Memory Bank System - Project Documentation

Last Updated: 2025-11-13 18:46:25 IST

Overview

The Memory Bank system provides structured documentation and context management for AI assistants working on long-running software projects. It maintains perfect project continuity across multiple sessions while optimizing token usage through progressive loading and efficient documentation patterns.

Current Status: Production-stable text-first system with experimental database paradigm in development.

Key Features

Operational (Production Ready):

• Tiered Knowledge Structure: Bootstrap → Critical → Essential → Reference loading
• Text-First Workflow: Markdown-based authoritative documentation
• Task Management: Registry with 20+ tasks, status tracking, and dependency management
• Session Continuity: Multi-session context preservation with session cache
• Memory Bank Viewer: Web-based viewer for file navigation and visualization
• CLI Interface: mb init command with selective component installation
• Integrated Rules v6.10: Comprehensive documentation with Memory Bank Update Workflow
• Database Migration: Verified 95% complete, 364 records migrated, zero errors

Experimental (In Development, Not Production Ready):

• Database-Native Paradigm: T21 Phase A complete, Phases B-E pending
• Adaptive Format Parser: T20a design phase complete, Phase 1 pending
• CLI Task/Session Commands: T13 Phase 2 pending (only mb init complete)

Project Structure

/Users/deepak/code/memory-bank/
├── README.md (this file)
├── integrated-rules-v6.10.md (v6.1-v6.10 versions available)
├── memory-bank/
│   ├── Core Files:
│   │   ├── activeContext.md (current session state)
│   │   ├── tasks.md (task registry with 20+ tasks)
│   │   ├── session_cache.md (multi-task session tracking)
│   │   ├── edit_history.md (chronological file modifications)
│   │   ├── errorLog.md (error tracking and resolutions)
│   │   ├── progress.md (project status and milestones)
│   │   ├── changelog.md (system changes, November 2025 entries)
│   │
│   ├── Documentation:
│   │   ├── projectbrief.md (project overview and scope)
│   │   ├── productContext.md (why and how the system works)
│   │   ├── systemPatterns.md (architecture and design patterns)
│   │   ├── techContext.md (technical implementation details)
│   │   ├── .cursorrules (implementation guidelines)
│   │
│   ├── Tasks:
│   │   └── tasks/ directory with T0-T21 and META-1 files
│   │       ├── T21.md (Database-Native Workflow, Phase A)
│   │       ├── T20a.md (Adaptive Format Parser, design complete)
│   │       ├── T20.md (Database Parser, Phase 3 in progress)
│   │       ├── T19.md (Memory Bank Viewer, Phase 2 in progress)
│   │       ├── T17.md (Rules v6.10, maintenance ongoing)
│   │       ├── T13.md (CLI, 85% complete)
│   │       ├── T3.md (Database Migration, 95% complete)
│   │       └── ... (T0-T18 additional tasks)
│   │
│   ├── Sessions:
│   │   └── sessions/ directory with time-stamped session files
│   │       ├── 2025-11-13-evening.md (current)
│   │       ├── 2025-11-12-evening.md
│   │       ├── 2025-11-11-evening.md
│   │       └── ... (session history)
│   │
│   ├── Implementation Details:
│   │   └── implementation-details/
│   │       ├── database-update-workflow-plan.md (T21 design)
│   │       ├── adaptive-parser-plan.md (T20a design)
│   │       ├── database-parser-plan.md (T20 implementation)
│   │       ├── memory-bank-viewer.md (T19 design)
│   │       ├── database-planning/ (migration docs)
│   │       ├── consciousness-dialogs/ (T16 dialog series)
│   │       └── ... (additional implementation notes)
│   │
│   ├── Database (Experimental):
│   │   └── database/
│   │       ├── memory_bank.db (SQLite database)
│   │       ├── parse-edits.js (parser for edit_history.md)
│   │       ├── parse-tasks.js (parser for tasks.md)
│   │       ├── query.js (query interface)
│   │       └── schema files
│   │
│   └── Archive:
│       ├── Completed tasks from April 2025
│       └── Historical documentation
│
├── viewer/
│   ├── viewer.html (1373-line single-file viewer)
│   ├── generate-manifest.js (file discovery)
│   ├── manifest.json (file catalog)
│   ├── server.js (optional HTTP server)
│   └── README.md (viewer documentation)
│
├── mb-cli/
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── commands/
│   │   │   └── init.js (selective initialization)
│   │   └── index.js (CLI entry point)
│   ├── package.json
│   └── README.md (CLI documentation)
│
├── t21-workflow-testing/ (Experimental)
│   ├── database/
│   │   ├── schema.sql (8-table schema)
│   │   ├── init-schema.js (better-sqlite3 init)
│   │   └── init-schema-sqljs.js (sql.js init)
│   ├── package.json
│   └── docs/SETUP.md
│
└── templates/
    ├── Task file templates
    ├── Session file templates
    └── Memory Bank file templates

Getting Started

Load Project Memory

Start any session with the Memory Bank:

# Minimal startup (Bootstrap tier)
# Load: tasks.md, activeContext.md

# Task-focused context (Critical tier)
# Load: session_cache.md, edit_history.md, errorLog.md

# Full context (All tiers)
# Load: projectbrief.md, systemPatterns.md, techContext.md, productContext.md

Using the Memory Bank Viewer

cd viewer
node server.js
# Open browser to http://localhost:3000
# Browse memory bank files and task registry

Using the CLI

cd mb-cli
node src/index.js init
# Options: --core, --templates, --database, --full, --skip-existing

Core Workflows

Memory Bank Update Workflow (v6.10, Section 6.5)

8-Step Production Procedure:

1. Determine system time and timezone (IST standard)
2. Update individual task file (with progress, timestamp)
3. Update tasks.md master registry
4. Update implementation-details files
5. Handle session file (create if new, update if existing)
6. Update session_cache.md (metadata, task status)
7. Update other files (activeContext.md, errorLog.md, progress.md, changelog.md)
8. Update edit_history.md (prepend entries with timestamp and task ID)

Task Management Workflow

1. Create individual task file in tasks/ directory
2. Add task to tasks.md registry
3. Track progress in session files
4. Update task file with completion status
5. Move to completed section when done

Session Continuity

1. At session start: Load tasks.md and activeContext.md (Bootstrap)
2. Check session_cache.md for continuation context
3. Load individual session file if continuing work
4. At session end: Update session file and session_cache.md
5. Create new session file if continuing multiple sessions

Current Development Status

Production Components (Ready to Use)

• Integrated Rules v6.10: Complete with Tiered Knowledge Structure
• Memory Bank Viewer: Phase 1 complete, Phase 2 in progress
• CLI init command: Fully operational, selective initialization working
• Text-first workflow: Operational, 8-step documented procedure
• Task management: 20+ tasks tracked, dependencies clear

In Progress Components

• T19 Viewer Phase 2: File content enhancements (1373-line viewer)
• T20 Parser Phase 3: Format handling improvements
• T17 Rules v6.10: Maintenance ongoing, continuous improvements
• T13 CLI Phase 2: Task/session/template commands pending

Experimental Components (NOT Production Ready)

• T21 Database Workflow: Phase A complete (schema, dual init scripts)
• T20a Adaptive Parser: Design phase complete, Phase 1 pending
• T20 Database Tools: Phase 3 in progress, exploratory implementation
• Database-native paradigm: Under development, significant changes pending

System Statistics

Metric	Status
Active Tasks	11 (T1, T3, T4, T5, T8, T9, T11-T21, META-1)
Completed Tasks	7 (T0, T2, T6, T7, T10, T15, T18)
Paused Tasks	1 (T3 in database form, but 95% complete)
Task Files	20+ individual files with detailed specifications
Session Files	10+ tracked sessions with context preservation
Database Records	364 migrated and verified (zero errors)
Rules Versions	10 versions (v6.1 through v6.10)
Implementation Details	50+ documentation files

Key Technologies

Production:

• Markdown for documentation
• File system for storage
• Git for version control
• HTML5/JavaScript for web viewer
• Node.js for CLI tools

Experimental:

• SQLite (better-sqlite3) for database
• LLM integration (planned for T20a)
• Transaction-based workflows (T21)

Recent Accomplishments (November 2025)

• ✅ T21 Phase A: Database schema and dual init scripts
• ✅ T20a: Adaptive format parser design complete
• ✅ T20: Database parser Phase 3 (unified integration)
• ✅ T19: Memory Bank Viewer released (1373 lines)
• ✅ T17: Rules v6.10 with Tiered Knowledge Structure
• ✅ T3: Database migration verified (95%, 364 records)
• ✅ T13: CLI init command fully featured (85% complete)
• ✅ META-1: Memory Bank update and maintenance task created

Next Steps

1. Complete T19 Phase 2: File content viewer enhancements
2. Develop T21 Phase B: Database insert functions
3. Implement T20a Phase 1: LLM prompt design
4. Complete T13 Phase 2: Task/session/template commands
5. Validate database paradigm: Complete testing before production migration

Documentation

• Integrated Rules: Complete system documentation in integrated-rules-v6.10.md
• Memory Bank: Core documentation in /memory-bank/ directory
• Tasks: Individual task specifications in /memory-bank/tasks/
• Implementation: Design documents in /memory-bank/implementation-details/
• Viewer: Usage guide in viewer/README.md
• CLI: Usage guide in mb-cli/README.md

Support

For information about:

• Task execution: See individual task files
• System architecture: Review systemPatterns.md and techContext.md
• Project status: Check progress.md and changelog.md
• Experimental work: Review /implementation-details/ directory
• Web viewer: See viewer/README.md
• CLI tools: See mb-cli/README.md

License

This project uses the Memory Bank system methodology for documentation and context management.

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Project Status: Stable and operational. Experimental database paradigm in active development. See progress.md for detailed task status.