Mnemos

What is Mnemos?

Mnemos is a local memory server for AI agents that indexes plain-Markdown files and serves them over the Model Context Protocol (MCP), so agents like Claude Code can search, read, and cite your own knowledge instead of guessing.

How to use Mnemos?

Install by cloning the repository and running make install (requires Go 1.25+). Index a project with mnemos init and mnemos ingest docs --collection myproject, then wire it into Claude Code with claude mcp add mnemos -- mnemos serve --config /abs/path/to/project/.mnemos.toml.

Key features of Mnemos

• Truly local-first: runs entirely on your machine with no network or telemetry.
• Zero dependencies: one self-contained, cgo-free Go binary.
• Works with any MCP client, built for Claude Code.
• Cited answers: every result links to exact file, section, and line range.
• Fast search via SQLite FTS5/bm25; optional local semantic and hybrid search.
• Read-write memory: agents can capture notes, list, forget, and move entries.
• Safe by default: read-only unless opted in; writes are path-confined and secret-scanned.

Use cases of Mnemos

• Give Claude Code cited access to your ADRs and design documents.
• Index project notes, runbooks, and source code for instant retrieval.
• Create a durable project memory that agents can both read and write.
• Consolidate raw captures into canonical docs with automatic conflict handling.

FAQ from Mnemos

How does Mnemos handle document identity?

A document’s identity is its path relative to the scan root you ingested (e.g., docs). If two ingested directories each contain a file with the same relative path, the second ingest silently overwrites the first.

Why does the --config path have to be absolute?

Claude Code does not guarantee the working directory it spawns the server in. An absolute --config path ensures that the database, capture directory, and tree root anchor to that file regardless of where the server is launched.

Does Mnemos require a vector database or external services?

No. Mnemos uses SQLite FTS5 and BM25 for default lexical search. No vector database, Ollama, Python, or Node service is needed.

What are Mnemos’s transport and authentication mechanisms?

Mnemos is built for MCP and runs as a local server on your machine. Authentication is not mentioned; it is intended for local, trusted environments.

What is the difference between the default lexical build and the optional semantic build?

The default lexical build uses SQLite FTS5/BM25 and works well for keyword-based queries. The optional semantic build (enabled with a build tag) uses an on-device embedding model for natural-language and hybrid search, improving retrieval on queries that share no keywords with the target documents.