Exports and Files

Memzoi keeps canonical authored memory under repo .memzoi/records/ and keeps runtime state under ~/.memzoi/projects/<project-key>/. OKF-compatible proposal files are schema-defined under .memzoi/proposals/pending/, while the current CLI/MCP proposal inbox is still DB-local workflow state. Valid CLI proposals default to approved, but approved is not applied: canonical record files are written only by explicit CLI apply flows. Rebuild restores records from canonical files and refuses to discard readable open DB-local proposals. If the runtime database is corrupt or unreadable, rebuild treats it as a disposable derived cache and may discard DB-local proposal state. See the OKF profile for the file-native source layout.

Format roles

• Markdown with YAML frontmatter under .memzoi/records/ is the canonical durable memory source.
• Runtime SQLite under ~/.memzoi/projects/<project-key>/memory.db stores query, event-log, and other runtime workflow state.
• JSON is for single command responses and MCP payloads, including existing --json output.
• JSONL/NDJSON is opt-in for append-only or bulk streams. It is not canonical memory and is not rebuild input.

Bundle layout

After memzoi init, the repo-local memory directory contains:

.memzoi/
  config.toml        # optional repo workflow policy
  index.md
  proposals/
    pending/
  records/

The local Memzoi home can contain user-global workflow policy and generated project state:

~/.memzoi/
  config.toml        # optional user-global workflow policy
  projects/<project-key>/
    config.toml      # runtime project config, not workflow policy
    memory.db
    exports/

Workflow policy config is separate from the runtime project config. Effective proposal approval mode is resolved in this order:

1. Built-in default: auto.
2. User-global ${MEMZOI_HOME:-~/.memzoi}/config.toml.
3. Repo .memzoi/config.toml.
4. CLI or MCP per-call override.

[workflow]
proposal_approval = "manual" # or "auto"

The runtime project config under ~/.memzoi/projects/<project-key>/config.toml controls generated paths such as exports; it is not the repo/user workflow policy file.

Proposal inbox and rebuild

Open proposals are pending, validated, or approved. Use the inbox commands to inspect and close them before rebuilding:

memzoi proposals list --status open
memzoi proposals show <proposal-id>
memzoi proposals apply --all-approved
memzoi reject <proposal-id> --reason "not durable repo knowledge"
memzoi rebuild

memzoi propose --manual keeps one proposal pending. memzoi propose --apply is a CLI-only shortcut that writes a canonical record after approval. MCP proposal calls can auto-approve or stay manual, but MCP never applies.

Export formats

memzoi export okf
memzoi export agents-md
memzoi export claude-md

okf writes a generated projection, not the canonical record source. It emits one Markdown file per active, non-private memory record for the selected scope. Each export file includes YAML frontmatter with stable fields such as id, type, scope, visibility, status, confidence, timestamps, source metadata, content hash, and applicable paths. Canonical authored records under .memzoi/records/ use the OKF profile fields and are restored by memzoi rebuild.

agents-md writes an AGENTS-style projection to:

~/.memzoi/projects/<project-key>/exports/AGENTS.memory.md

claude-md writes a CLAUDE-style projection to:

~/.memzoi/projects/<project-key>/exports/CLAUDE.memory.md

Instruction projections include active, non-private records of these types:

• procedure
• decision
• warning
• risk

They intentionally skip background fact records that are useful for search but too noisy for always-on agent instructions.

Event-log JSONL

memzoi events export --jsonl

memzoi events export --jsonl streams runtime event-log rows from the SQLite event_log table as JSONL: one compact event object per physical line, with no wrapper and no pretty multi-line JSON. This operational stream is not canonical memory, is not consumed by memzoi rebuild, and does not replace .memzoi/records/*.md records or OKF proposal files under .memzoi/proposals/pending/*.md.

Generated file policy

• Commit .memzoi/records/* when the records are durable repo knowledge.
• Commit .memzoi/proposals/pending/* only when the proposal is intentionally being reviewed in Git and has sensitivity: repo-safe.
• Commit .memzoi/config.toml only when the repo intentionally overrides workflow policy.
• Do not commit runtime memory.db; it lives under the local Memzoi home directory.
• Keep generated runtime exports out of Git unless explicitly copied into reviewed agent instructions.
• Regenerate exports after memory lifecycle changes with memzoi export agents-md, memzoi export claude-md, or memzoi export okf.

Scope and privacy

Exports include active records for the selected --scope-kind, defaulting to repo, and skip records with private visibility. Repo-shared memory should not contain secrets or private personal data.