Give new Claude Code sessions your project facts

A new Claude Code session starts with a fresh context window. The memory docs say project instruction files and auto memory carry information into it ^[1]. A short CLAUDE.md gives you a place to keep facts you keep repeating.

Write the facts the next session needs

Adapt the example from our MEMORY post to your project. Replace every line that is untrue before saving it in the project root.

CLAUDE.md

# Project context

- Stack: Next.js + Postgres
- Auth is done
- Do not redo auth

The docs describe CLAUDE.md as context the model tries to follow. It does not enforce access restrictions ^[1]. Use permission rules to protect secrets.

Check the file in Claude Code

Run the documented command inside a session ^[1].

text

/memory

You should see the instruction file locations. Select the project file to read or edit it.

Keep the instructions current

Remove completed-work notes once they stop helping future sessions. Put recurring decisions in concrete sentences. If a rule is ignored, the docs recommend checking for conflicting instructions and confirming that the file loaded ^[1].

For procedures that deserve their own skill or hook, see where each Claude Code instruction belongs.