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HomeDocsClaude Code CLI 21 Aug 2026
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How Claude remembers your project changedmemory

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1818 
1919Claude Code has two complementary memory systems. Both are loaded at the start of every conversation. Claude treats them as context, not enforced configuration. To block an action regardless of what Claude decides, use a [PreToolUse hook](/docs/en/hooks-guide) instead. The more specific and concise your instructions, the more consistently Claude follows them.
2020 
21| | CLAUDE.md files | Auto memory |
22| :------------------- | :------------------------------------------------ | :--------------------------------------------------------------- |
23| **Who writes it** | You | Claude |
24| **What it contains** | Instructions and rules | Learnings and patterns |
25| **Scope** | Project, user, or org | Per repository, shared across worktrees |
26| **Loaded into** | Every session | Every session (first 200 lines or 25KB) |
27| **Use for** | Coding standards, workflows, project architecture | Build commands, debugging insights, preferences Claude discovers |
21| | CLAUDE.md files | Auto memory |
22| :------------------- | :------------------------------------------------ | :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
23| **Who writes it** | You | Claude |
24| **What it contains** | Instructions and rules | Learnings and patterns |
25| **Scope** | Project, user, or org | Per repository, shared across worktrees |
26| **Loaded into** | Every session | Every session (first 200 lines or 25KB) |
27| **Use for** | Coding standards, workflows, project architecture | Your preferences, corrections you give Claude, project context Claude can't derive from the code |
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2929Use CLAUDE.md files when you want to guide Claude's behavior. Auto memory lets Claude learn from your corrections without manual effort.
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5656| **Project instructions** | `./CLAUDE.md` or `./.claude/CLAUDE.md` | Team-shared instructions for the project | Project architecture, coding standards, common workflows | Team members via source control |
5757| **Local instructions** | `./CLAUDE.local.md` | Personal project-specific preferences; add to `.gitignore` | Your sandbox URLs, preferred test data | Just you (current project) |
5858 
59CLAUDE.md and CLAUDE.local.md files in the directory hierarchy above the working directory are loaded in full at launch. Files in subdirectories load on demand when Claude reads files in those directories. See [How CLAUDE.md files load](#how-claude-md-files-load) for the full resolution order.
59CLAUDE.md and CLAUDE.local.md files in the directory hierarchy above the working directory are loaded at launch. Files in subdirectories load on demand when Claude reads files in those directories. See [How CLAUDE.md files load](#how-claude-md-files-load) for the full resolution order.
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6161For large projects, you can break instructions into topic-specific files using [project rules](#organize-rules-with-claude/rules/). Rules let you scope instructions to specific file types or subdirectories.
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335335 
336336## Auto memory
337337 
338Auto memory lets Claude accumulate knowledge across sessions without you writing anything. Claude saves notes for itself as it works: build commands, debugging insights, architecture notes, code style preferences, and workflow habits. Claude doesn't save something every session. It decides what's worth remembering based on whether the information would be useful in a future conversation.
338Auto memory lets Claude accumulate knowledge across sessions without you writing anything. As it works, Claude saves four kinds of notes for itself. Claude records the kind as a `type` field in the memory file's frontmatter:
339339 
340* `user`: your role, expertise, and working preferences
341* `feedback`: corrections you give Claude and approaches you confirm
342* `project`: ongoing work, deadlines, and decisions that Claude can't derive from the code or git history
343* `reference`: where to find information outside the project, such as an issue tracker or dashboard
344 
345Claude skips anything it can derive from the codebase, such as architecture, file paths, or debugging fixes. It also skips anything your CLAUDE.md files already say.
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347Claude doesn't save something every session. It decides what's worth remembering based on whether the information would be useful in a future conversation.
348 
340349### Enable or disable auto memory
341350 
342351Auto memory is on by default. To toggle it, open `/memory` in a session and use the auto memory toggle, which saves `autoMemoryEnabled` to your user settings at `~/.claude/settings.json`. To turn it off for a single project, set `autoMemoryEnabled` in that project's settings:
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365374 
366375The value must be an absolute path or start with `~/`. When you set it in a project's `.claude/settings.json` or `.claude/settings.local.json`, Claude Code honors it under the same [workspace trust rule as hooks in settings files](/docs/en/permissions#what-runs-before-you-trust-a-folder).
367376 
368The directory contains a `MEMORY.md` entrypoint and optional topic files:
377The directory contains a `MEMORY.md` index and one topic file per memory:
369378 
370379```text theme={null}
371380~/.claude/projects/<project>/memory/
372├── MEMORY.md # Concise index, loaded into every session
373├── debugging.md # Detailed notes on debugging patterns
374├── api-conventions.md # API design decisions
375└── ... # Any other topic files Claude creates
381├── MEMORY.md # Index, one line per memory, loaded into every session
382├── user_role.md # One memory
383├── feedback_testing.md # One memory
384└── ... # Any other topic files Claude creates
376385```
377386 
378387`MEMORY.md` acts as an index of the memory directory. Claude reads and writes files in this directory throughout your session, using `MEMORY.md` to keep track of what's stored where.
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389398 
390399The check measures only the content that loads: YAML frontmatter and block-level HTML comments are stripped before the index is loaded, so they don't count toward the limits. Before v2.1.211, Claude Code measured the raw file, and frontmatter or comments could trigger the error even when the loaded content fit.
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392This limit applies only to `MEMORY.md`. CLAUDE.md files are loaded in full regardless of length, though shorter files produce better adherence.
401This limit applies only to `MEMORY.md`. Claude Code loads a CLAUDE.md file of up to 4 MiB in full and skips a larger file. Shorter files produce better adherence.
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394Topic files like `debugging.md` or `patterns.md` are not loaded at startup. Claude reads them on demand using its standard file tools when it needs the information.
403Claude Code doesn't load topic files such as `user_role.md` or `feedback_testing.md` at startup. Claude reads them on demand using its standard file tools when it needs the information.
395404 
396405The main conversation's auto memory isn't loaded into [subagents](/docs/en/sub-agents#what-loads-at-startup); the exception is a [fork](/docs/en/sub-agents#fork-the-current-conversation), which inherits the parent conversation and system prompt. A subagent's own auto memory, enabled with the subagent `memory` field, is a separate directory.
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440449 
441450### My CLAUDE.md is too large
442451 
443Files over 200 lines consume more context and may reduce adherence. Use [path-scoped rules](#path-specific-rules) to load instructions only when Claude works with matching files, or trim content that isn't needed in every session. Splitting into [`@path` imports](#import-additional-files) helps organization but doesn't reduce context, since imported files load at launch.
452Files over 200 lines consume more context and may reduce adherence. Claude Code skips a file over 4 MiB. Use [path-scoped rules](#path-specific-rules) to load instructions only when Claude works with matching files, or trim content that isn't needed in every session. Splitting into [`@path` imports](#import-additional-files) helps organization but doesn't reduce context, since imported files load at launch.
444453 
445454The [`/doctor`](/docs/en/commands#all-commands) checkup proposes trims for a checked-in CLAUDE.md: it cuts content Claude can derive from the codebase, such as directory layouts, dependency lists, and architecture overviews, and keeps pitfalls, rationale, and conventions that differ from tool defaults. The trim check requires Claude Code v2.1.206 or later.
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447456### Instructions seem lost after `/compact`
448457 
449Project-root CLAUDE.md survives compaction: after `/compact`, Claude re-reads it from disk and re-injects it into the session. Nested CLAUDE.md files in subdirectories and rules with [`paths:` frontmatter](#path-specific-rules) are not re-injected automatically; they reload the next time Claude reads a file in that subdirectory or a file matching the rule's patterns.
458Project-root CLAUDE.md survives compaction: after `/compact`, Claude re-reads it from disk and re-injects it into the session. Nested CLAUDE.md files in subdirectories and rules with [`paths:` frontmatter](#path-specific-rules) reload as Claude reads files they apply to.
450459 
451460If an instruction disappeared after compaction, it was given only in conversation, lives in a nested CLAUDE.md that hasn't reloaded yet, or is a path-scoped rule that hasn't matched a file since. Add conversation-only instructions to CLAUDE.md to make them persist. See [What survives compaction](/docs/en/context-window#what-survives-compaction) for the full breakdown.
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