Memory Doctor

bm doctor checks the user's local Basic Memory projects and reports what is wrong. Each problem comes with the command that fixes it, when one exists. Doctor's checks only read; they never change a project's notes or index. The fixes it suggests do change things, so run them only after the user agrees.

This skill needs a shell with the bm (or basic-memory) command.

When to Use

• Search misses a note the user knows exists, or returns the same note twice
• A note was saved but its file did not change, or the reverse
• The user asks whether Basic Memory is working, or to "check" or "fix" it
• After a crash, an interrupted import, or moving a project's folder

Run It

Start with the report alone. It is fast and has a stable JSON shape:

bm doctor --skip-self-test --json

Add --project NAME to check one project. Without --skip-self-test, doctor also runs a self-test: it writes, indexes and searches a note in a throwaway sandbox, which takes a few seconds and proves the install itself works. Run it when the report is clean but something still seems broken.

Read the Report

{
  "projects": [
    {
      "name": "work",
      "findings": [
        {
          "check": "search_index",
          "severity": "error",
          "summary": "1 search row does not match a current note, observation or relation.",
          "evidence": ["entity id=99, entity_id=99"],
          "action": {"kind": "reindex_search", "full": true},
          "command": "bm reindex --search --full --project work"
        }
      ],
      "has_errors": true
    }
  ],
  "skipped_cloud_projects": ["research"],
  "self_test": {"outcome": "skipped"},
  "has_errors": true
}