Journal Default

Use these paths under the resolved root:

• Domain indexes: <memory_root>/domains/<domain>/index.md
• Sessions: <memory_root>/domains/<domain>/sessions/
• Weekly reviews: <memory_root>/domains/ops/reviews/
• Monthly history reviews: <memory_root>/domains/ops/reviews/history/
• Templates: <memory_root>/templates/
• Triage fallback: <memory_root>/inbox/triage.md

Obsidian CLI Usage

Prefer obsidian-cli for vault-aware operations:

• locate vault: obsidian-cli print-default --path-only
• search notes: obsidian-cli search-content "<query>"
• create notes: obsidian-cli create "domains/<domain>/sessions/<file>" --content "<content>"
• move/rename notes: obsidian-cli move "<old>" "<new>"

Direct markdown edits are acceptable for deterministic updates when path is already known.

If obsidian-cli is missing and the user is using Obsidian-managed memory, explicitly ask the user to install it before continuing with vault-aware operations.

Deterministic Workflow (Preferred)

Use scripts first instead of ad-hoc note edits:

• initialize baseline structure safely:
  • scripts/bootstrap_memory.sh
  • use scripts/bootstrap_memory.sh --force only to intentionally reset baseline files
• write/update session + index entry:
  • scripts/write_session.sh --domain <domain> --title "<task title>" --summary "<index summary>"
• verify index/session connectivity:
  • scripts/check_index_consistency.sh
• repair missing index entries:
  • scripts/check_index_consistency.sh --fix

Domain Routing

Choose one domain per task:

• engineering: code/CI/tooling/architecture/bugs
• personal: life/admin/non-work
• ops: incidents/runbooks/reliability/process ops
• general: unclear/mixed

If unclear, use general. See references/domain-routing.md for hints.

Meaningfulness Gate

Write/update memory only if at least one is true:

1. durable decision made,
2. files/config/workflow changed,
3. actionable diagnostic findings produced,
4. policy/process/automation updated.

Do not log pure chat, acknowledgements, navigation-only steps, or no-op checks. Batch micro-steps into one entry per meaningful milestone.

Session Convention

• File: YYYY-MM-DD--short-title.md
• Location: selected domain sessions/
• Reuse same file for same task/day when practical.

Session Naming Constraints

• Use lowercase ASCII kebab-case for short-title (a-z, 0-9, - only).
• Keep slugs stable and task-specific; avoid generic names like notes or update.
• Keep filenames deterministic: same task + same day should resolve to the same slug.
• Do not include agent/model names in filenames.

Required Session Blocks

1. ## Objective
2. ## Actions
3. ## Decisions
4. ## Outcome
5. ## Next Step
6. ## Improvement Radar

Improvement Radar must include:

• Observed Friction
• Suggested Improvement
• Confidence: low|medium|high

Sensitive Data Rule

Never store secrets/auth/sensitive tokens/passwords/private keys/session credentials. Redact before writing (example: [REDACTED_TOKEN]).

Index Update

After meaningful progress, append a short summary link to the domain index.

Weekly Review

• Due when now_utc >= next_due_utc in domains/ops/reviews/_cadence.md.
• Generate with scripts/weekly_memory_review.sh.
• On completion update cadence fields:
  • last_completed_utc
  • next_due_utc
  • last_review_note

Monthly History Hygiene (Advisory)

• Due when now_utc >= next_due_utc in domains/ops/reviews/_history_hygiene_cadence.md.
• Generate report with scripts/monthly_memory_history_review.sh.
• Report-only by default; no history rewrite unless explicitly requested.

Scope Safety

• Never auto-load unrelated domain notes.
• Cross-reference domains only on explicit user request.
• Keep note structure agent-neutral (no agent-specific markers).

Style

• Brief, factual, decision-focused.