| name | memory-query |
| description | Search project memory files for a specific topic, decision, or constraint and return matching entries with citations. Use when you need to find what was decided about X, why Y was chosen, or whether Z is a known issue. Trigger this when someone says: what do we know about X, was there a decision about Y, check memory for Z, find the memory entry for X, what did we decide about Y, look up memory for X. Do NOT use for a full memory hygiene pass — use /memory-audit instead. |
Memory Query
Search the project's memory/ directory for entries relevant to a specific topic, decision, or constraint. Returns matching entries with file paths and direct quotes.
If memory/ does not exist in the current project, report that and stop.
1. Discover active memory files
Glob("memory/**/*.md")
Filter to active files only — skip any file where the frontmatter contains status: superseded or status: archived. These are history and should not be surfaced as current answers.
2. Read and match
For each active file, read:
- The
name and description frontmatter fields (quick triage)
- The full body if the name or description suggests relevance
Match the file to the query if it:
- Directly names the topic, technology, module, or pattern the user asked about
- Contains a decision, rationale, or constraint related to the query
- Documents a known issue or workaround for the queried area
3. Return results
For each matching file, output:
**[memory type] — [file path]**
> "[direct quote from the most relevant section]"
Summary: [one sentence describing what this memory says about the query topic]
Group results by memory type (decisions, architecture, context, known-issues) if multiple files match.
If no active memory files match the query, say so explicitly:
No active memory entries found for "[query]". If a decision was made, it may not have been recorded yet — consider running /memory-audit to identify gaps.
Never hallucinate a memory entry. If the content is not in a file, it does not exist.
Gotchas
- Superseded and archived files are history only: Do not surface them as current answers, even if they are relevant to the query. If a superseded file would have answered the question, note that the topic was once addressed but is now superseded and point to the
Superseded-by file if present.
- Partial matches: If a file mentions the topic in passing but does not contain a decision about it, include it with a note that it is contextual rather than a direct answer.
- Multiple conflicting active files: If two active files at the same scope contradict each other, surface both and flag the conflict rather than picking one silently.
