⚡ Lightning-fast offline knowledge engine for developers.

Store commands, snippets, SQL queries, troubleshooting notes, and engineering knowledge in a local SQLite database with blazing-fast Full-Text Search.

Every developer builds a personal knowledge base over time.

Git commands.

Docker snippets.

SQL queries.

Terraform modules.

AWS CLI commands.

Kubernetes manifests.

Debugging notes.

Configuration snippets.

Unfortunately, that knowledge usually ends up scattered across multiple places:

• Markdown files
• Notion
• Obsidian
• Browser bookmarks
• GitHub Gists
• Terminal history
• Sticky notes

Finding something later often means opening multiple files and repeatedly pressing Ctrl + F.

kb replaces that workflow with a fast, offline knowledge engine powered by SQLite FTS5, giving you instant full-text search across everything you've saved.

No cloud. No subscriptions. Just your knowledge, indexed locally.

kb is designed to be a fast, keyboard-first knowledge engine that lives entirely on your machine.

• Python 3.10+
• SQLite (included with Python)
• fzf (optional but recommended for the interactive search interface)

pip install kb-cli

Verify the installation

kb --version

Example output

kb version 0.2.0

brew install fzf

sudo apt install fzf

bat provides syntax highlighted previews inside the interactive search interface.

brew install bat

sudo apt install bat

🚧 Homebrew support is planned for a future release.

Initialize your local knowledge database

kb init

Save your first snippet

kb add git "git status" \
    -t "Git Status" \
    --tags git,status

Search your knowledge

kb find git

Browse everything interactively

kb fzf

Launch the interactive shell

kb

View statistics

kb stats

You're ready to start building your personal offline knowledge base.

Save a useful Git command

kb add git \
"git rebase -i HEAD~3" \
-t "Interactive Rebase" \
--tags git,rebase

Search it later

kb find rebase

Store Docker Compose commands

kb add docker \
"docker compose up -d" \
-t "Start Containers" \
--tags docker,compose

Save frequently used SQL queries

kb add sql \
"SELECT * FROM users WHERE active = TRUE;" \
-t "Active Users" \
--tags postgres,sql

Save AWS commands

kb add aws \
"aws s3 sync ./dist s3://my-bucket" \
-t "Upload Build Artifacts"

Store kubectl commands

kb add kubernetes \
"kubectl logs deployment/api -f" \
-t "Follow Deployment Logs"

Save infrastructure commands

kb add terraform \
"terraform state list" \
-t "List Terraform Resources"

SQLite FTS5 searches titles, content and tags.

kb find terraform

kb find docker compose

kb find postgres

kb find eks

Launch the interactive fuzzy finder

kb fzf

Features include:

• Live fuzzy filtering
• Instant preview
• Clipboard copy
• Keyboard-first workflow
• tmux popup support
• Optional syntax-highlighted previews with bat

Launch the built-in REPL

kb

Example session

kb ❯ add
kb ❯ find docker
kb ❯ get 12
kb ❯ favorite 12
kb ❯ recent
kb ❯ stats
kb ❯ exit

The interactive shell supports:

• Persistent command history
• Tab completion
• Command aliases
• Colored prompt
• Keyboard-first workflow

Export everything as Markdown

kb export markdown notes.md

Export as JSON

kb export json knowledge.json

Import a Markdown document

kb import notes.md

Import a plain text file

kb import commands.txt

kb follows a simple layered architecture to keep the codebase modular, maintainable, and easy to extend.

                    User
                     │
                     ▼
              kb CLI Interface
                     │
                     ▼
          Command Layer (CLI Commands)
                     │
                     ▼
             Service / Business Logic
                     │
                     ▼
             Repository (SQLite)
                     │
                     ▼
           SQLite Database (FTS5)
                     │
                     ▼
              Local File System

kb-cli/
├── kb/
│   ├── commands/          # CLI commands
│   ├── repositories/      # SQLite queries
│   ├── services/          # Business logic
│   ├── models/            # Data models
│   ├── utils/             # Helpers & formatting
│   ├── shell.py           # Interactive shell
│   ├── shell_commands.py  # Interactive shell commands
│   ├── database.py
│   ├── config.py
│   └── cli.py
│
├── tests/
├── assets/
├── README.md
├── pyproject.toml
└── LICENSE

• SQLite FTS5 Full-Text Search
• Interactive Shell
• Interactive Fuzzy Search (fzf)
• Clipboard Support
• Rich Terminal Output
• Categories & Tags
• Favorites
• Import / Export
• Usage Statistics
• Shell Completion
• PyPI Package
• GitHub Actions CI

• Homebrew Installation
• Search Result Highlighting
• Rich Metadata Preview
• Multi-select in fzf
• YAML Import / Export
• Config Profiles

• Plugin System
• Encrypted Database
• Optional Cloud Sync
• Custom Themes
• AI-assisted Search

Contributions are welcome!

If you'd like to improve kb, follow these steps:

git clone https://github.com/Hrithik5/kb-cli.git

cd kb-cli

pip install -e .

ruff check .

pytest

Before opening a Pull Request, please ensure:

• Code is formatted
• Ruff passes without errors
• All tests pass
• New features include tests where appropriate

Bug reports, feature requests, and pull requests are always appreciated.

See the full project history in CHANGELOG.md.

This project is licensed under the MIT License.

See the LICENSE file for details.

If you find kb useful, consider giving the repository a ⭐ on GitHub.

It helps others discover the project and motivates future development.

Built for developers who believe great tools should be fast, local, and simple.