File-backed / editor paradigms
15 systems in the file-backed / editor paradigms category of the AI Agent Infrastructure Landscape, grouped by maturity tier.
Tier 1 — battle-tested (5)
- AGENTS.md Cross-tool open standard
Open Markdown 'README for agents' at repo root; nested files in subprojects take precedence (closest wins). Holds build/test commands, conventions and PR rules. Stewarded by the Agentic AI Foundation (Linux Foundation); supported by Code…
- CLAUDE.md Git-backed persistent instructions
CLAUDE.md files (managed, user, project, local scopes) concatenated into context at session start, with @imports and path-scoped .claude/rules/; complemented by Claude-written auto memory (MEMORY.md index). Project-root file re-injected …
- Cursor Rules IDE-embedded code memory
Persistent instructions injected at start of model context: Project Rules (.mdc files in .cursor/rules, scoped Always/Auto Attached/Agent Requested/Manual), global User Rules, and AGENTS.md; legacy .cursorrules deprecated. Codebase index…
- GitHub Copilot custom instructions .github/copilot-instructions.md + path-scoped
.github/copilot-instructions.md (repo-wide) plus .github/instructions/*.instructions.md path-scoped via applyTo glob (optional excludeAgent); Copilot agents also honor AGENTS.md (nearest in tree) or a root CLAUDE.md/GEMINI.md.
- Windsurf Rules & Memories (now Devin Desktop) Codebase semantic + auto-memory
Now Devin Desktop (ex-Windsurf). Rules: global_rules.md (6K chars) plus workspace rules in .devin/rules/ (fallback .windsurf/rules/, 12K chars each) and AGENTS.md via the same engine. Cascade auto-memories stored in ~/.codeium/windsurf/m…
Tier 2 — production-ready (8)
- Aider CONVENTIONS.md / .aider.conf.yml Multi-file convention pattern
CONVENTIONS.md (any name, loaded via --read or read: in config); .aider.conf.yml (home / git-root / cwd, last wins); .aiderignore (gitignore-syntax).
- Cline .clinerules Version-controlled, AI-editable rules
Markdown rule files in a workspace .clinerules/ (or .cline/rules/) directory plus global rules in ~/Documents/Cline/Rules; workspace wins on conflict. Per-rule toggles, conditional rules via YAML 'paths' globs, and AGENTS.md / .cursorrul…
- Cline Memory Bank Session-spanning state pattern
memory-bank/ directory of Markdown: projectBrief.md , productContext.md , activeContext.md , systemPatterns.md , techContext.md , progress.md . Loaded in full at start of every task. Compensates for context-window reset between sessions.
- Continue.dev .continue/rules Path-glob-scoped rules
.continue/rules/*.md at workspace root, loaded lexicographically; YAML frontmatter name, globs, regex, description, alwaysApply. Continue was acquired by Cursor in June 2026 and the extension is no longer maintained.
- Replit replit.md Project-level Replit Agent context
replit.md at project root. Persists project overview, tech stack, architectural decisions, deployment process, external resources. Scoped to Agent conversations only.
- Roo Code .roorules Per-mode rules + workspace overrides
Discontinued: Roo Code (VS Code agent) used .roorules / .roo/rules files as persistent project instructions; the extension shut down on 2026-05-15 and its repo is archived.
- Sourcegraph Cody — cody.json Custom command templates
Cody Free, Pro and Enterprise Starter were discontinued 2025-07-23 (Amp offered as replacement); only Cody Enterprise continues. .vscode/cody.json (workspace-scoped). JSON defining slash-commands with prompt text, context options ( curre…
- Zed .rules Reads competitors as fallback
Zed reads one project instruction file (first match of .rules, .cursorrules, AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, GEMINI.md and similar) into agent context. Since v1.4.0 the on-demand Rules Library has been replaced by Skills, and old rules migrate to …
Tier 3 — emerging (2)
- Basic Memory Framework
Local-first MCP memory where each memory is a Markdown note with observations and wikilink relations that form a traversable knowledge graph, indexed with SQLite (optional Postgres vectors), plus an optional hosted cloud. widely used MCP…
- OpenClaw memory Framework
Memory system of the viral OpenClaw personal agent: plain Markdown files (USER.md, MEMORY.md, daily memory/YYYY-MM-DD.md notes, DREAMS.md) with memory_search/memory_get tools, automatic pre-compaction flush and a 'dreaming' sweep that di…