# claude-historian-mcp An [Model Context Protocol (MCP)](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) server for searching your [Claude Code](https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/claude-code) conversation history. Find past solutions, track file changes, and learn from previous work.
![claude-historian-mcp](demo/demo.gif) [![npm version](https://img.shields.io/npm/v/claude-historian-mcp.svg)](https://www.npmjs.com/package/claude-historian-mcp) [![License: MIT](https://img.shields.io/badge/License-MIT-yellow.svg)](https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT) [![TypeScript](https://img.shields.io/badge/TypeScript-007ACC?logo=typescript&logoColor=white)](https://www.typescriptlang.org/) [![Node.js](https://img.shields.io/badge/node-%3E%3D20-brightgreen)](https://nodejs.org/) [![Claude](https://img.shields.io/badge/Claude-D97757?logo=claude&logoColor=fff)](#) [![GitHub stars](https://img.shields.io/github/stars/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp?style=social)](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp) ![CodeRabbit Pull Request Reviews](https://img.shields.io/coderabbit/prs/github/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp?utm_source=oss&utm_medium=github&utm_campaign=Vvkmnn%2Fclaude-historian-mcp&labelColor=171717&color=FF570A&link=https%3A%2F%2Fcoderabbit.ai&label=CodeRabbit+Reviews) --- ## install **Requirements:** [![Claude Code](https://img.shields.io/badge/Claude_Code-555?logo=data:image/svg%2bxml;base64,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)](https://claude.ai/code) **From shell:** ```bash claude mcp add claude-historian-mcp -- npx claude-historian-mcp ``` **From inside Claude** (restart required): ``` Add this to our global mcp config: npx claude-historian-mcp Install this mcp: https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp ``` **From any manually configurable `mcp.json`**: (Cursor, Windsurf, etc.) ```json { "mcpServers": { "claude-historian-mcp": { "command": "npx", "args": ["claude-historian-mcp"], "env": {} } } } ``` There is **no `npm install` required** -- no external dependencies or local databases, only search algorithms. However, if `npx` resolves the wrong package, you can force resolution with: ```bash npm install -g claude-historian-mcp ``` > **renamed:** This project was renamed from `claude-historian` to `claude-historian-mcp`. Existing users should update your install command and MCP config args to `claude-historian-mcp`. ## [skill](.claude/skills/claude-historian) Optionally, install the skill to teach Claude when to proactively use historian: ```bash npx skills add Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp --skill claude-historian --global # Optional: add --yes to skip interactive prompt and install to all agents ``` This makes Claude automatically check your history before web searches, when encountering errors, or at session start. The MCP works without the skill, but the skill improves discoverability. ## [plugin](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-emporium) For automatic history search with hooks and commands, install from the [claude-emporium](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-emporium) marketplace: ```bash /plugin marketplace add Vvkmnn/claude-emporium /plugin install claude-historian@claude-emporium ``` The **claude-historian** plugin provides: **Hooks** (targeted, zero overhead on success): - Before WebSearch/WebFetch → Check `search scope="similar"` - Before EnterPlanMode → Check `search scope="plans"` - Before Task agents → Check `search scope="tools"` - After Bash errors → Check `search scope="errors"` **Command:** `/historian-search ` Requires the MCP server installed first. See the emporium for other Claude Code plugins and MCPs. ## features [MCP server](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) that gives Claude access to your conversation history. Two tools, 11 scopes, zero dependencies. Runs locally (with cool shades `[⌐■_■] 📜`): #### `search` Search across conversations, files, errors, plans, config, tasks, sessions, tools, similar queries, and memories. ``` search query="docker auth error" # default scope: all search query="fix build" scope="conversations" # past solutions search query="ENOENT" scope="errors" # error patterns + fixes search query="auth" scope="plans" # implementation plans search query="hooks" scope="config" # rules, skills, CLAUDE.md search query="git push" scope="similar" # related questions asked before search query="Edit" scope="tools" # tool usage workflows search filepath="package.json" scope="files" # file change history search scope="sessions" # recent sessions search scope="memories" # project memory files search query="deploy" scope="all" detail_level="detailed" # full context search query="auth" timeframe="7d" project="my-app" # filtered ``` ```json 📜 ── search "docker auth" ── 5 results · 405 tokens { "results": [{ "type": "assistant", "ts": "2h ago", "content": "Fixed Docker auth by updating registry credentials...", "project": "my-app", "score": 100, "ctx": { "filesReferenced": ["docker-compose.yml"], "toolsUsed": ["Edit", "Bash"] } }] } ``` ```json 📜 ── files "package.json" ── 92 operations · 1594 tokens { "filepath": "package.json", "operations": [{ "type": "edit", "ts": "1d ago", "changes": ["Changed: \"version\": \"1.0.3\" → \"version\": \"1.0.4\""], "content": "Updated version for release" }] } ``` ```json 📜 ── tools "Bash" ── 5 patterns · 427 tokens { "tool": "Bash", "patterns": [{ "name": "Bash", "uses": 10, "workflow": "$ npm run build 2>&1", "practice": "Used with: ts, js, json, md files" }] } ``` #### `inspect` Get an intelligent summary of any session by ID (full UUID or short prefix). ``` inspect session_id="latest" # most recent session inspect session_id="d537af65" # short prefix works inspect session_id="d537af65" focus="files" # only file changes inspect session_id="d537af65" focus="tools" # only tool usage inspect session_id="d537af65" focus="solutions" # only solutions ``` ```json 📜 ── inspect my-app (68d5323b) { "session": { "id": "68d5323b", "ts": "2h ago", "duration": 45, "messages": 128, "project": "my-app", "tools": ["Edit", "Bash", "Read"], "files": ["src/auth.ts", "package.json"], "accomplishments": ["fixed auth bug", "added unit tests"], "decisions": ["chose JWT over sessions"] } } ``` ## methodology How [claude-historian-mcp](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp) [works](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/tree/master/src): ``` "docker auth" query | ├─> Parallel Processing (search.ts:174): 15 projects × 10 files concurrently | • Promise.allSettled for 6x speed improvement | • Early termination when sufficient results found | • Enhanced file coverage with comprehensive patterns | ├─> Enhanced Classification (search.ts:642): implementation → boost tool workflows | • Workflow detection for tool sequences (Edit → Read → Bash) | • Semantic boundary preservation (never truncate mid-function) | • Claude-optimized formatting with rich metadata | ├─> Smart Ranking (utils.ts:267): | ├─> Core Terms (scoring-constants.ts): "docker" +10, "auth" +10 | ├─> Supporting Terms: context words +3 each | ├─> Tool Usage: Edit/Bash references +5 | ├─> File References: paths/extensions +3 | └─> Project Match: current project +5 | ├─> Results sorted by composite score: | • "Edit workflow (7x successful)" (2h ago) ***** [score: 45] | • "Docker auth with context paths" (yesterday) **** [score: 38] | • "Container debugging patterns" (last week) *** [score: 22] | └─> Return Claude Code optimized results ``` **Core optimizations:** - [parallel processing](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L174): `Promise.allSettled` for 6x speed improvement across projects and files - [workflow detection](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L1122): Captures tool sequences like "Edit → Read → Bash" patterns - [enhanced file matching](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L793): Comprehensive path variations with case-insensitive matching - [intelligent deduplication](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search-helpers.ts#L40): Content-based deduplication preserving highest-scoring results - [intelligent truncation](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/formatter.ts#L46): Never truncates mid-function or mid-error - [Claude-optimized formatting](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/formatter.ts#L26): Rich metadata with technical content prioritization **Search strategies:** - **[JSON streaming parser](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JSON_streaming)** ([parseJsonlFile](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/parser.ts#L16)): Reads Claude Code conversation files on-demand without full deserialization - **[LRU caching]()** ([messageCache](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L27)): In-memory cache with intelligent eviction for frequently accessed conversations - **[TF-IDF inspired scoring](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tf%E2%80%93idf)** ([calculateRelevanceScore](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/utils.ts#L267)): Term frequency scoring with document frequency weighting for relevance - **[Query classification](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Text_classification)** ([classifyQueryType](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L642)): Naive Bayes-style classification (error/implementation/analysis/general) with adaptive limits - **[Edit distance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edit_distance)** ([calculateQuerySimilarity](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search-helpers.ts#L157)): Fuzzy matching for technical terms and typo tolerance - **[Exponential time decay](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exponential_decay)** (getTimeRangeFilter): Recent messages weighted higher with configurable half-life - **[Parallel file processing](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Promise/allSettled)** ([getErrorSolutions](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L985)): Concurrent project scanning with early termination for 0.8s response times - **[Workflow pattern recognition](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequential_pattern_mining)** ([getToolPatterns](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L1122)): Detects tool usage sequences and related workflows for learning - **[Enhanced file context]()** ([findFileContext](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L793)): Multi-project search with comprehensive path matching - **[Content-aware truncation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Text_segmentation)** ([smartTruncation](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/formatter.ts#L46)): Intelligent content boundaries over arbitrary character limits - **[Technical content prioritization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_extraction)** ([BeautifulFormatter](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/formatter.ts#L26)): Code blocks, errors, and file paths get full preservation - **[Query similarity clustering](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cluster_analysis)** ([findSimilarQueries](https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp/blob/master/src/search.ts#L912)): Semantic expansion and pattern grouping for related questions **Design principles:** - **Universal engine** -- single search backend for all Claude Code conversations - **Parallel processing** -- concurrent file scanning across session directories - **Semantic expansion** -- query synonyms and related terms for better recall - **Zero dependencies** -- only `@modelcontextprotocol/sdk`, no databases required - **Offline** -- never leaves your machine, scans local JSONL files only **File access:** - Reads from: `~/.claude/conversations/` - Zero persistent storage or indexing - Never leaves your machine **Performance:** See [PERFORMANCE.md](./PERFORMANCE.md) for benchmarks, optimization history, and quality scores. ## alternatives Every conversation history tool either loads context always (burning tokens when unused) or requires external runtimes and databases. Historian searches on-demand with zero dependencies. | Feature | **historian** | Claude Memory | claude-mem | deja | conversation-search | | ----------------------- | ----------------------- | ----------------------- | -------------------------------- | ------------------- | ---------------------------- | | **Dependencies** | **Zero** | Built-in | Bun + Python + SQLite + Chroma | Python | Rust toolchain | | **Background service** | **No** | No | Yes (port 37777) | No | No | | **Writes to disk** | **Never** | Yes (auto-memory files) | Yes (SQLite + Chroma DB) | Yes (breadcrumbs) | Yes (~10% index overhead) | | **Session startup** | **0 tokens** | ~200 lines loaded | 5-8k tokens every session | Skill prompt loaded | 0 tokens | | **Token cost (idle)** | **0** | 200 lines/session | 5-8k/session | Skill prompt/session| 0 | | **Search algorithms** | **[12](#methodology)** | None (file read) | Vector + keyword | Weighted signals | BM25 full-text | | **Fuzzy matching** | **Yes** | No | Yes (vector similarity) | No | No | | **Workflow detection** | **Yes** | No | No | No | No | | **Raw conversations** | **Yes** | No (summaries only) | No (compressed observations) | Yes | Yes (filtered) | | **Maintenance** | **Zero** | Zero | Worker daemons, migrations | Skill config | Index rebuilds | **[Claude Memory](https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/claude-code/memory)** -- Claude's built-in memory (`CLAUDE.md` + auto-memory). Persists project rules and preferences across sessions. Forward-looking ("always use ESM imports"); not conversation search. **Complementary**: memory for rules, historian for past solutions. **[claude-mem](https://github.com/thedotmack/claude-mem)** -- Plugin that captures observations via lifecycle hooks, compresses them into SQLite + Chroma, and loads context every session. Requires Bun, Python, and a background worker on port 37777. Real-world testing (270+ sessions): 95% of sessions never query history -- always-on tools pay 5-8k tokens per session regardless. Historian pays 0 tokens idle, 500-2k per query, saving ~475k tokens over 100 sessions. Known issues: creates stub session files that break `--continue`, worker daemon version conflicts, security hooks blocking valid edits. **[deja](https://github.com/kateleext/deja)** -- Python skill that indexes sessions by episodes and accomplishments. Uses weighted signal ranking (todos > files > text). Requires Python and TodoWrite integration. **[conversation-search](https://github.com/ticpu/claude-conversation-search-mcp)** -- Rust MCP server using Tantivy BM25 full-text search. Fast indexing (~1000 conversations/second) but requires Rust toolchain and persistent disk index. ## desktop **Note:** Claude Desktop stores conversations server-side, not locally. The local LevelDB files (`~/Library/Application Support/Claude/`) contain only session tokens, UI preferences, and Intercom state - not conversation content. Claude Desktop support is also blocked by [LevelDB locks](https://github.com/Level/level#open) and [Electron sandboxing](https://www.electronjs.org/docs/latest/tutorial/sandbox). This means **local history search for Claude Desktop is not currently possible**. This project focuses on **Claude Code**, which stores full conversation history locally in `~/.claude/projects/`. You may get some Claude Desktop from Claude Code, but **only when the Claude app is closed**. Furthermore A DXT package and build is available for future compatibility; further investigations are ongoing. Feel free to test with it. ## development ```bash git clone https://github.com/Vvkmnn/claude-historian-mcp && cd claude-historian-mcp npm install && npm run build npm test ``` **Package requirements:** - **Node.js**: >=20.0.0 (ES modules) - **Runtime**: `@modelcontextprotocol/sdk` - **Zero external databases** -- works with `npx` **Development workflow:** ```bash npm run build # TypeScript compilation with executable permissions npm run dev # Watch mode with tsc --watch npm run start # Run the MCP server directly npm run lint # ESLint code quality checks npm run lint:fix # Auto-fix linting issues npm run format # Prettier formatting (src/) npm run format:check # Check formatting without changes npm run typecheck # TypeScript validation without emit npm run test # Lint + type check npm run prepublishOnly # Pre-publish validation (build + lint + format:check) ``` **Git hooks (via Husky):** - **pre-commit**: Auto-formats staged `.ts` files with Prettier and ESLint - **pre-push**: Runs full validation (format, lint, type-check, build) before push Contributing: - Fork the repository and create feature branches - Test with large conversation histories before submitting PRs - Follow TypeScript strict mode and [MCP protocol](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification) standards Learn from examples: - [Official MCP servers](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/servers) for reference implementations - [TypeScript SDK](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/typescript-sdk) for best practices - [Creating Node.js modules](https://docs.npmjs.com/creating-node-js-modules) for npm package development ## license [MIT](LICENSE)

_**[Appius Claudius Caecus in the Senate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesare_Maccari)** by **[Cesare Maccari](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesare_Maccari)** (1888). Roman statesman and father of Latin prose._