vibe-coding-recall

Vibe Coding — Cross-Session Memory Recall

Check memory before re-reading the codebase or asking the user to re-explain context.

Entry Router

Session start on existing project?
→ Run Step 1 (session start recall) BEFORE reading any files.

Debugging an issue?
→ READ: ## Targeted Recall (debug path)

Implementing a feature?
→ READ: ## Targeted Recall (feature path)

claude-mem not installed?
→ READ: ## Fallback

Jump directly to the matched path. Do not read all recall sections before starting.

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Step 1 — Session Start Recall

search(query="recent work", project="[project name]", limit=10, sort="recent")

Read results — you now know: current phase, last built/changed, key decisions, gotchas. Resume without reading progress.txt.

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Targeted Recall

Before debugging:

search(query="[error message or symptom]", project="[project]", type="bug-fix")
search(query="[component/file name] bug", project="[project]")

Before implementing:

search(query="[feature type] implementation", project="[project]")
search(query="[component pattern] how we built", project="[project]")

Before modifying shared code:

search(query="[function/component name] decisions", project="[project]", type="decision")
search(query="why [architecture decision]", project="[project]")

Timeline drill-down (if search result looks relevant but needs more context):

timeline(anchor_id="[ID from search result]", depth=3)

Fetch full details (only after timeline confirms relevance):

get_observations(ids=["ID1", "ID2"])

Don't fetch everything — filter first (search → timeline → fetch). Full observations cost 500-1000 tokens each.

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Recall Report

MEMORY RECALL — [project name]

Last session: [timestamp]
Last worked on: [what was built/fixed]
Recent decisions: [key decisions]
Known gotchas: [gotcha observations]

RELEVANT TO CURRENT TASK: [matching observations]
RESUMING FROM: [where to pick up]

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Fallback (claude-mem not installed)

1. Read progress.txt for phase and last step
2. Read ./docs/IMPLEMENTATION_PLAN.md for current phase context
3. Check recent git log: git log --oneline -10
4. Ask user: "What were we last working on?"

If no project name provided and running standalone → ask: "Which project? (leave blank to use current directory)" before running search queries.

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What claude-mem Stores Automatically

Type	Example
feature	"Implemented product listing with pagination"
bug-fix	"Fixed cart state — was useState instead of Zustand"
decision	"CSS variables over Tailwind because dark mode toggle"
gotcha	"next/font variables must be on <html>, not <body>"
pattern	"All API errors return { error: string, code: string }"

Token savings: session start recall saves ~3,500 tokens. Prior bug fix recall saves ~14,000 tokens vs re-investigating from scratch.