Memory Tasks

Memory Tasks

Manage work-in-progress using Basic Memory's schema system. Tasks are just notes with type: Task — they live in the knowledge graph, validate against a schema, and survive context compaction.

When to Use

• Starting multi-step work (3+ steps, or anything that might outlast the context window)
• After compaction/restart — search for active tasks to resume
• Pre-compaction flush — update all active tasks with current state
• On demand — user asks to create, check, or manage tasks

Task Schema

Tasks use the BM schema system (SPEC-SCHEMA). The schema note lives at memory/schema/Task.md:

---title: Tasktype: schemaentity: Taskversion: 1schema:  description: string, what needs to be done  status?(enum): [active, blocked, done, abandoned], current state  assigned_to?: string, who is working on this  steps?(array): string, ordered steps to complete  current_step?: integer, which step number we're on (1-indexed)  context?: string, key context needed to resume after memory loss  started?: string, when work began  completed?: string, when work finished  blockers?(array): string, what's preventing progress  parent_task?: Task, parent task if this is a subtasksettings:  validation: warn---

Creating a Task

When work qualifies, create a task note. Use write_note with note_type="Task" and put queryable fields in metadata:

write_note(  title="Descriptive task name",  directory="tasks",  note_type="Task",  metadata={    "status": "active",    "priority": "high",    "current_step": 1,    "steps": ["First step", "Second step", "Third step"]  },  tags=["task"],  content="""# Descriptive task name
## Observations- [description] What needs to be done, concisely- [status] active- [assigned_to] claude- [current_step] 1
## Steps1. [ ] First concrete step2. [ ] Second concrete step3. [ ] Third concrete step
## ContextWhat future-you needs to pick up this work. Include:- Key file paths and repos involved- Decisions already made and why- What was tried and what worked/didn't- Where to look for related context""")

Why both frontmatter and observations? Fields in metadata (stored as frontmatter) power search_notes with metadata_filters. Fields as observations (- [status] active) power schema_validate. Include queryable fields in both places for full coverage.

Key Principles

• Steps are concrete and checkable — "Implement X in file Y", not "figure out stuff"
• Context is for post-amnesia resumption — Write it as if explaining to a smart person who knows nothing about what you've been doing
• Relations link to other entities — parent_task [[Other Task]], related_to [[Some Note]]
• note_types is case-sensitive — write_note(note_type="Task") stores the type as lowercase task in frontmatter. Use note_types=["task"] (lowercase) in search queries.

Resuming After Compaction

On session start or after compaction:

1. Search for active tasks:

   python

   search_notes(note_types=["task"], status="active")

2. Read the task note to get full context

3. Resume from current_step using the context field

4. Update as you progress — increment current_step, update context, check off steps

Updating Tasks

As work progresses, update the task note:

## Steps1. [x] First step — done, resulted in X2. [x] Second step — done, changed approach because Y3. [ ] Third step — next up
## ContextUpdated context reflecting current state...

Update frontmatter too:

current_step: 3

Completing Tasks

When done:

status: donecompleted: YYYY-MM-DD

Add a brief summary of what was accomplished and any follow-up needed.

Pre-Compaction Flush

When a compaction event is imminent:

1. Find all active tasks: search_notes(note_types=["task"], status="active")
2. For each, update:
   • current_step to reflect actual progress
   • context with everything needed to resume
   • Step checkboxes to show what's done
3. This is critical — context not written down is context lost

Querying Tasks

With BM's schema system, tasks are fully queryable:

Guidelines

• One task per unit of work — Don't cram multiple projects into one task
• Externalize early — If you think "I should remember this", write it down NOW
• Context > steps — Steps tell you what to do; context tells you why and how
• Close finished tasks — Don't leave completed work as active
• Link related tasks — Use parent_task [[X]] or relations to connect related work
• Schema validation is your friend — Run schema_validate(noteType="Task") periodically to catch incomplete tasks