, mcp__memory__search runs a similarity lookup, mcp__memory__list shows recent entries, mcp__memory__delete drops one, and mcp__memory__get_context assembles context around a topic. Because matching happens on embeddings, your query wording does not have to mirror the stored text.
Everything lands in ~/.local/share/memory/memory.db, a SQLite file with embeddings kept as BLOBs; the path follows XDG_DATA_HOME. When the MCP server is not reachable, the CLI still works: memory add "..." --tag preference, memory search "...", memory list, memory export -f markdown.
Nothing gets remembered on its own. Entries appear only when a tool is called, so saving decisions and preferences is on you. Skip mcp__memory__store and the database stays empty, which leaves search with nothing to return.
What it helps with
- carry user preferences from one session to the next
- find an earlier decision by meaning rather than exact wording
- load project context before starting a task
- export accumulated notes to markdown
- remove a stale entry from memory
Example prompts for the agent
- Remember that I prefer TypeScript in this project and store it with the preferences tag
- Search memory for what I said about the build setup
- Get context on my coding preferences
How to install memory
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add harperreed/dotfiles --skill memory -a claude-code2Manually: put the files in place
~/.claude/skills/memory/SKILL.mdCopy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/memory/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add harperreed/dotfiles --skill memory -a codex2Manually: put the files in place
.agents/skills/memory/SKILL.mdFor all projects use ~/.agents/skills/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add harperreed/dotfiles --skill memory -a cursor2Manually: put the files in place
.cursor/skills/memory/SKILL.mdCursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/
1GitHub CLI
gh skill install harperreed/dotfiles memory2Manually: put the files in place
.github/skills/memory/SKILL.md1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add harperreed/dotfiles --skill memory -a gemini-cli2Platform CLI
gemini skills install https://github.com/harperreed/dotfiles --path .claude/skills-archive/memoryManually: put the files in place
.devin/skills/memory/SKILL.mdThe legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works
Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add harperreed/dotfiles --skill memory -a opencodeClaude.ai
Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Step by step, with commands for each platform: How to install skills in Claude Code: five ways
Questions about memory
How do I install memory in Claude Code?
Run npx skills add harperreed/dotfiles --skill memory -a claude-code. The skill lands at ~/.claude/skills/memory/SKILL.md.
What does the memory skill do?
It gives the agent vector memory: tagged note storage, semantic search over those notes, listing recent entries and deletion. All of it sits in a local SQLite database.
Where is the memory data stored?
In ~/.local/share/memory/memory.db. The location respects XDG_DATA_HOME, and embeddings live in the same file as BLOBs.
Similar skills
All skills for Agent setup: memory, context, orchestration →memory by other authors comes first.
