migrating-memory

Migrating Memory

This skill helps migrate memory blocks from an existing agent to a new agent, similar to macOS Migration Assistant for AI agents.

Requires Memory Filesystem (memfs)

This workflow is memfs-first. If memfs is enabled, do not use the legacy block commands — they can conflict with file-based edits.

To check: Look for a memory_filesystem block in your system prompt. If it shows a tree structure starting with /memory/ including a system/ directory, memfs is enabled.

To enable: Ask the user to run /memfs enable, then reload the CLI.

When to Use This Skill

• User is setting up a new agent that should inherit memory from an existing one
• User wants to share memory blocks across multiple agents
• User is replacing an old agent with a new one
• User mentions they have an existing agent with useful memory

Migration Method (memfs-first)

Export → Copy → Sync

This is the recommended flow:

1. Export the source agent's memfs to a temp directory

   letta memfs export --agent <source-agent-id> --out /tmp/letta-memfs-<source-agent-id>
   

2. Copy the files you want into your own memfs

   • system/ = attached blocks (always loaded)
   • root = detached blocks

   Example:

   cp -r /tmp/letta-memfs-agent-abc123/system/project ~/.letta/agents/$LETTA_AGENT_ID/memory/system/
   cp /tmp/letta-memfs-agent-abc123/notes.md ~/.letta/agents/$LETTA_AGENT_ID/memory/
   

3. Sync to API

   letta memfs sync --agent $LETTA_AGENT_ID
   

This gives you full control over what you bring across and keeps everything consistent with memfs.

Legacy Fallback (only if memfs is disabled)

If memfs is not enabled, you can use block-level commands:

• letta blocks list
• letta blocks copy
• letta blocks attach

⚠️ Do not use these if memfs is enabled — they can diverge from file-based edits.

Handling Duplicate Label Errors

You cannot have two blocks with the same label. If you try to copy/attach a block and you already have one with that label, you'll get a duplicate key value violates unique constraint error.

Solutions:

1. Use --label (copy only): Rename the block when copying:

   letta blocks copy --block-id <id> --label project-imported
   

2. Use --override (copy or attach): Automatically detach your existing block first:

   letta blocks copy --block-id <id> --override
   letta blocks attach --block-id <id> --override
   

   If the operation fails, the original block is automatically reattached.

3. Manual detach first: Use the memory tool to detach your existing block:

   memory(agent_state, "delete", path="/memories/<label>")
   

   Then run the copy/attach script.

Note: letta blocks attach does NOT support --label because attached blocks keep their original label (they're shared, not copied).

Workflow

Step 1: Identify Source Agent

Ask the user for the source agent's ID (e.g., agent-abc123).

If they don't know the ID, invoke the finding-agents skill to search:

Skill({ skill: "finding-agents" })

Example: "What's the ID of the agent you want to migrate memory from?"

Example: Migrating Project Memory

Scenario: You're a new agent and want to inherit memory from an existing agent "ProjectX-v1".

1. Get source agent ID from user: User provides: agent-abc123

2. Export their memfs:

   letta memfs export --agent agent-abc123 --out /tmp/letta-memfs-agent-abc123
   

3. Copy the relevant files into your memfs:

   cp -r /tmp/letta-memfs-agent-abc123/system/project ~/.letta/agents/$LETTA_AGENT_ID/memory/system/
   

4. Sync:

   letta memfs sync --agent $LETTA_AGENT_ID