mnemo-recall

Mnemo Recall

recall is the structured read index over past sessions. It returns paginated, truncated summaries from SQLite: session headers, turn titles, observation summaries, and durable memories. For exact prompts, full tool output, or raw transcript reconstruction, switch to the mnemo-replay skill.

Three axes of read access:

• recall — content index: what happened, where, and what to inspect next
• timeline — temporal narrative: how a single session unfolded
• mnemo-replay skill — raw truth: direct JSONL and SQLite reads

Rule of thumb: start broad, then narrow. collapsed is the cheap browsing mode. Use expanded only once you have a target. If a recall result is good enough, stop there.

When to Use

Use when the user asks about PREVIOUS sessions rather than the current turn:

• "Did we already solve this?"
• "How did we fix X last time?"
• "What happened in last week's work?"
• "What do we already know about this project?"

Also use it proactively before answering questions that may already be covered by prior work.

Data Model

Session  [S12]   one per Claude Code conversation
  Turn     [T3]   one per user prompt (promptNumber-scoped to session)
    Observation [O87]   one per tool call
Memory   [M4]   durable cross-session knowledge

Output IDs map directly to selectors:

• [S12] → recall(id="S12")
• [S12/T3] → recall(id="S12/T3")
• [O87] → recall(id="O87")
• [M4] → recall(id="M4")

Progressive Workflow

Step 1 — Browse or search

recall()                                        # recent sessions
recall(query="auth race")                       # FTS across all layers
recall(query="type:bugfix file:src/auth.ts")    # typed filters
recall(query="tag:feedback")                    # memory tag filter
recall(time="-7d")                              # last 7 days
recall(id="M*")                                 # all active memories

These return paginated, collapsed results by default. Use page to move through large result sets.

Step 2 — Drill into a session

recall(id="S12")                                # session summary + collapsed turn preview
recall(id="S12/T*")                             # all turns in a session
recall(id="S12/T3..7")                          # turn range
recall(id="S12", depth="expanded")              # session content + raw transcript path

At expanded session depth, the output includes a raw: path pointing at the source JSONL. That is the handoff point to mnemo-replay when exact bytes matter.

Step 3 — Turn detail and observations

recall(id="S12/T3", depth="expanded")           # one turn with prompt + response + file lists
recall(id="S12/T3/O*")                          # observations for one turn
recall(id="S12/T*/O*")                          # observations across the session
recall(id="O87", depth="expanded")              # one observation with full stored fields

Step 4 — Escalate only when needed

If a field is truncated, raise truncate first:

recall(id="S12/T3", depth="expanded", truncate=2000)

If the result still is not enough, or you need exact wording / full tool output, switch to the mnemo-replay skill. There is no unlimited recall mode.

recall Parameter Reference

Parameter	Type	Description
id	string	Selector. Supports wildcards (*), ranges (5..10), and nested paths (S12/T3/O*).
query	string	Free text + optional prefixes type: / file: / project: / tag:. Tokens are ANDed.
time	string	-7d / -2w (relative), YYYY-MM-DD (single UTC day), YYYY-MM-DD..YYYY-MM-DD (inclusive UTC range).
depth	string	collapsed (default) or expanded.
page	number	1-indexed page number for the target level. Default 1.
pageSize	number	Item count for the target level page.
truncate	number	Character cap per rendered field. Default 200, max 2000.

Omit both id and query to get recent sessions.

Child collections are always shown as a fixed preview with a +N more hint. To inspect more children, narrow the selector to that child level.

Selector Grammar

Form	Meaning
S* / S12 / S5..10	Sessions
S12/T* / S12/T3 / S12/T3..7	Turns in a session
S12/T3/O*	Observations for one turn
S12/T*/O*	Observations for an entire session
O87	Single observation (global DB id)
M* / M4 / M1..20	Memories

Turn IDs are session-scoped prompt numbers, not global DB ids.

Query Filters

Prefix	Applies to	Notes
type:bugfix	turns, observations, memories	Matches stored type tags.
file:src/auth.ts	turns, observations	Substring match against files_read + files_modified.
project:/abs/path	sessions, turns, observations	Exact match against session.project.
tag:foo	memories only	Post-filter on memory tags.

Free words become an FTS query over indexed text.

Depth Guidance

Depth	Use when
collapsed	Browsing and list navigation.
expanded	You have a specific target and need stored fields inline.

There is no full depth anymore.

Common Patterns

"Did we already fix the auth race?"

recall(query="auth race")
# → sees [S12/T3] "Fixed auth mutex"
recall(id="S12/T3", depth="expanded")

"Show me the exact edit to login.ts last Thursday"

recall(query="file:src/login.ts", time="2026-04-03")
# → picks out [S8/T2]
recall(id="S8", depth="expanded")
# → session shows raw: /Users/...jsonl
# → switch to mnemo-replay for exact transcript bytes

"What feedback has the user given about testing?"

recall(query="tag:feedback testing")
recall(id="M4", depth="expanded")

Guidance

• Prefer recall for search, browsing, and structured answers.
• Narrow with id, query, or time before raising depth, pageSize, or truncate.
• Use project:<path> when the question is project-local.
• When recall shows a raw: path or a truncation hint, that is your signal to switch to mnemo-replay.