Bug: 50-120+ CLAUDE.md files created per session causing repository pollution

[murillodutt]

Bug Description

During normal Claude Code sessions, the claude-mem plugin creates 50-120+ empty CLAUDE.md files throughout the project structure. This happens in virtually every directory that is accessed via Read, Glob, or Grep tools.

Environment

• Claude-mem Version: Latest (installed via plugin)
• Claude Code Version: Latest
• Bun Version: 1.3.6
• Operating System: macOS Darwin 25.2.0 (arm64)
• Platform: darwin

Steps to Reproduce

1. Start a Claude Code session with claude-mem plugin enabled
2. Work normally - read files, search code, make edits
3. After 30-60 minutes of work, run: find . -name "CLAUDE.md" -type f | wc -l
4. Observe 50-120+ files created

Evidence from Real Session (2026-01-22)

# Files found after single session:
$ find . -name "CLAUDE.md" -type f ! -path "*/node_modules/*" | wc -l
56

# Locations affected:
oracle/server/api/**/*.md (15+ files)
oracle/server/db/CLAUDE.md
.claude/*/CLAUDE.md (10+ files)
docs/project/*/CLAUDE.md (6+ files)
cellm-core/*/CLAUDE.md (12+ files)
tests/*/CLAUDE.md (4+ files)
.github/workflows/CLAUDE.md
.git/CLAUDE.md  # <- Critical: inside git internals!

File Content (All Identical)

Every generated file contains only:

<claude-mem-context>
# Recent Activity

<!-- This section is auto-generated by claude-mem. Edit content outside the tags. -->

*No recent activity*
</claude-mem-context>

Impact

Issue	Severity
Git status polluted with untracked files	Medium
Risk of accidentally committing temp files	Medium
Files created in .git/ directory break git operations	High
Confusion between legitimate vs auto-generated files	Medium
Disk space (minor: ~24KB/session)	Low

Current Workarounds

We've implemented these mitigations in our workflow:

1. .gitignore rules

**/CLAUDE.md
!/CLAUDE.md
!/cellm-core/templates/CLAUDE.md

2. Pre-commit cleanup script

for f in $(find . -name "CLAUDE.md" -type f \
  ! -path "./CLAUDE.md" \
  ! -path "./cellm-core/templates/CLAUDE.md" \
  ! -path "*/node_modules/*" 2>/dev/null); do
  if grep -q "claude-mem-context" "$f" 2>/dev/null; then
    rm -f "$f"
  fi
done

Expected Behavior

1. CLAUDE_MEM_FOLDER_CLAUDEMD_ENABLED=false should actually disable this feature
2. .git/ directory should NEVER have files created inside it
3. Option to specify allowlist/blocklist of directories
4. Auto-cleanup of empty/inactive files at session end

Related Issues

• Claude-mem creates empty CLAUDE.md files in all folders #758 - Claude-mem creates empty CLAUDE.md files in all folders
• Bug: CLAUDE_MEM_FOLDER_CLAUDEMD_ENABLED setting is not checked - folder CLAUDE.md files always generated #760 - CLAUDE_MEM_FOLDER_CLAUDEMD_ENABLED setting is not checked
• Bug: CLAUDE.md files created inside .git directory causing git pull failures #734 - CLAUDE.md files created inside .git directory
• Feature request: Add setting to disable folder CLAUDE.md auto-generation #767 - Feature request: Add setting to disable folder CLAUDE.md auto-generation
• Bug: Observation system creates CLAUDE.md files in project subdirectories and duplicate nested directories #641 - Observation system creates CLAUDE.md files in project subdirectories

Suggested Fix

Per issue #760, the fix should be straightforward:

// At start of updateFolderClaudeMdFiles() or call site
const settings = SettingsDefaultsManager.loadFromFile(SETTINGS_PATH);
const enabled = settings.CLAUDE_MEM_FOLDER_CLAUDEMD_ENABLED === 'true';
if (!enabled) return;

Additionally, add directory exclusion logic:

const EXCLUDED_DIRS = ['.git', 'node_modules', '.nuxt', '.output', 'dist', 'build'];
if (EXCLUDED_DIRS.some(dir => filePath.includes(`/${dir}/`))) return;

Documentation

We've created detailed analysis of this issue:

• Root cause analysis
• Impact assessment
• Workarounds implemented
• Verification commands

Happy to share if helpful for debugging.

[github-actions]

This GitHub issue highlights a bug in the claude-mem plugin for Claude Code, which leads to the unintended creation of 50-120+ empty CLAUDE.md files across various directories during a single session. These files, generated in directories accessed by tools such as Read, Glob, or Grep, contain boilerplate content and even appear in critical locations like .git/, potentially disrupting Git operations. The issue is accompanied by a detailed environment setup, reproduction steps, examples, a list of impacts (e.g., repository pollution, risk of accidental commits, and confusion between legitimate and auto-generated files), and workarounds such as enhanced .gitignore rules and pre-commit cleanup scripts. Suggested fixes include ensuring the CLAUDE_MEM_FOLDER_CLAUDEMD_ENABLED setting correctly disables file generation, preventing creation in excluded directories, and enabling configurable directory allowlists/blocklists. The issue references related reports (#758, #760, etc.) and provides

[cylnet]

Friend. You can alternativelly install my fork. I fixed it and more. Check my profile

[murillodutt]

@cylnet | Good job! Tks

[Glucksberg]

🔧 This issue may be resolved by PR #834

The fix replaces isProjectRoot() with isInsideGitRepo() that walks up parent directories. This prevents CLAUDE.md files from being created in any subdirectory of a git repository.

Main tracking issue: #793

[JobaDiniz]

This is very annoying, why do they create these CLAUDE.md files? are they needed?

Is this fixed?

[thedotmack]

Duplicate of #793. The mass CLAUDE.md creation is caused by isProjectRoot() not detecting subdirectories within git repos. Tracking the fix in #793.