Memory & getting to know you
This handbook is the people-facing map for User Familiarity: how VibeOS learns who you are, what it may read on disk, and how you turn memory off or erase a topic. Deep file mechanics live in Persistent Memory.
Layers (plain English)
| Layer | What it is | You can… |
|---|---|---|
User (USER.md) | Your preferences and profile | Edit in Settings → Memory |
Core (MEMORY.md) | Agent working notes | Edit / approve candidates |
| Hot facts | “Just remembered” in this chat | Used next turn; cleared on /new |
| Episodic | Diary of past chats | Search (session_search / episodes CLI) |
| Archival | Long facts that don’t fit Core | Provider search / pin to review |
| proposed_core | Candidates waiting for your OK | Approve or discard — never silent Core |
| Portrait | Opt-in machine facts (git, projects…) | Dry-run → grant → apply; default off |
Profiles are islands. Board Kanban KB is the only intentional share across profiles on the same board.
Get acquainted (ritual)
- Desktop Settings → Memory → Get acquainted, or
vibeos memory acquaint, or chat/acquaintance. - Answer up to ~6 optional questions (skip freely). No mail/home crawl.
- Review lines in the Memory browser; edit anytime.
- Later corrections (“always / never…”) become proposed preferences.
See also Persistent Memory.
Machine portrait (opt-in)
Default off (memory.portrait.enabled: false). Collectors:
git_identity, project_inventory, shell_prefs, editor_stack.
vibeos memory portrait dry-run --json # plan only — zero reads
vibeos memory portrait grant --collector git_identity
# config.yaml: memory.portrait.enabled: true
vibeos memory portrait apply --collector git_identity --yes
vibeos memory portrait revoke --collector git_identity
Denied by default: mail, Messages, browser history, Keychain, full home, screen.
Session modes & Incognito
memory.session_mode in config.yaml (takes effect next session — prompt
cache safe):
| Mode | Use profile | Write / hot facts |
|---|---|---|
full (default) | yes | yes |
read_only | yes | no |
off | no | no |
incognito | no | no (explicit trust label) |
vibeos memory mode get
vibeos memory mode set incognito
vibeos memory mode set full
Desktop Settings → Memory browser has the same control: Incognito checkbox
plus a mode select (full / read_only / off / incognito). Saved to
config.yaml; applies on the next chat session.
Forget a topic
Preview first (default dry-run), then apply:
vibeos memory forget-topic "acme pricing"
vibeos memory forget-topic "acme pricing" --apply --yes
Shows will remove / will stay. Apply refuses under read_only / off /
incognito. Desktop Memory browser asks for confirm after preview.
Consolidate dry-run also prints Will go / Will stay.
Proactive “as last time”
Phrases like “как в прошлый раз” nudge episodic search. Source chips
〔memory · …〕 can appear in replies (toggle in Settings). Details:
Session Search.
FAQ
Why didn’t the agent “see” what I saved mid-chat?
Core/User in the system prompt are frozen at session start. Mid-session
writes use hot facts on the next turn; a full prompt refresh is next session.
Will idle consolidate rewrite MEMORY.md?
No — candidates go to proposed_core.jsonl for review.
Is portrait spying?
Only after checkbox + grant + enabled flag. Dry-run lists exact sources with
zero reads.
How do I check health?
vibeos memory status
scripts/snapshot-user-familiarity-status.sh
scripts/smoke-user-familiarity.sh
VibeOS vs Claude vs Codex (short)
| VibeOS | Typical Claude product memory | Codex-style memory modes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profile | Bounded USER.md + ritual | Product-specific stores | Project/user notes vary by build |
| Mid-session | Hot facts (cache-safe) | Often product-managed | Often session tools |
| Disk / machine | Opt-in collectors + ledger | Usually none / separate | Local workspace context |
| Trust | session_mode + forget-topic | Product privacy UI | use/generate style flags |
| Sharing | Profiles islands; Board KB | Account/workspace rules | Project-scoped |
VibeOS optimizes for a local, auditable personal agent: small prompt budgets, explicit consent for disk, and no silent Core poison — not a cloud “know everything” vault.
Related
- Persistent Memory
- Privacy doctrine (RU short):
docs/plans/user-familiarity-privacy-doctrine-ru.mdin the repo - Plan:
docs/plans/2026-07-21-user-familiarity-for-beginners.md