> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.mengram.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Agent-Native Install

> Install Mengram via a single prompt to your coding agent. No terminal context-switching, no config-file editing.

## The idea

Modern coding agents (Claude Desktop, Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, Windsurf) have shell, file-edit, and web-fetch tools. They can install software, edit config files, and verify the result themselves.

Instead of giving the user a list of commands to run, we ship a plain-text install guide written **for the agent**. The user pastes one prompt; the agent does the rest.

## The prompt

```
Install Mengram for me. Fetch the canonical install
guide at https://mengram.io/agent-install.txt and
follow it precisely. My email is YOUR_EMAIL_HERE.
```

Paste it into your agent. The agent will:

1. Detect your OS and which AI tool it's running in
2. Run `pip install --user --upgrade mengram-ai`
3. Trigger `mengram signup --email <you>` — a 6-digit code arrives by email
4. Ask you for the code, then run `mengram signup --email <you> --code <code>` to save your API key to `~/.mengram/config.json`
5. Add a `"mengram"` entry to the host's MCP config (preserving everything else)
6. Run `mengram doctor` — auth + add + search round-trip
7. Tell you to restart the host

End-to-end install in 30-60 seconds, no terminal context-switch.

## The guide itself

The install guide is plain text at [`https://mengram.io/agent-install.txt`](https://mengram.io/agent-install.txt). It's structured for LLMs:

* **STEP 1** — Detect environment (OS, Python ≥ 3.10, host AI tool)
* **STEP 2** — Install package + PATH fix
* **STEP 3** — Authenticate (skip if `$MENGRAM_API_KEY` already set)
* **STEP 4** — Configure MCP server. Decision tree per host: claude-desktop, claude-code, cursor, windsurf, codex, claude-ai (web), generic
* **STEP 5** — `mengram doctor` round-trip
* **STEP 6** — Final report to user
* **SECTION M** — Manual fallback if the agent has no shell tool
* **APPENDIX A** — JSON config template
* **APPENDIX B** — Debugging notes

## Supported hosts

| Host                        | Path                                                                      | Notes                                                                      |
| --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Claude Desktop** (`.app`) | `~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json` (macOS) | Local stdio MCP — lowest latency, no Node.js                               |
| **Claude Code** (CLI)       | `claude mcp add mengram -- mengram server --cloud`                        | Native MCP support                                                         |
| **Cursor**                  | `~/.cursor/mcp.json`                                                      | Same JSON shape as Claude Desktop                                          |
| **Windsurf**                | `~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json`                                     | Same JSON shape                                                            |
| **Codex** (CLI)             | `~/.codex/config.toml`                                                    | TOML format                                                                |
| **Claude.ai web / Chrome**  | Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector                              | HTTP MCP via UI — agent can't install programmatically, gives instructions |
| **Other** (generic MCP)     | Host's MCP config                                                         | Falls back to URL + Authorization header for HTTP, or stdio command        |

## Why this exists

Karpathy's recent observation: *"Why are people still telling me what to do? What is the thing I should copy-paste to my agent?"*

Mengram's install paradigm is the answer for memory infrastructure. The agent does the work. The user does the talking.

This also lets your install live as **one source of truth** — `agent-install.txt` is the canonical source. Update it once, every coding agent on the planet picks up the new version on the next install.

## Manual install (if you don't have an agent)

Skip to [Quickstart](/quickstart) for the conventional `pip install` + `mengram setup` flow.

## What gets installed

After a successful run:

* `mengram-ai` Python package (`pip --user`)
* `~/.mengram/config.json` with your API key (chmod 600)
* `$MENGRAM_API_KEY` exported in `~/.zshrc` (or `~/.bashrc`)
* `"mengram"` entry in your host's MCP config, pointing to `mengram server --cloud`
* 30 MCP tools available in your host: `recall`, `remember`, `search`, `timeline`, `reflect`, `dedup`, `get_graph`, and 23 more

## Verify

```bash theme={null}
mengram doctor
```

Final line is `OK: round-trip succeeded.` on success, or `FAIL: <reason>` with a fix.

## Troubleshooting

**Agent can't find the `mengram` command after install.**
The user's `pip --user` script directory isn't on PATH. Run `python3 -m site --user-base`; append `<that>/bin` to your shell profile.

**`Could not attach to MCP server mengram` in Claude Desktop.**
Check `~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp-server-mengram.log`. Most common cause: an old Python without `mcp` installed. Run `mengram doctor` — it pre-checks `import mcp` before the round-trip.

**`SSL: CERTIFICATE_VERIFY_FAILED`.**
You're on `mengram-ai` \< 2.25.3, which used the default urllib SSL context. Upgrade: `pip install --user --upgrade mengram-ai`.