Cline memory: Memory Bank files, and the gap after a reset
Cline’s recommended pattern is a Memory Bank: markdown files the agent maintains so it can reload project context after a task resets. It works, and it depends on the agent writing to disk often enough.
Cline. Sources checked 2026-09-25.
How Cline handles memory today
Cline documents the Memory Bank as a structured markdown system that preserves project context across sessions, with .clinerules for persistent instructions. Rules live in .clinerules/ at the project root and Cline also reads Cursor and Windsurf rule files.
The Memory Bank is a file convention, not an engine. It captures what the agent chooses to write, and a multi-root workspace has a documented sharp edge: .clinerules only apply in the first folder, so other folders get nothing.
What Cline forgets
Anything not written down is gone at the next reset, and what is written is flat files.
- The last hour of a session if the Memory Bank was not updated before the reset.
- Retrieval quality. Flat markdown gets read in full or not at all, so a large bank costs tokens and still misses the one line you needed.
- History across projects. The bank travels with one repository, so nothing is shared across projects or across tools.
- Rule scope in multi-root workspaces, where only the primary folder’s rules are honored.
The fix with MemoryRouter
Cline supports remote MCP servers. Add MemoryRouter next to your Memory Bank and Cline gets semantic recall plus a vault that other tools read too.
- 1
Add the server to cline_mcp_settings.json
Cline MCP settings
{ "mcpServers": { "memoryrouter": { "type": "streamableHttp", "url": "https://mcp.memoryrouter.ai/mcp" } } } - 2
Complete the OAuth sign-in
Open the MCP Servers panel, find memoryrouter, and finish sign-in. Pick the vault Cline should use.
- 3
Keep the Memory Bank for instructions
Rules and project structure still belong in files. Let the vault hold the running record of decisions so the bank stays small and readable.
Config, auth, and verification on the Cline page. 14-day free trial.
Related
Full Cline guide
Config, auth, and verification on the Cline page. 14-day free trial.
Cursor memory
Connect the vault as a remote MCP server so new chats open with project decisions.
Kilo Code memory
AGENTS.md is now the memory path, with MCP for a durable vault.
Roo Code memory
Custom instructions and MCP tools for memory that outlives a task.
Cline memory FAQ
Sources
Sources checked 2026-09-25. Tool behavior changes; check the vendor docs before relying on a detail.