Cline Memory Bank

The Memory Bank MCP Server provides a persistent memory for your AI-assisted development workflow, allowing a model to retain project context, tasks, decisions, and progress across VSCode sessions and when switching projects. It integrates with the Cline VSCode extension to keep context up to date and help your AI assistant stay aligned with the current project state.

How to use

Use the Memory Bank MCP server to store and update the active context, project context, progress, and decisions. With the MCP client, you can initialize a memory bank for a project, update the current session state, record technical decisions, and track progress as work proceeds. This enables consistent, contextual AI assistance across sessions and projects.

How to install

Prerequisites: Node.js (v16 or later) and VS Code with the Cline extension installed. Development requires TypeScript.

Step-by-step commands in the project root:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/dazeb/cline-mcp-memory-bank
cd cline-mcp-memory-bank

# Install dependencies (pnpm recommended)
pnpm install

# Build the server
pnpm run build

# Optional: link globally (requires pnpm setup for global linking)
# pnpm link --global

Configuration and usage notes

After building, configure the Cline MCP settings to point to the memory bank server. You can initialize the memory bank from the project root or manually add settings to the Cline MCP configuration.

# Initialize memory bank from project root
node build/index.js initialize_memory_bank .

# Example manual JSON config to add in your Cline MCP settings
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "memory-bank": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/path/to/cline-memory-bank/build/index.js"
      ],
      "disabled": false,
      "autoApprove": []
    }
  }
}

Using with Cline

Once the memory bank is initialized, you can use Cline commands to interact with it. Initialize the memory bank for a project, access the project context, update the session context, and record decisions as you progress.

# Initialize a new Memory Bank for the current project
use_mcp_tool('memory-bank', 'initialize_memory_bank', {
  projectPath: process.cwd()
});

# Access project context
access_mcp_resource('memory-bank', 'memory://project/context');

# Update session context
use_mcp_tool('memory-bank', 'update_context', {
  projectPath: process.cwd(),
  content: {
    currentSession: {
      date: new Date().toISOString().split('T')[0],
      mode: 'development',
      task: 'Current task description'
    }
  }
});

Development

If you plan to modify or extend the Memory Bank MCP Server, update the source in src/index.ts, run tests, build, and then restart the Cline extension to pick up changes.

Available tools

initialize_memory_bank

Creates the Memory Bank structure for a new project and initializes required markdown files with initial templates.

update_context

Updates the active context with current session information, including mode, tasks, and session state.

record_decision

Records a technical decision with rationale and alternatives to preserve architectural history.

track_progress

Updates project progress and milestones, including completed, in-progress, and blocked tasks.