Installation

To install Memory Bank Server for Claude Desktop automatically via Smithery:

npx -y @smithery/cli install @alioshr/memory-bank-mcp --client claude

This will set up the MCP server configuration automatically. Alternatively, you can configure the server manually as described in the Configuration section below.

Quick Start

1. Configure the MCP server in your settings (see Configuration section below)
2. Start using the memory bank tools in your AI assistant

Using with Cline/Roo Code

The memory bank MCP server needs to be configured in your Cline MCP settings file. The location depends on your setup:

• For Cline extension: ~/Library/Application Support/Cursor/User/globalStorage/saoudrizwan.claude-dev/settings/cline_mcp_settings.json
• For Roo Code VS Code extension: ~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/globalStorage/rooveterinaryinc.roo-cline/settings/mcp_settings.json

Add the following configuration to your MCP settings:

{
  "allpepper-memory-bank": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["-y", "@allpepper/memory-bank-mcp"],
    "env": {
      "MEMORY_BANK_ROOT": "<path-to-bank>"
    },
    "disabled": false,
    "autoApprove": [
      "memory_bank_read",
      "memory_bank_write",
      "memory_bank_update",
      "list_projects",
      "list_project_files"
    ]
  }
}

Configuration Details

• MEMORY_BANK_ROOT: Directory where project memory banks will be stored (e.g., /path/to/memory-bank)
• disabled: Set to false to enable the server
• autoApprove: List of operations that don't require explicit user approval:
  • memory_bank_read: Read memory bank files
  • memory_bank_write: Create new memory bank files
  • memory_bank_update: Update existing memory bank files
  • list_projects: List available projects
  • list_project_files: List files within a project

Using with Cursor

For Cursor, open the settings -> features -> add MCP server -> add the following:

env MEMORY_BANK_ROOT=<path-to-bank> npx -y @allpepper/memory-bank-mcp@latest

Using with Claude

• Claude desktop config file: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Claude Code config file: ~/.claude.json

1. Locate the config file
2. Locate the property called mcpServers
3. Paste this:

 "allPepper-memory-bank": {
          "type": "stdio",
          "command": "npx",
          "args": [
            "-y",
            "@allpepper/memory-bank-mcp@latest"
          ],
          "env": {
            "MEMORY_BANK_ROOT": "YOUR PATH"
          }
        }

Custom AI instructions

This section contains the instructions that should be pasted on the AI custom instructions, either for Cline, Claude or Cursor, or any other MCP client. You should copy and paste these rules. For reference, see custom-instructions.md which contains these rules.

Development

Basic development commands:

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

# Run tests
npm run test

# Run tests in watch mode
npm run test:watch

# Run the server directly with ts-node for quick testing
npm run dev

Running with Docker

1. Build the Docker image:

   docker build -t memory-bank-mcp:local .
   

2. Run the Docker container for testing:

   docker run -i --rm \
     -e MEMORY_BANK_ROOT="/mnt/memory_bank" \
     -v /path/to/memory-bank:/mnt/memory_bank \
     --entrypoint /bin/sh \
     memory-bank-mcp:local \
     -c "ls -la /mnt/memory_bank"
   

3. Add MCP configuration, example for Roo Code:

   "allpepper-memory-bank": {
     "command": "docker",
     "args": [
       "run", "-i", "--rm",
       "-e", 
       "MEMORY_BANK_ROOT",
       "-v", 
       "/path/to/memory-bank:/mnt/memory_bank",
       "memory-bank-mcp:local"
     ],
     "env": {
       "MEMORY_BANK_ROOT": "/mnt/memory_bank"
     },
     "disabled": false,
     "alwaysAllow": [
       "list_projects",
       "list_project_files",
       "memory_bank_read",
       "memory_bank_update",
       "memory_bank_write"
     ]
   }
   

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please follow these steps:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

Development Guidelines

• Use TypeScript for all new code
• Maintain type safety across the codebase
• Add tests for new features
• Update documentation as needed
• Follow existing code style and patterns

Testing

• Write unit tests for new features
• Include multi-project scenario tests
• Test error cases thoroughly
• Validate type constraints
• Mock filesystem operations appropriately

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

This project implements the memory bank concept originally documented in the Cline Memory Bank, extending it with remote capabilities and multi-project support.