Add Archilas as an MCP server in ~/.cursor/mcp.json, or let the installer do it. The installer also adds a beforeSubmitPrompt hook and a small rule, so Cursor can ask the team memory before it answers and cite where a decision came from.
Cursor rules (.cursor/rules) are a good place for conventions that rarely change. They are a poor place for what the team decided this week, because someone has to edit the file every time. The decision already exists somewhere: a Slack thread, a pull request, an email, a chat with another AI.
What the installer writes
- ~/.cursor/mcp.json: an archilas server pointing at https://www.archilas.com/api/mcp with your key.
- ~/.cursor/hooks.json: beforeSubmitPrompt fetches relevant notes for the prompt. stop, afterAgentResponse, and postToolUse are used for transcript capture (off with --no-transcripts) and, with --remember, saving notes.
- ~/.cursor/rules/archilas.mdc, plus a project rule if you run it inside a repo, telling the agent when to call the tools.
Manual setup
If you prefer to edit config yourself, add this to ~/.cursor/mcp.json: {"mcpServers":{"archilas":{"url":"https://www.archilas.com/api/mcp","headers":{"Authorization":"Bearer <api-key>"}}}}. The server also supports OAuth, so a client that handles MCP OAuth can connect without pasting a key.
Rules and memory together
Keep both. The rule says how the codebase works. The memory says what changed and who decided it, with a date and a source. Each note keeps its date, and answers cite it, so the agent can see that last month's plan is older than this week's decision. More on that in the old decision was still in the notes.
Related posts
Questions
- Does Cursor remember previous chats?
- Cursor keeps chat history and supports rules, but a new chat does not automatically know decisions made in other tools. An MCP memory server gives it a place to ask.
- Where is the Cursor MCP config file?
- The global file is ~/.cursor/mcp.json. A project can also have .cursor/mcp.json.