Practical overview
When it fits
Use it when you are building an agent workflow around persistent project knowledge and want that knowledge stored in Git-native files, retrieved with local BM25 search, or made available through the documented MCP server. The CLI also supports bundle validation and concept maintenance.
Who it is for
- Developers building AI coding agents that need persistent project context across sessions.
- Teams maintaining project decisions, constraints, and operational knowledge as version-controlled files.
- Agent application builders who want a local BM25 retrieval component or an MCP-accessible knowledge bundle.
Documented uses
- Keep project facts and decisions in a persistent, Git-native knowledge bundle.
- Search for relevant project concepts and inspect their relationships when an agent needs context.
- Check constraints associated with a source file before editing it.
- Validate a bundle and create or update knowledge concepts from the CLI.
- Provide an MCP server configuration that gives an agent access to a project knowledge directory.
Requirements & limits
- The tool is a library and CLI for developers to integrate; it is not itself an AI model or hosted agent.
- The documented search uses in-memory BM25 scoring, which differs from vector search.
- The repository describes OKF v0.2 knowledge bundles and progressive disclosure through hierarchical indexes and links.
- MCP access uses the embedded server; the README example invokes the CLI with
mcpand a knowledge-directory path. - The repository identifies Go as its implementation language and MIT as its license.
Check current requirements in the official documentation. Source-based guidance does not mean OpenViST has run or independently tested this project.
Build the CLI and search a knowledge bundle
Compile the standalone okf executable and use its documented validation, search and concept-inspection commands.
Before you start
- A clone of the repository
- Go 1.26, as identified by the repository tooling badge
- A project knowledge bundle
Steps
Run the command below from the repository; the quickstart says this generates
bin/okf.make buildValidate a bundle with
./bin/okf validate knowledge --strict --drift.Search it with
./bin/okf search "architecture layers" knowledge.Inspect a concept with
./bin/okf show architecture/layers knowledge --json.
Expected outcome
A built CLI that can validate a knowledge bundle, retrieve matching concepts, and display a concept with JSON output.
Guide limitations
- The documented commands describe local CLI use; they do not establish compatibility with a particular agent or project.
- The search is lexical BM25 retrieval, not vector or embedding-based search.
Configure the CLI as an MCP server
Point an MCP client configuration at the CLI and a project knowledge directory.
Before you start
- A built
okfexecutable - A project
knowledgedirectory - An MCP client that accepts the documented server configuration format
Steps
Add an
mcpServersentry namedokf-memoryto the client configuration.Set
commandto the path of the builtokfexecutable.Set
argstomcpand the path of the project’sknowledgedirectory.
Expected outcome
The example configuration specifies the executable and knowledge directory for the embedded MCP server.
Guide limitations
- The README gives an example configuration for Claude Desktop or Cursor; it does not document client-specific setup beyond that example.
- The configuration example is not evidence of a compatibility guarantee.
Sources & review
Source record details
- Source availability
- Active
- Sources checked
- 12 October 2026
- Original website title
- okf-memory/okf-agent-memory · Official homepage title · retained in its source language

