Search Memory

When to Search (Autonomous Recognition)

Strong signals:

• Continuity: Current topic connects to prior work
• Pattern match: Problem resembles past solved issue
• Decision context: "Why/how we chose X" implies documented rationale
• Recurring theme: Topic discussed in past sessions
• Implicit recall: "that approach", "like before"

Contextual signals:

• Complex debugging (may match past root causes)
• Architecture discussion (choices may be documented)
• Domain-specific question (conventions likely stored)

Skip when:

• Fundamentally new topic
• Generic syntax questions
• Fresh perspective explicitly requested

Tool Usage

Use nmem CLI with --json flag for programmatic search:

# Basic search
nmem --json m search "3-7 core concepts"

# With filters
nmem --json m search "API design" --importance 0.8

# With labels (multiple labels use AND logic)
nmem --json m search "authentication" -l backend -l security

# With time filter
nmem --json m search "meeting notes" -t week

Query: Extract semantic core, preserve terminology, multi-language aware

Filters:

• --importance MIN: Minimum importance score (0.0-1.0)
• -l, --label LABEL: Filter by label (can specify multiple)
• -t, --time RANGE: Time filter (today, week, month, year)
• -n NUM: Limit number of results (default: 10)

JSON Response: Parse memories array, check score field for relevance

Scores: 0.6-1.0 direct | 0.3-0.6 related | <0.3 skip

Examples:

# Search with importance filter
nmem --json m search "database optimization" --importance 0.7

# Search with multiple labels
nmem --json m search "React patterns" -l frontend -l react

# Search recent memories
nmem --json m search "bug fix" -t week -n 5

Response

Found: Synthesize, cite when helpful
None: State clearly, suggest distilling if current discussion valuable

Troubleshooting

If nmem is not available:

Option 1 (Recommended): Use uvx

# Install uv
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

# Run nmem (no installation needed)
uvx --from nmem-cli nmem --version

Option 2: Install with pip

pip install nmem-cli
nmem --version