OpenCompanyBrain

A local knowledge workspace for people and AI assistants.

Keep documents, source references, decisions and their revisions under your control. Connect compatible assistants through MCP. Choose a local model or an optional remote provider for tasks that need generation.

M12 — reviewed browser refresh, folder imports and verified local snapshots. The original wiki interface is the default application: its layout, navigation, views and workflows are reused alongside the new source and automation controls. See the feature matrix for verified boundaries and remaining work.

This is a functional alpha. The global roadmap sets out the remaining first-beta criteria, including the full application lifecycle, separate knowledge spaces and representative retrieval evaluation.

The real application with synthetic knowledge. The procedural brain, galaxy, atom and city views share the same published documents and Markdown links.

These are application screenshots, not generated illustrations. See the visual guide for navigation and the distinction between a declared workflow and observed execution.

Interface language is configurable in Settings → General: Italian is the default; English, French, German and Spanish are also available. This changes UI labels, not documents, source names or authored workflows. Public screenshots use the English interface with synthetic examples.

Settings and context retrieval

Configuration lives in ten thematic tabs in the original Settings page. Tool, after Memories in navigation, keeps operational actions and their results. Empty choices explain which source or connection is missing; retrieval agents without a dedicated provider use the current chat assistant when supported. See settings and delegation for permissions and effort limits.

Configured sources, models, Git policies, databases and monitoring checks have lists with Add and Edit controls in their dedicated Settings tab. Monitor editors show the options for heartbeat files, identified processes or log markers; their changes remain a draft until the existing plan and separate approval.

Existing item editors also offer confirmed, reversible removal. Removing a source or connection preserves original files, published knowledge, database contents and private credentials. Removed entries can be restored; sources, Git policies and schedules return inactive. A busy source or a model still referenced by a policy cannot be removed.

The database editor follows the selected driver. Test connection shows account-visible tables and columns within explicit discovery limits, then you select the columns Brain may read. New connections are read-only; optional writes require an explicit enable switch, permitted operations and separate column selection. Testing a connection or enabling its write controls grants no database privilege. Concurrent edits require reloading the connection.

Database passwords use a private internal vault. Optional AES-256-GCM encryption derives its key from a passphrase; the application does not persist that passphrase or key. Unlock applies to the running server's shared vault instance. A restart locks it again, and an independent MCP or CLI process remains locked. The default private-file mode uses operating-system permissions; disabling encryption explicitly returns to that mode.

With user management enabled, opening Settings and changing configuration require the current administrator's password confirmation, valid for five minutes and bound to that account and login. This does not enable user management or grant additional database-account permissions.

The header has one Search field. Its adjacent options icon opens a dialog for text or semantic/text retrieval, relevant knowledge pages or an AI answer, engine, model, authorized sources and context preloading. Submit Search to request an AI answer; changing options or reloading results does not generate another answer. Advanced actions retain the original edit-plan, confirmation and anomaly-report flow. Provider and model configuration belongs in Settings → Models and AI. Tool contains source actions, jobs, reviews, queries and separately approved operations. Duplicate configuration/status cards stay in Settings. Its operational data remains available without fetching protected configuration.

Search choices use a signed browser-session cookie. Settings → General stores installation defaults separately, behind the administrator confirmation boundary. The dialog can restore those defaults; a defaults change invalidates older browser choices. Search options neither grant source access or remote consent nor change MCP retrieval defaults. An unavailable or still-loading local semantic model leaves retrieval using text; selecting it does not download a model.

The same dialog reveals the existing AI choices when an AI answer is selected.

Sources use one Add button, a type selector and an explanation of the selected flow. The separate Updates section selects Local folder or Browser folder to refresh an existing managed copy, preserving preview, confirmation and recovery.

Alpha.20 Settings in the original English interface. The sole connection is synthetic; no connection paths, database account details or passwords are shown.

Related MCP server: studyproof

M12: refresh an existing source from a browser folder

In Settings → Sources → Updates → Browser folder, choose an existing managed source, select one folder and explicitly review how its paths are mapped. Keep the selected folder name, or use only its contents. The preview shows received and effective paths, source-filter exclusions and added/changed/removed/unchanged files before a separate replacement approval. Source identity, publication policy, permissions, calendars, curated knowledge and original-file history use the existing M10 lifecycle. Upload, approval and document processing remain separate. Recovery and temporary discard have their own approvals. See browser refresh and M12.

M11: import a browser-selected folder with its hierarchy

In Settings → Sources → Add source → Browser Folder, deliberately select one folder. The preview retains the top folder and each relative path, so two files called readme.md in different subfolders remain separate. Review names, sizes, hashes and destination, then separately approve the new managed source.

Directory and flat-file uploads share private staging limits, expiry and deliberate discard. Empty directories are not transmitted. A supported browser directory picker is required; existing flat-file uploads and server-side folder copies remain available. No source refresh, archive extraction, model or worker starts from this control. See folder uploads and M11.

M10: refresh an imported source without losing its identity

Select an existing managed source and a new server-accessible folder in Settings → Sources → Updates → Local folder. Review the complete inventory and added/changed/removed/unchanged paths, then approve the replacement separately. Source identity, permissions, calendars and publication policy remain. Curated Markdown keeps its normal protection; removed originals do not silently delete derived documents.

Verified staging, a source-specific transition fence and exact recovery protect interrupted work. Superseded originals remain in a bounded owned history, included with current originals in version-4 coherent backups. Preview preserves existing profiles; the first approved refresh enables a version fence and requires stopping older readers. No model, worker or automatic refresh starts. See refresh and M10.

M9: upload selected files with a separate approval

Select flat files in Settings → Sources → Add source → Browser Files. Receipt copies their bytes into private temporary storage, then displays the exact inventory for a separate approval. Approved uploads become the same verified local snapshots as M8. Existing folder mappings and publication policies remain available.

Status, expiry, revision checks and explicit discard support interrupted work. Discarding temporary files preserves a source already registered. New controls use the existing five-language shell; no model, worker or external destination starts from uploading. Read browser uploads and M9 for storage limits, server buffering and the exact acceptance boundary.

M8: choose a mapped folder or a managed local copy

Keep working with an external folder through the existing mapping, or preview and explicitly import a snapshot into the Brain's private local archive. The preview shows the selected files, sizes and hashes before copying. Imported knowledge continues to work when the external original is disconnected; its source uses the existing reviewed or automatic publication policy and M7 permissions.

Managed originals are included in coherent backups and relocated with their source identities when restored to another home. Existing mapped folders keep their previous behavior and need their own original-file backup. Copying neither starts a model nor grants remote consent. Stop older processes before the first approved import: managed homes use a version fence so older backup readers cannot silently omit their originals. See managed imports and M8.

M7: local source permissions and scoped assistants

Optionally assign readable sources and database connections to the existing users. Administrators retain workspace control; editors and readers consult their assigned resources without operational write rights. An empty assignment exposes no data. Create separately revocable, expiring MCP credentials with finite allowlists; each request and continuation checks current authority before retrieval and before its response is returned. Restricted retrieval cannot invoke a model or reranker.

Source permissions are off by default. Explicit activation uses a reviewed plan, invalidates previous sessions and suspends the old global API token. The original Settings page, five languages, knowledge views, animations, report colors and M2–M6 functions remain the baseline. Administrators can use a short-lived scoped handoff for their explicitly authorized model requests; a scoped assistant gains no model, Git, monitoring or deployment rights from that handoff.

This remains one local workspace on a trusted operating-system account. Read source permissions and credentials before activation, older-version changes or restore. It does not provide tenant hosting, HTTP OAuth or OS isolation.

M6: source calendars and recoverable work

Choose an interval or an explicit five-field calendar for each registered source. Preview local and UTC occurrences before applying a revision-bound plan. IANA time zones, skipped spring hours, repeated autumn hours and bounded missed-run policies are explicit; a stopped worker cannot create an unlimited catch-up backlog. Queue and schedule cursors commit together, and known temporary lease-renewal errors receive bounded retries while expired or replaced claims remain invalid.

The calendar panel extends the original Brain page in all five interface languages. Existing intervals, source publication policies, drawing views, severity colors and animated workflows remain. Configuration starts no new service and grants no new model, telemetry or deployment permission. See M6 acceptance and calendars and worker limits.

M5: signed deployment with governed rollout and verified recovery

Publish explicitly signed artifacts, preview a revision-bound plan and approve a pilot group before approving the remaining devices. Separately configured agents pull work over authenticated HTTPS; locally authorized launchers verify the exact running version and application health. Failed upgrades can restart and verify the previous trusted version. Durable receipts distinguish delivery, adoption, recovery and uncertain outcomes.

Deployment is optional and disabled by default. Installation starts no service, opens no incoming device port and grants no deployment rights to telemetry or MCP retrieval. The new controls reuse the original Brain page and all five interface languages. See M5 acceptance, signatures, agents and backup boundaries.

M4: optional local monitoring and persistent incidents

Monitor explicitly configured heartbeat files, one identified process or bounded log-marker counters. Run the passive agent in the foreground only when needed; installation starts no monitor or sender. Offline queues retain stable identities, survive core backup/restore and quarantine revoked checks before delivery.

The original Issues page adds persistent incident states, notes, revision checks, verification evidence and recurrence. Existing report feeds and dynamic colours remain available. Agent settings use a preview and explicit application in the original Brain page, without starting an agent. The process adapter is an optional extra; file checks work with the base installation. See M4 acceptance, monitoring, incidents and SDK/receiver operations.

M3: graph choices, governed Git and retrieval decisions

Choose built-in Python analysis, NetworkX or rustworkx. Optional engines have a reviewed catalogue, explicit plans and private dependency environments. Graph queries preserve source scope, revision evidence and incomplete/unknown states; the original dependency views retain their labelled legacy alias correction.

Git is optional and disabled for writes by default. A mapped repository can use its current branch, main or a dedicated review branch. Commit, remote fetch for review and push are separate durable plans; they never stage unrelated work. The document revision remains independent from a pending Git operation.

Optional local rules or a separately running Rizzo Flow service can reorder ambiguous candidates. Known files and continuations stay direct; abstention keeps the original results. Jev live access is unavailable. The reproducible synthetic comparison distinguishes actual measurements, unavailable models and simulated contract replay. See M3 acceptance, graphs, Git policies and decision engines.

M2: documents, media and assistants

M2 adds page/slide/sheet/time evidence, bounded local conversion workers, optional OCR/transcription, sampled video frames and explicitly authorized vision providers. Managed Codex/Claude setup provides preview, revision checks and restoration; selective low-effort retrieval leaves the main assistant's effort unchanged. HTTP providers can choose Chat Completions or Responses. See M2 acceptance, media, client setup and LLM adapters for exact limits and verification. Optional models and executables are never silently downloaded. The original interface and dynamic report views remain the application baseline.

Quick start

Use Python 3.11 or newer and a virtual environment. The M2 verification record separates the local installed tests, native tool/model checks and Windows/macOS/Linux CI on Python 3.11/3.13. Three additional media jobs exercise actual decoded video frames; source-database CI uses disposable PostgreSQL 17, MariaDB 11.4 and Firebird 5. Optional OCR, speech models and subscription clients have separate requirements. The extraction deadline correction is retained. Alpha.6 also corrects a macOS observer-counting test; the alpha.4 and alpha.5 releases remain withheld. See the verification record and releases for exact revisions, results and installable packages. From this checkout:

python -m venv .venv
# Activate .venv using the command for your shell.
python -m pip install -e .
python -m opencompanybrain --home ./brain-data plan
python -m opencompanybrain --home ./brain-data init
python -m opencompanybrain --home ./brain-data doctor
python -m opencompanybrain --home ./brain-data demo
python -m opencompanybrain --home ./brain-data serve

Open http://127.0.0.1:8877. The demo uses synthetic material. Choose a data directory outside the checkout for a lasting installation. A model account or API key should not be needed to inspect the local workspace and try the demo.

The home page opens the original dark knowledge universe. Switch between Brain, Galaxy, Atom and City; click a document light to focus, double-click to read, use the wheel to zoom and drag to rotate. The original sidebar, search, directional map, code tree, question pages, model selection, preferences and optional user roles remain in the same interface. Open Brain (/brain, also /workspace) for source, review, job, database and event controls. Document pages retain full Markdown and animated workflow bands or lanes.

For a richer separate demo home, use demo --gallery instead of demo: it creates 12 example sources, 96 published documents, 288 real links and 12 declared workflows. It also enables isolated synthetic error/warning/data reports. Their changing states drive the colors of document lights, map areas and code-tree branches. The gallery makes no model calls and does not import personal documents or configuration.

For AI-assisted installation, start with AGENTS.md, project-manifest.json and the installation guide. Run the installed CLI's --help before configuring additional commands.

What the project is for

• Map explicitly selected sources rather than uploading a computer's contents.

• Keep source provenance and distinguish extracted, generated and curated knowledge.

• Prepare document changes with review, or publish validated changes automatically according to each source's policy.

• Retrieve a bounded, attributable context package through MCP.

• Add conversion, graph and operational integrations as optional components.

Some integrations remain experimental or planned. See the feature matrix for the implementation status and roadmap for the wider scope.

Local by choice

The application and its data directory run on your machine. Selecting a cloud model or remote database makes the relevant transfer an explicit configuration decision. Local installation alone does not make a remote model private or offline. See security and configuration.

Documentation

• Install and verify

• Original visual views and document workflows

• Original interface and compatibility boundaries

• Retrieval and automation optimizations

• Settings and context delegation

• Configuration and data

• Local source permissions and assistant credentials

• Reviewed refresh and snapshot history

• Optional database sources

• Local document and media extraction

• Optional telemetry and deployment

• Signed releases, rollout and rollback

• Source calendars and recoverable work

• Connect an assistant through MCP

• Source and document lifecycle

• CLI reference

• Feature status

• Verification record

• Publication gate

• Roadmap

• Guida in italiano

• Contribute · Changes · MIT license

Screenshots are generated from synthetic demo data. A screenshot demonstrates a particular view, not completion of every roadmap item.