[BUG] Sync Doesn't Respect the "--project" flag

[johnlindquist]

Bug Description

bm --project="script-generator-issues" sync

Syncing project: main
Project path: /Users/johnlindquist/basic-memory
Project 'main': Everything up to date

This should sync the "script-generator-issues" project.

[phernandez]

This is a bug. I think the real issue is that the sync runs across all projects now. This should be made clear in the tool output.

[phernandez]

@claude the sync runs across all projects. I believe the --project flag has been removed from the main app. Is there more we need to do for this issue?

[claude]

Claude finished @phernandez's task —— View job

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Analyzing the --project flag status...

Todo List:

• Search for sync command implementation
• Check if --project flag is still defined in CLI
• Look for documentation references to --project flag
• Verify tests and find if flag was removed or changed

Findings

After investigating the codebase, I can confirm that:

1. The --project flag has been removed from the main CLI app - there is no global --project flag defined in the main CLI callback in /src/basic_memory/cli/app.py

2. The sync command doesn't have a --project parameter - Looking at /src/basic_memory/cli/commands/sync.py, the sync command only accepts a --verbose flag, not a --project flag

3. Sync now uses the default project from config - The sync command calls get_project_config() which returns the default project from the configuration file

4. Individual tool commands still support --project - Commands under basic-memory tool (like write-note, read-note, etc.) still accept --project as a parameter

5. The config has an update_current_project function that mentions the flag - There's a function at line 338 of config.py that says "This is used by the CLI when --project flag is specified" but this appears to be outdated documentation since the flag no longer exists

What needs to be done

To fully address this issue, we should:

1. Remove the outdated comment in /src/basic_memory/config.py line 341 that mentions the --project flag
2. Remove the unused update_current_project function if it's no longer being called anywhere
3. Update documentation - The README and other docs that mention using --project with commands other than MCP server or tool commands should be updated
4. Consider if the flag should be restored - If users need to sync specific projects, we might want to add the --project flag back to the sync command

The sync command now always syncs the default project configured in the system. Users can change the default project using basic-memory project default <name> but cannot specify a project for a single sync run anymore.

[phernandez]

@claude make a PR with the required fixes

[claude]

Claude finished @phernandez's task —— View job • claude/issue-229-20250926-1515 • Create PR ➔

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Fixing --project flag references ✅

Todo List:

• Search for all uses of update_current_project function
• Remove outdated comment about --project flag in config.py
• Remove unused update_current_project function if not used
• Check for documentation references to --project with sync
• Run linting and type checking (skipped - no approval for make/ruff commands)
• Commit and push changes
• Provide PR creation link

Summary:
Successfully removed the obsolete update_current_project function and its outdated comment about the --project flag from config.py. The function was never called anywhere in the codebase, confirming it was safe to remove.

The --project flag was intentionally removed from the sync command as mentioned in the issue comments. The sync command now only operates on the default project configured in the system.

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Branch: claude/issue-229-20250926-1515
Job run: https://github.com/basicmachines-co/basic-memory/actions/runs/18041163399