brain-setup

First-time setup for the brain plugin. Run once. Covers vault creation, config, Obsidian registration, and team setup.

Steps

1. Detect environment

uname -s
echo $HOME
python3 --version
which claude

Report OS, home directory, Python version, and claude path.

2. Personal vault path

Ask:

"Where should your personal brain vault live? Default is ~/brain. Press Enter to accept or type a path."

If they press Enter or say "default", use ~/brain. Expand ~ to real home path. Call this VAULT_PATH.

3. Create vault structure

mkdir -p VAULT_PATH/_sessions
mkdir -p VAULT_PATH/atoms
mkdir -p VAULT_PATH/weekly
mkdir -p VAULT_PATH/Polaris

Create placeholder files only if they don't already exist:

VAULT_PATH/Polaris/top-of-mind.md (if missing):

# Top of Mind

What matters most right now. The /synthesize command reads this to assess session alignment.
Update this file when your focus shifts: start of a new project or sprint, after /brain-reflect
suggests drift, or whenever your context switches.

## Current focus


## Active projects


## What I'm trying to figure out


## What I want more of


## What I want less of

VAULT_PATH/Polaris/life-razor.md (if missing):

# Life Razor

Principles I use to make decisions quickly.

## If in doubt...


## I always...


## I never...


## My barometer for a good day:

Report which files were created vs already existed.

4. Auto-synthesize on session start?

Ask:

"Auto-synthesize pending sessions when you start a new Claude Code session? [Y/n]"

Default: yes. Store as auto_synthesize in config (bool).

5. Surface hints in session?

Ask:

"Surface related personal atoms when you're working on relevant tasks? [Y/n]"

Default: yes. Store as surface_hints in config (bool).

If no, explain: "You can still run /brain-search manually to find relevant atoms."

6. Write config

mkdir -p ~/.claude/brain

Write ~/.claude/brain/config.json:

{
  "vault_path": "VAULT_PATH",
  "auto_synthesize": true,
  "surface_hints": true,
  "team": {
    "enabled": false
  }
}