Memory Lifecycle

Manage how entities move through status stages in Basic Memory. The core principle: archive, never delete. Completed work is valuable context, move it out of the active view, but keep it in the knowledge graph.

Project scope

If the project is unknown, discover it with bm_project(command="list"). Pass a nonempty project on every note, folder, context and schema call, even with one project or a qualified memory:// URL. Use the chosen project's name, workspace/project, or external ID; <project> below is a placeholder for it. Recent activity also requires project. Search accepts project for one project, projects for selected projects, or all_projects=True explicitly. Discovery and bundled manuals need no project. Keep the same scope when following returned paths, paginating, or recovering from a refusal.

When to Use

• User says something is "done", "finished", "completed", "submitted", "missed", or "cancelled"
• Moving entities between status folders (active → archive, pipeline → active, etc.)
• Reverting a mistaken completion
• Periodic cleanup of stale active items

Core Principle: Archive, Never Delete

Deleting a note removes it from the knowledge graph, its observations and relations disappear, and links to it from other notes become unresolved links. Archiving preserves everything while signaling the entity is no longer active.

# Good, entity stays in the knowledge graph
bm_move → active/ to archive/

# Bad, knowledge is lost
bm_delete

The only exception: notes created by mistake (typos, true duplicates) can be deleted.

Folder Conventions

Organize entities by status using folders. The exact folder names depend on your domain, but follow a consistent pattern:

entities/
  active/          # Currently relevant, in-progress
  archive/         # Completed, no longer active, but worth keeping
  pipeline/        # Future items, not yet started

For tasks specifically: