claude-mem remembers what Claude did. skill-trace remembers what you learned.
A curated lessons-learned log for Claude Code — Problem / Solution / Takeaway, one grep-able markdown file, zero dependencies.
// the problem
Claude Code developers write valuable lessons into docs/skills.md files — but those entries stay siloed per project. When starting a new project or hitting a problem you've solved before, there's no way to search across all your accumulated knowledge. Lessons written in one project are invisible when working in another.
// the solution
A SessionStart hook automatically launches a local web server on port 38888. On startup, it parses ~/.claude/global-skills.md into an in-memory search index. A PostToolUse hook syncs new entries from any project into that global file the moment you write them.
The viewer is already running before the first keystroke of the session — zero friction.
// architecture
Claude Code session starts
│
▼
SessionStart hook → start-viewer.ps1 / start-viewer.sh
│
├── Port 38888 occupied + HTTP probe passes → skip (already running)
│
└── node viewer/server.js
│
├── parseMd() → ~/.claude/global-skills.md → in-memory array
├── fs.watch → auto-resync on file change (500ms debounce)
├── PID file → ~/.claude/global-skills.pid
└── :38888
├── GET / → 3-column viewer UI
├── GET /api/skills → substring search across all fields
└── POST /api/sync → manual re-parse
On any Write/Edit to docs/skills.md:
PostToolUse hook → sync-skills.ps1 (Windows) ┐
→ sync-skills.sh (mac/Linux) ┘→ append to global-skills.md
→ fs.watch picks up change → array resyncs
// capture flow
// install
Option A — Claude Code plugin install (recommended)
/plugin marketplace add crackcode09/skill-trace
/plugin install skill-trace@skill-trace
Hooks are configured automatically. Start a new session and the viewer is running.
Option B — Manual clone
# Windows
git clone https://github.com/crackcode09/skill-trace "$env:USERPROFILE\.claude\skills\skill-trace"
# macOS / Linux
git clone https://github.com/crackcode09/skill-trace ~/.claude/skills/skill-trace
2. Add the hooks to ~/.claude/settings.json (manual install only)
Windows — replace YOUR_NAME with your Windows username:
{
"hooks": {
"PostToolUse": [
{
"matcher": "Write|Edit",
"hooks": [{
"type": "command",
"command": "powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -NonInteractive -File \"C:\\Users\\YOUR_NAME\\.claude\\skills\\skill-trace\\hooks\\scripts\\sync-skills.ps1\"",
"timeout": 15
}]
}
],
"SessionStart": [
{
"matcher": "startup",
"hooks": [{
"type": "command",
"command": "powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -NonInteractive -WindowStyle Hidden -File \"C:\\Users\\YOUR_NAME\\.claude\\skills\\skill-trace\\hooks\\scripts\\start-viewer.ps1\"",
"timeout": 30
}]
}
]
}
}
macOS / Linux — replace YOUR_NAME with your username:
{
"hooks": {
"PostToolUse": [
{
"matcher": "Write|Edit",
"hooks": [{
"type": "command",
"command": "bash \"/home/YOUR_NAME/.claude/skills/skill-trace/hooks/scripts/sync-skills.sh\"",
"timeout": 15
}]
}
],
"SessionStart": [
{
"matcher": "startup",
"hooks": [{
"type": "command",
"command": "bash \"/home/YOUR_NAME/.claude/skills/skill-trace/hooks/scripts/start-viewer.sh\"",
"timeout": 30
}]
}
]
}
}
On macOS use ~ or /Users/YOUR_NAME instead of /home/YOUR_NAME.
3. Start a new Claude Code session
The viewer starts automatically. Open http://localhost:38888 to confirm.
// usage
Add entries to docs/skills.md in any project:
## 2026-06-10 — HTMX partial detection
**Problem:** Routes that serve both full pages and HTMX partials need to
detect which is being requested.
**Solution:** Check the `hx-request` header — HTMX sets it on every
partial request.
**Takeaway:** Always check `req.headers['hx-request']` before rendering
a full layout vs. a fragment.
The PostToolUse hook fires on every save, appends to ~/.claude/global-skills.md, and the viewer resyncs within 500ms. Open http://localhost:38888 in a browser to search.
You rarely write entries by hand — the log-lesson skill (below) does it for you.
