Documentation

Everything you need to set up, configure, and use Cortex AI's persistent memory for your coding assistant.

⚡ Quick Start

Option A: VS Code Extension (Recommended)

  1. Install "Cortex AI Memory" from the VS Code Marketplace
  2. The extension automatically downloads and runs cortex-mcp
  3. Sign in with Google to activate your 7-day Pro trial
  4. Run Cortex: Scan Project to give your AI instant project awareness

Option B: Manual Install (Any MCP Client)

npm install -g cortex-mcp

Then add to your MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cortex": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["cortex-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
💡 Tip

Works with Cursor, Claude, VS Code, Windsurf, Zed, Cline, and any MCP-compatible tool.

🔧 Tools Reference

Cortex provides these MCP tools that your AI assistant can call:

Tool Description Plan
force_recall Load ALL corrections, decisions, conventions at conversation start Free
recall_memory Search memories by topic Free
store_memory Save a decision, correction, convention, bug fix, or insight Free
auto_learn Automatically extract patterns from AI responses Pro
quick_store One-sentence memory with auto-classification Free
scan_project Capture project stack, structure, and git history Free
verify_code Check imports, exports, and env vars for hallucinations Free
verify_files Check file paths against real filesystem Free
get_context Dynamic compressed context for current file Pro
list_memories Browse all memories by type Free
delete_memory Soft-delete a memory by ID Free
update_memory Supersede an outdated memory Free
export_memories Export all memories to JSON Pro
import_memories Import memories from JSON bundle Pro
health_check Server status, memory count, DB size Free
get_stats Detailed memory statistics Free

⚙️ Configuration

License Key

Your license key activates Pro features. Two ways to set it:

# Option 1: Environment variable
export CORTEX_LICENSE_KEY=CORTEX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX

# Option 2: File (created automatically by the extension)
~/.cortex/license

VS Code Extension Settings

Setting Default Description
cortex.autoStart true Auto-start cortex-mcp on activation
cortex.mcpCommand npx cortex-mcp Command to run the MCP server
cortex.showStatusBar true Show memory count in status bar

Memory Types

Type When to Use
DECISION "We chose PostgreSQL over MongoDB because..."
CORRECTION "Never use var, always use const in this project"
CONVENTION "All API responses follow { data, error, status } format"
BUG_FIX "The login loop was caused by missing CSRF token refresh"
INSIGHT "The auth module handles 60% of all API requests"

💎 Plans & Limits

Feature Free Trial (7 days) Pro ($9/mo)
Memories 20 Unlimited Unlimited
Brain layers 3 14 14
Auto-learn ❌ ✅ ✅
Export/Import ❌ ✅ ✅
Architecture graph ❌ ✅ ✅
Git memory capture ❌ ✅ ✅
Confidence decay ❌ ✅ ✅
Contradiction detection ❌ ✅ ✅

🔍 Troubleshooting

"Cortex: Disconnected" in status bar

"License invalid" or features locked

Still stuck?