OpenContext Context Management (Persistent Memory)

Give your AI assistant persistent memory. Stop repeating explanations, and build smarter.

When to use this skill

• When you need to keep context across sessions

• When you need to record project background/decisions

• When you need to search prior conclusions/lessons

• When you need knowledge sharing in a Multi-Agent workflow

• When you want to reduce repetitive background explanations

1. Core concepts

Problem

When working with an AI assistant, context gets lost (across sessions, repos, and dates). You end up repeating background, re-explaining decisions, and sometimes the assistant continues with incorrect assumptions.

Solution

OpenContext is a lightweight personal context/knowledge store for AI assistants.

[Load context] → [Do work] → [Store conclusions]

Default paths

Item Path

Contexts ~/.opencontext/contexts

Database ~/.opencontext/opencontext.db

2. Install and initialize

Install CLI

npm install -g @aicontextlab/cli

Or use npx

npx @aicontextlab/cli <command>

Initialize (run inside the repo)

cd your-project oc init

What oc init does:

• Prepare the global context store (on first run)

• Generate user-level commands/skills + mcp.json for the selected tool

• Update the repo's AGENTS.md

3. Slash Commands

Beginner-friendly commands

Command Purpose

/opencontext-help

When you don't know where to start

/opencontext-context

(Recommended default) Load background before work

/opencontext-search

Search existing documents

/opencontext-create

Create a new document/idea

/opencontext-iterate

Store conclusions and citations

Install locations

Slash Commands

Cursor: ~/.cursor/commands Claude Code: ~/.claude/commands

Skills

Cursor: ~/.cursor/skills/opencontext-/SKILL.md Claude Code: ~/.claude/skills/opencontext-/SKILL.md Codex: ~/.codex/skills/opencontext-*/SKILL.md

MCP Config

Cursor: ~/.cursor/mcp.json Claude Code: ~/.claude/mcp.json

4. Core CLI commands

Folder/document management

List folders

oc folder ls --all

Create folder

oc folder create project-a -d "My project"

Create document

oc doc create project-a design.md -d "Design doc"

List documents

oc doc ls project-a

Search & manifest

Search (keyword/hybrid/vector)

oc search "your query" --mode keyword --format json

Generate a manifest (list of files the AI should read)

oc context manifest project-a --limit 10

Search modes

Mode Description Requirements

--mode keyword

Keyword-based search No embeddings required

--mode vector

Vector search Embeddings + index required

--mode hybrid

Hybrid (default) Embeddings + index required

Embedding configuration (for semantic search)

Set API key

oc config set EMBEDDING_API_KEY "<<your_key>>"

(Optional) Set base URL

oc config set EMBEDDING_API_BASE "https://api.openai.com/v1"

(Optional) Set model

oc config set EMBEDDING_MODEL "text-embedding-3-small"

Build index

oc index build

5. MCP Tools

OpenContext MCP Tools

oc_list_folders # List folders oc_list_docs # List documents oc_manifest # Generate manifest oc_search # Search documents oc_create_doc # Create document oc_get_link # Generate stable link

Multi-Agent integration

Gemini: large-scale analysis

ask-gemini "Analyze the structure of the entire codebase"

Codex: run commands

shell "docker-compose up -d"

OpenContext: store results

oc doc create project-a conclusions.md -d "Analysis conclusions"

6. Multi-Agent workflow integration

Orchestration Pattern

[Claude] Plan ↓ [Gemini] Analysis/research + OpenContext search ↓ [Claude] Write code ↓ [Codex] Run/test ↓ [Claude] Synthesize results + store in OpenContext

Practical example: API design + implementation + testing

1. [Claude] Design API spec using the skill

/opencontext-context # Load project background

2. [Gemini] Analyze a large codebase

ask-gemini "@src/ Analyze existing API patterns"

3. [Claude] Implement code based on the analysis

(Use context loaded from OpenContext)

4. [Codex] Test and build

shell "npm test && npm run build"

5. [Claude] Create final report + store conclusions

/opencontext-iterate # Store decisions and lessons learned

7. Recommended daily workflow

Before work (1 min)

/opencontext-context

• Load project background + known pitfalls

During work

/opencontext-search

• Search existing conclusions when unsure

After work (2 min)

/opencontext-iterate

• Record decisions, pitfalls, and next steps

High-ROI document types

• Acceptance Criteria - acceptance criteria

• Common Pitfalls - common pitfalls

• API Contracts - API contracts

• Dependency Versions - dependency versions

8. Stable links (Stable Links)

Keep links stable across renames/moves by referencing document IDs:

label

Generate a link via CLI

oc doc link <doc_path>

Generate a link via MCP

oc_get_link doc_path="Product/api-spec"

9. Desktop App & Web UI

Desktop App (recommended)

• Manage/search/edit context with a native UI

• Use without the CLI

• Automatic index builds (in the background)

Citation features:

Action How Result

Cite text snippet Select text → right-click → "Copy Citation" Agent reads the snippet + source

Cite document Click the citation icon next to the document title Agent reads the full document + obtains stable_id

Cite folder Right-click folder → "Copy Folder Citation" Agent bulk-reads all docs in the folder

Web UI

oc ui

Default URL: http://127.0.0.1:4321

Quick Reference

Essential workflow

Before: /opencontext-context (load background) During: /opencontext-search (search) After: /opencontext-iterate (store)

Core CLI commands

oc init # Initialize project oc folder ls --all # List folders oc doc ls <folder> # List documents oc search "query" # Search oc doc create ... # Create document

MCP Tools

oc_list_folders list folders oc_list_docs list documents oc_search search oc_manifest manifest oc_create_doc create document oc_get_link generate link

Paths

~/.opencontext/contexts context store ~/.opencontext/opencontext.db database

References

• OpenContext Website

• Usage Guide

• Download Desktop

• GitHub Repository