Upgrading

How to move to 0.10.x from an older install

Upgrading from any version

Re-run init with the latest package:

npx @gamaze/hicortex init

Your memories, config, daemon settings, and nightly schedule are preserved. Database schema migrations are applied automatically. The command runs quickly — it re-runs LLM detection and the daemon install, which takes under a minute.

For OpenClaw:

openclaw plugins install @gamaze/hicortex
openclaw gateway restart

Upgrading from 0.7.1 or earlier

0.10.0 includes two changes that affect existing installs.

1. License change

From 0.10.0, Hicortex is licensed under the PolyForm Noncommercial License 1.0.0 instead of MIT. Versions ≤ 0.7.1 published to npm remain MIT-licensed — the license change only applies to 0.10.0 and later.

In practice:

  • Personal and noncommercial use — free, no key needed, no feature limits.
  • Commercial use (for-profit business, client work, product that generates revenue) — requires a per-seat license. Contact hicortex.gamaze.com.

The PolyForm NC license text is at polyformproject.org/licenses/noncommercial/1.0.0.

2. Per-install auth token

Earlier versions used a shared default token (hctx-default-token). From 0.10.0, each install generates a unique token at init. Re-running init handles this automatically:

  • If your config already has a custom authToken, it is left unchanged.
  • If you were using the default token, a new unique token is generated and saved.

After upgrading, run hicortex status to see your token. If you have client machines connected, update their authToken in ~/.hicortex/config.json to match the server's new token.

3. CC SessionStart hook (new)

0.10.0 adds a Claude Code SessionStart hook that injects lessons at session start. On upgrade, init will ask once for permission to install the hook. You can skip this and add it manually later by re-running init.

4. What happens automatically

  • Database schema migrations run on daemon start — no manual steps.
  • Existing memories and links are preserved.
  • Config file is never modified by the upgrade (only new keys are added on fresh init).
  • The old POST /ingest endpoint continues to work — the new POST /distill endpoint is additive.

5. New since 0.7.1: two more agent harnesses

  • Hermes (Nous Research) — a recall-only plugin injects lessons and memory search into your Hermes agents, and the nightly job captures Hermes sessions automatically from each profile's state.db. Install the plugin, then run hermes memory setup hicortex and restart your gateway. See Installation.
  • OpenClaw — the plugin is now a thin client (no local database or LLM inside the gateway). It requires a running Hicortex server; capture happens via the nightly job reading OpenClaw's session files. See Installation.

Capture architecture change (0.9.0)

If you upgraded from 0.4.x–0.7.x client mode (which ran local LLM distillation before POSTing to the server), the 0.9.0+ client no longer needs a local LLM. The nightly job now denoises locally and POSTs to /distill — the server handles all LLM work.

Remove llmBackend, llmModel, and related keys from your client ~/.hicortex/config.json if you no longer want a local LLM. The server must be running 0.9.0+ to handle /distill requests.

Commercial licensing

If you are using Hicortex commercially and need a license key, contact us at hicortex.gamaze.com. Commercial license keys start with hctx- and are added to your config:

{
  "licenseKey": "hctx-<your-key>"
}

The key is validated at boot for display in hicortex status only — it does not enable or disable any features.

FAQ

What happens to my existing memories?

Nothing changes — all memories are preserved. Schema migrations are additive (new columns, new indexes).

Do I need to reconfigure my LLM?

No. Your existing LLM config is preserved. If you want to change it, re-run init and choose a new option from the list.

I was on the "Starter" free tier — what changes?

The 250-memory cap is gone. Your existing memories are preserved and the limit no longer applies.

I had a Pro or Team license key — does it still work?

Yes. License keys are still accepted in the config and displayed by hicortex status. Feature gates no longer exist, so the key only affects the status display.

Questions?

Reply to your license email or open an issue at github.com/gamaze-labs/hicortex.