search

/session-memory:search — Search Knowledge Base

Search through knowledge cards and session events.

Query Syntax

The query supports both simple keywords and structured filters:

• Simple: /session-memory:search auth null — keyword search
• Structured filters (can combine):
  • tag:auth — match card tags
  • type:gotcha — match card type (decision, constraint, gotcha, runbook, onboarding)
  • file:src/auth.ts — match card files
  • importance:>=2 — filter by importance level
  • status:active — filter by status (active, draft, deprecated)
  • author:jay — filter by author

Examples:

• /session-memory:search tag:auth type:gotcha
• /session-memory:search database migration importance:>=2
• /session-memory:search file:src/api

Search Algorithm

1. Parse query: Separate structured filters (key:value) from free-text keywords
2. Search cards first (.claude/memory/cards/*.md):
   • Apply structured filters on frontmatter fields
   • Match free-text keywords against: title (weight 3x) > tags (2x) > TL;DR (1.5x) > body (1x)
   • Score = keyword_match_score × recency_bonus × importance_bonus
3. Search events (.claude/memory/events/*.jsonl):
   • Match keywords against summary field
   • Only include if fewer than 10 card results
4. Sort by score descending, return top 10
5. Display format:

For cards:

[gotcha] Auth module null check (importance: 2, created: 2026-03-09)
  TL;DR: req.user can be null before auth middleware runs
  Files: src/auth.ts, src/middleware/auth.ts
  Tags: auth, null-safety

For events:

[event] 2026-03-09T10:00:00Z | Edit | Fixed null check in auth.ts (importance: 1)

Implementation

1. Read all cards from .claude/memory/cards/*.md
2. Parse YAML frontmatter using sed/grep
3. For each card, check filter matches and compute keyword score
4. Read events from .claude/memory/events/*.jsonl if needed
5. Merge, sort, and display top results

Edge Cases

• No cards or events: "No session memory found. Start working and cards will be auto-created."
• No matches: "No results for ''. Try broader keywords or check /session-memory:status."
• Deprecated cards: Include only if status:deprecated explicitly requested