Reference

Provider history support

Provider support means importing each provider's real local history format, not normalized adapter output.

ctx provider support is specific: for the normal supported provider version, the CLI automatically discovers an ordinary default native history source, imports it, and makes meaningful user and assistant content available through search, show, and durable citations. Repeating an unchanged import is stable and does not duplicate records.

Supported today

The current search CLI imports these native source formats:

Provider	Source format
Codex	`codex_session_jsonl_tree`, `codex_history_jsonl`
Grok Build	`grok_build_session_updates_jsonl_tree`
DeepSeek Harness	`deepseek_harness_session_jsonl_tree`
Pi	`pi_session_jsonl`
Claude Code	`claude_projects_jsonl_tree`
OpenCode	`opencode_sqlite`
Kilo Code	`kilo_sqlite`
Kiro CLI	`kiro_cli_sqlite`
Crush	`crush_sqlite`
Goose	`goose_sessions_sqlite`
Lingma	`lingma_sqlite`
Qoder	`qoder_transcript_jsonl_tree`
Warp	`warp_sqlite`
CodeBuddy	`codebuddy_history_json`
OpenClaw	`openclaw_session_jsonl_tree`
Hermes Agent	`hermes_state_sqlite`
NanoClaw	`nanoclaw_project`
AstrBot	`astrbot_data_v4_sqlite`
Shelley	`shelley_sqlite`
Continue	`continue_cli_sessions_json`
OpenHands	`openhands_file_events`
Antigravity	`antigravity_cli_transcript_jsonl_tree`
Gemini	`gemini_cli_chat_recording_jsonl`
Tabnine	`tabnine_cli_chat_recording_jsonl`
Cursor	`cursor_agent_transcript_jsonl_tree`
Zed	`zed_threads_sqlite`
Copilot CLI	`copilot_cli_session_events_jsonl`
Factory AI Droid	`factory_ai_droid_sessions_jsonl`
Qwen Code	`qwen_code_chat_jsonl_tree`
Kimi Code CLI	`kimi_code_cli_wire_jsonl_tree`
Auggie	`auggie_session_json`
Junie	`junie_session_events_jsonl_tree`
Firebender	`firebender_chat_history_sqlite`
ForgeCode	`forgecode_sqlite`
Deep Agents	`deepagents_sessions_sqlite`
Mistral Vibe	`mistral_vibe_session_jsonl_tree`
Mux	`mux_session_jsonl_tree`
Rovo Dev	`rovodev_session_json_tree`
Cline	`cline_task_directory_json`
Roo Code	`roo_task_directory_json`
MiMo Code	`mimocode_sqlite`

Kiro CLI support currently targets the ordinary SQLite history route. Its opt-in ACP/v3 early release uses a newer session format that remains a documented follow-up limitation and is not imported yet.

Use ctx sources for the truth on the current machine:

ctx sources
ctx sources --json

In JSON output, native_import: true means ctx has parser support for that provider format. importable: true means the current path exists, has supported data, and can be imported on this machine. Source status can be available, empty, unknown, missing, or unsupported.

CLI provider flags include codex, grok-build, deepseek-harness, pi, claude, opencode, kilo, kiro-cli, crush, goose, lingma, qoder, warp, codebuddy, openclaw, hermes, nanoclaw, astrbot, shelley, continue, openhands, antigravity, gemini, tabnine, cursor, zed, copilot-cli, factory-ai-droid, qwen-code, kimi-code-cli, auggie, junie, firebender, forgecode, deepagents, mistral-vibe, mux, rovodev, cline, roo, and mimocode. Structured output uses provider IDs in ctx output; multiword IDs may appear as snake case, such as copilot_cli or factory_ai_droid.

NanoClaw history is project-local and is discovered from the current workspace. Use --path only to target a different project root explicitly.

What support means

Installed hooks, opt-in exporters, and separately configured sinks do not qualify as provider history support because they cannot backfill ordinary existing history. Support does not mean ctx launches or installs the agent, or that every provider-specific field is normalized into the same shape.

Custom formats

For an agent history format ctx does not support natively, use a custom history plugin. A plugin is a local manifest identifying a durable provider-owned ctx-history-jsonl-v2 file. Register it with an explicit plugin import; ctx does not execute an exporter.

Import rules

Provider imports read provider-owned files without modifying them. Automatic indexing maintains native history through the daemon; default --refresh background search requests that maintenance while serving the published generation. In manual mode, background search does not start or wake a process. Use ctx import or ctx search --refresh wait for an explicit refresh. Imports remain safe to interrupt and re-run, conservative around unknown schemas, and clear about source citations.