Install Context Vault

Context Vault is an opinionated workspace made from ordinary Markdown, folders, Git, and agent instructions. It installs into a location you control and keeps its public upgrade state separate from your personal notes.

The installer uses sudo for command installation, but writes the vault and bootstrap state as the user who invoked it. Read the script in the public repository before running it if you want to understand every change.

Install

Run the installer from any terminal directory:

tmp="$(mktemp)" && curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/MDerman/the-context-vault-template/main/install.sh -o "$tmp" && sudo bash "$tmp" && rm -f "$tmp"

To choose the destination, pass it as the final argument:

tmp="$(mktemp)" && curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/MDerman/the-context-vault-template/main/install.sh -o "$tmp" && sudo bash "$tmp" "~/Documents/Obsidian/vault" && rm -f "$tmp"

The setup installs the vault command, creates starter context folders, builds agent skill discovery links, and configures personal Git state outside the vault.

Check an upgrade

Preview changes before applying them:

vault upgrade --dry-run

Apply the reviewed upgrade:

vault upgrade --apply

If something looks wrong, inspect the current state and generate repair context:

vault upgrade status
vault upgrade doctor
vault upgrade repair-prompt

Upgrade reports are written under _system/state/upgrade-reports/. Failed upgrades keep the previous installed version recorded, so repair work can see both the starting point and the attempted target.

Understand the main folders

• Your context folders contain the tasks, projects, notes, and reference material you own.
• _system/ contains bootstrap behavior, templates, skills, documentation, and managed system files.
• _system/state/ contains ignored local state, backups, reports, and the export manifest.

The complete implementation and bootstrap internals live in the Context Vault repository.