fix(mcp): serialize local SQLite writes to end "database is locked" under concurrent stores

Under heavy concurrent memory_store (many subagents/sessions writing close
together) the local SQLite layer raced on the single SQLite writer and surfaced
sqlite3.OperationalError: database is locked, which made memory tools slow and
eventually dropped whole sessions. Two root causes:

  - The MCP server (mcp_server.py) and the background SyncEngine (sync.py) each
    opened a SEPARATE connection to the same SQLite file. WAL allows one writer;
    when the sync writer held the lock across a resync, a concurrent store blew
    past busy_timeout and raised "database is locked".
  - mcp_server's connection was opened WITHOUT check_same_thread=False, so the
    moment two requests were handled on different threads every local store/recall
    raised ProgrammingError "SQLite objects created in a thread...".

Fix: a single process-wide serialized writer.

  - New LocalStore (local_store.py) owns ONE connection (check_same_thread=False)
    guarded by ONE re-entrant lock, keeps WAL, and wraps writes in
    transaction()/write() with bounded exponential-backoff retry on the rare
    residual lock (e.g. another OS process) instead of failing the call.
  - MemoryServer builds the LocalStore and SHARES it with the SyncEngine, so the
    sync writer no longer opens a second connection — the two-connections race is
    eliminated. All server reads/writes go through the shared lock; stores stay
    snappy (enqueue-local + async sync).
  - Bound the one genuinely slow path (remote semantic memory_recall) with an
    explicit RECALL_TIMEOUT and, on timeout/unreachable backend, return a clear
    "working / retry" signal instead of hanging silently or crashing. When a
    client supplies _meta.progressToken, emit one notifications/progress so the
    call shows life.

Ships to users via the plugin (mcp/memory-mcp.json runs src/.../mcp_server.py);
no server-side/API change needed. TDD: added concurrency tests (many threads +
sync writer on one file) and recall progress/bounding tests; full gate green
(ruff + mypy strict + 185 pytest).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>

.github/workflows/build.yml

@@ -70,6 +70,7 @@ jobs:
       - uses: docker/build-push-action@v7
         with:
           context: .
+          file: docker/Dockerfile
           push: true
           platforms: linux/amd64
           # Single-manifest images (no provenance/SBOM attestation children) so

.gitignore

@@ -48,3 +48,9 @@ docker/pgdata/
 # Beads / Dolt files (added by bd init)
 .dolt/
 .beads-credential-key
+
+# Agent git worktrees (standing policy: never the shared checkout)
+.worktrees/
+
+# uv lockfile — CI runs `uv sync` itself; not tracked
+uv.lock

src/claude_memory/local_store.py

@@ -0,0 +1,116 @@
+"""Single, process-wide serialized SQLite writer for the local memory cache.
+
+SQLite permits only one writer at a time. The MCP server's store path and the
+background sync engine used to open *separate* connections to the *same* file;
+under heavy concurrent ``memory_store`` calls those two writers fought over the
+single SQLite write lock, blew past ``busy_timeout``, and surfaced
+``sqlite3.OperationalError: database is locked`` — which made the tool slow and
+eventually dropped the session.
+
+``LocalStore`` fixes this structurally: it owns ONE connection (opened with
+``check_same_thread=False``) guarded by ONE re-entrant lock. Every component that
+needs to touch the local DB shares the same ``LocalStore`` instance, so all
+writes serialize cleanly through the in-process lock and queue instead of racing
+the SQLite writer. On the rare residual lock (e.g. another OS process touching
+the file), writes retry with bounded exponential backoff rather than failing the
+caller. WAL stays on for concurrent reads.
+
+Uses only stdlib — no pip install required.
+"""
+
+import logging
+import sqlite3
+import threading
+import time
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Any, Callable, TypeVar
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+T = TypeVar("T")
+
+# Bounded retry window for the rare residual "database is locked" — handles a
+# lock held by a *different OS process* (the in-process lock already serializes
+# this process's own writers). Total worst-case wait ≈ 0.05+0.1+0.2+0.4+0.8 ≈ 1.55s.
+_MAX_RETRIES = 5
+_BASE_BACKOFF_S = 0.05
+_BUSY_TIMEOUT_MS = 30000
+
+
+def _is_locked_error(exc: sqlite3.OperationalError) -> bool:
+    msg = str(exc).lower()
+    return "database is locked" in msg or "database is busy" in msg
+
+
+class LocalStore:
+    """Owns the single shared SQLite connection + lock for local memory writes."""
+
+    def __init__(self, conn: sqlite3.Connection) -> None:
+        self.conn = conn
+        # Re-entrant so a transaction callback may itself call ``execute``/``write``
+        # without dead-locking on the same thread.
+        self.lock = threading.RLock()
+
+    # ── construction ────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+    @classmethod
+    def open(cls, db_path: str) -> "LocalStore":
+        """Open (creating parent dirs) a WAL connection safe for cross-thread use."""
+        Path(db_path).parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+        conn = sqlite3.connect(db_path, timeout=30.0, check_same_thread=False)
+        conn.row_factory = sqlite3.Row
+        conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
+        conn.execute(f"PRAGMA busy_timeout={_BUSY_TIMEOUT_MS}")
+        return cls(conn)
+
+    # ── serialized access ───────────────────────────────────────────
+
+    def transaction(self, fn: Callable[[sqlite3.Connection], T]) -> T:
+        """Run ``fn(conn)`` holding the shared lock, with bounded retry on lock errors.
+
+        ``fn`` is responsible for issuing its own ``COMMIT`` (call ``conn.commit()``)
+        when it performs writes. The whole callback runs under the process-wide lock,
+        so concurrent callers queue rather than collide on the SQLite writer.
+        """
+        last_exc: sqlite3.OperationalError | None = None
+        for attempt in range(_MAX_RETRIES):
+            with self.lock:
+                try:
+                    return fn(self.conn)
+                except sqlite3.OperationalError as exc:
+                    if not _is_locked_error(exc):
+                        raise
+                    last_exc = exc
+                    # Roll back any partial txn so the retry starts clean and the
+                    # connection isn't left mid-transaction holding locks.
+                    try:
+                        self.conn.rollback()
+                    except sqlite3.Error:
+                        pass
+            # Back off *outside* the lock so other writers can make progress.
+            backoff = _BASE_BACKOFF_S * (2 ** attempt)
+            logger.warning(
+                "SQLite locked (attempt %d/%d) — backing off %.3fs", attempt + 1, _MAX_RETRIES, backoff
+            )
+            time.sleep(backoff)
+        assert last_exc is not None
+        raise last_exc
+
+    def execute(self, sql: str, params: tuple[Any, ...] = ()) -> sqlite3.Cursor:
+        """Run a single read query under the shared lock (no implicit commit)."""
+        with self.lock:
+            return self.conn.execute(sql, params)
+
+    def write(self, sql: str, params: tuple[Any, ...] = ()) -> sqlite3.Cursor:
+        """Run a single write statement + commit, serialized and retry-guarded."""
+
+        def _do(conn: sqlite3.Connection) -> sqlite3.Cursor:
+            cur = conn.execute(sql, params)
+            conn.commit()
+            return cur
+
+        return self.transaction(_do)
+
+    def close(self) -> None:
+        with self.lock:
+            self.conn.close()

src/claude_memory/mcp_server.py

@@ -17,7 +17,10 @@ import sqlite3
 import sys
 import urllib.error
 import urllib.request
-from typing import Any
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, Any, Callable
+
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    from claude_memory.local_store import LocalStore
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
@@ -35,9 +38,17 @@ HYBRID_MODE = bool(API_KEY) and not SYNC_DISABLED
 HTTP_ONLY = bool(API_KEY) and SYNC_DISABLED
 SQLITE_ONLY = not API_KEY
 
+# Default per-request HTTP timeout, and a wider bound for the one genuinely slow path:
+# a remote semantic ``memory_recall`` (embedding/search can be slow to warm up). Both are
+# explicit upper bounds so a call can never hang the MCP server indefinitely.
+DEFAULT_API_TIMEOUT = 15
+RECALL_TIMEOUT = int(os.environ.get("MEMORY_RECALL_TIMEOUT", "30"))
 
-def _api_request(method: str, path: str, body: dict[str, Any] | None = None) -> dict[str, Any]:
-    """Make an HTTP request to the memory API."""
+
+def _api_request(
+    method: str, path: str, body: dict[str, Any] | None = None, timeout: int = DEFAULT_API_TIMEOUT
+) -> dict[str, Any]:
+    """Make an HTTP request to the memory API (bounded by ``timeout`` seconds)."""
     url = f"{API_BASE_URL}{path}"
     data = json.dumps(body).encode() if body else None
     req = urllib.request.Request(
@@ -50,7 +61,7 @@ def _api_request(method: str, path: str, body: dict[str, Any] | None = None) ->
         },
     )
     try:
-        with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=15) as resp:
+        with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=timeout) as resp:
             result: dict[str, Any] = json.loads(resp.read().decode())
             return result
     except urllib.error.HTTPError as e:
@@ -128,7 +139,9 @@ def _init_sqlite(db_path: str | None = None) -> tuple[sqlite3.Connection, str]:
     db_path = _get_db_path(db_path)
     Path(os.path.dirname(db_path)).mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
 
-    conn = sqlite3.connect(db_path, timeout=30.0)
+    # check_same_thread=False: the MCP server may handle requests on different
+    # threads and shares this one connection via LocalStore's lock (see local_store.py).
+    conn = sqlite3.connect(db_path, timeout=30.0, check_same_thread=False)
     conn.row_factory = sqlite3.Row
     conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
     conn.execute("PRAGMA busy_timeout=30000")
@@ -390,19 +403,30 @@ class MemoryServer:
 
     def __init__(self, sqlite_db_path: str | None = None) -> None:
         self.sqlite_conn: sqlite3.Connection | None = None
+        self.store: "LocalStore | None" = None  # single serialized writer (see local_store.py)
         self.sync_engine: Any = None
+        # Sink for MCP notifications (e.g. progress). Defaults to writing a JSON-RPC
+        # notification line to stdout; overridable in tests.
+        self._notify: Callable[[str, dict[str, Any]], None] = self._emit_notification
 
         if SQLITE_ONLY or HYBRID_MODE:
-            self.sqlite_conn, resolved_path = _init_sqlite(sqlite_db_path)
+            conn, resolved_path = _init_sqlite(sqlite_db_path)
+            from claude_memory.local_store import LocalStore
+            self.store = LocalStore(conn)
+            self.sqlite_conn = conn
 
             if HYBRID_MODE:
                 from claude_memory.sync import SyncEngine
                 sync_interval = int(os.environ.get("MEMORY_SYNC_INTERVAL", "60"))
+                # Share the SAME LocalStore (one connection, one lock) so the background
+                # sync writer never opens a second connection to the file and never races
+                # the store path on the single SQLite writer.
                 self.sync_engine = SyncEngine(
                     db_path=resolved_path,
                     api_base_url=API_BASE_URL,
                     api_key=API_KEY,
                     sync_interval=sync_interval,
+                    store=self.store,
                 )
                 self.sync_engine.start()
 
@@ -455,31 +479,59 @@ class MemoryServer:
         limit = args.get("limit", 10)
 
         if HTTP_ONLY:
-            result = _api_request("POST", "/api/memories/recall", {
-                "context": context,
-                "expanded_query": expanded_query,
-                "category": category,
-                "sort_by": sort_by,
-                "limit": limit,
-            })
-            rows = result.get("memories", [])
-            if not rows:
-                filter_desc = f" in category '{category}'" if category else ""
-                return f"No memories found matching: {context}{filter_desc}"
-
-            sort_desc = "by relevance" if sort_by == "relevance" else "by importance"
-            filter_desc = f" in '{category}'" if category else ""
-            results = []
-            for row in rows:
-                results.append(
-                    f"#{row['id']} [{row['category']}] (importance: {row['importance']:.1f}) {row['content']}"
-                    f"\n  Tags: {row.get('tags') or 'none'} | Stored: {row['created_at']}"
-                )
-            return f"Found {len(rows)} memories{filter_desc} ({sort_desc}):\n\n" + "\n\n".join(results)
+            return self._recall_remote(args)
 
         # SQLite-only or Hybrid: always read from local cache
         return self._sqlite_recall(context, expanded_query, category, sort_by, limit)
 
+    def _recall_remote(self, args: dict[str, Any]) -> str:
+        """Remote semantic recall — the one genuinely slow path.
+
+        Bounded by ``RECALL_TIMEOUT`` so it can never hang the MCP server. On a timeout
+        or unreachable backend it returns a clear "working / not done — retry" signal
+        rather than raising or blocking silently.
+        """
+        context = args.get("context")
+        expanded_query = args.get("expanded_query", "")
+        category = args.get("category")
+        sort_by = args.get("sort_by", "importance")
+        limit = args.get("limit", 10)
+
+        try:
+            result = _api_request(
+                "POST", "/api/memories/recall",
+                {
+                    "context": context,
+                    "expanded_query": expanded_query,
+                    "category": category,
+                    "sort_by": sort_by,
+                    "limit": limit,
+                },
+                timeout=RECALL_TIMEOUT,
+            )
+        except RuntimeError as e:
+            # _api_request wraps connection errors / timeouts as RuntimeError. Surface a
+            # clear, actionable signal instead of hanging or dumping a stack trace.
+            return (
+                f"Memory recall did not complete within {RECALL_TIMEOUT}s — the semantic "
+                f"search backend is slow or unreachable ({e}). Please try again."
+            )
+
+        rows = result.get("memories", [])
+        if not rows:
+            filter_desc = f" in category '{category}'" if category else ""
+            return f"No memories found matching: {context}{filter_desc}"
+
+        sort_desc = "by relevance" if sort_by == "relevance" else "by importance"
+        filter_desc = f" in '{category}'" if category else ""
+        results = []
+        for row in rows:
+            results.append(
+                f"#{row['id']} [{row['category']}] (importance: {row['importance']:.1f}) {row['content']}"
+                f"\n  Tags: {row.get('tags') or 'none'} | Stored: {row['created_at']}"
+            )
+        return f"Found {len(rows)} memories{filter_desc} ({sort_desc}):\n\n" + "\n\n".join(results)
+
     def memory_list(self, args: dict[str, Any]) -> str:
         category = args.get("category")
         limit = args.get("limit", 20)
@@ -519,10 +571,11 @@ class MemoryServer:
         # SQLite-only or Hybrid: delete from local SQLite
         # In hybrid mode, also try to sync delete to server
         server_id: int | None = None
-        if HYBRID_MODE and self.sync_engine and self.sqlite_conn:
-            cursor = self.sqlite_conn.cursor()
-            cursor.execute("SELECT server_id FROM memories WHERE id = ?", (memory_id,))
-            row = cursor.fetchone()
+        if HYBRID_MODE and self.sync_engine and self.store:
+            with self.store.lock:
+                cursor = self.store.conn.cursor()
+                cursor.execute("SELECT server_id FROM memories WHERE id = ?", (memory_id,))
+                row = cursor.fetchone()
             server_id = row["server_id"] if row and row["server_id"] else None
 
         result_text = self._sqlite_delete(memory_id)
@@ -563,12 +616,13 @@ class MemoryServer:
             lines.append(f"Last sync success: {counts['last_sync_success']}")
             return "\n".join(lines)
 
-        if self.sqlite_conn:
-            cursor = self.sqlite_conn.cursor()
-            cursor.execute("SELECT COUNT(*) as c FROM memories")
-            total = cursor.fetchone()["c"]
-            cursor.execute("SELECT category, COUNT(*) as c FROM memories GROUP BY category ORDER BY c DESC")
-            by_cat = cursor.fetchall()
+        if self.store:
+            with self.store.lock:
+                cursor = self.store.conn.cursor()
+                cursor.execute("SELECT COUNT(*) as c FROM memories")
+                total = cursor.fetchone()["c"]
+                cursor.execute("SELECT category, COUNT(*) as c FROM memories GROUP BY category ORDER BY c DESC")
+                by_cat = cursor.fetchall()
             lines = [f"Local memories (SQLite-only): {total}"]
             for row in by_cat:
                 lines.append(f"  {row['category']}: {row['c']}")
@@ -682,19 +736,25 @@ class MemoryServer:
     def _sqlite_store(self, content: str, category: str, tags: str, importance: float, expanded_keywords: str, force_sensitive: bool = False) -> str:
         from datetime import datetime, timezone
 
-        assert self.sqlite_conn is not None
+        assert self.store is not None
         now = datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat()
         is_sensitive = 1 if force_sensitive else 0
-        cursor = self.sqlite_conn.cursor()
-        cursor.execute(
-            "INSERT INTO memories (content, category, tags, expanded_keywords, importance, is_sensitive, created_at, updated_at) VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?)",
-            (content, category, tags, expanded_keywords, importance, is_sensitive, now, now),
-        )
-        self.sqlite_conn.commit()
-        return f"Stored memory #{cursor.lastrowid} in category '{category}' with importance {importance:.1f}"
+
+        def _insert(conn: sqlite3.Connection) -> int | None:
+            cursor = conn.execute(
+                "INSERT INTO memories (content, category, tags, expanded_keywords, importance, is_sensitive, created_at, updated_at) VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?)",
+                (content, category, tags, expanded_keywords, importance, is_sensitive, now, now),
+            )
+            conn.commit()
+            return cursor.lastrowid
+
+        # Serialized + retry-guarded through the shared LocalStore so concurrent
+        # stores (and the background sync writer) never collide on the SQLite writer.
+        new_id = self.store.transaction(_insert)
+        return f"Stored memory #{new_id} in category '{category}' with importance {importance:.1f}"
 
     def _sqlite_recall(self, context: str, expanded_query: str, category: str | None, sort_by: str, limit: int) -> str:
-        assert self.sqlite_conn is not None
+        assert self.store is not None
         all_terms = f"{context} {expanded_query}".strip()
         words = [w.replace(chr(34), "") for w in all_terms.split() if w]
         and_query = " AND ".join(f'"{w}"' for w in words)
@@ -712,35 +772,38 @@ class MemoryServer:
             "SELECT m.id, m.content, m.category, m.tags, m.importance, m.created_at "
             "FROM memories m JOIN memories_fts fts ON m.id = fts.rowid "
         )
-        cursor = self.sqlite_conn.cursor()
         rows: list[Any] = []
-        try:
-            # Try AND first for precise matches, fall back to OR for broader results
-            cat_filter = "AND m.category = ?" if category else ""
-            for fts_query in (and_query, or_query):
-                params = [fts_query, category, limit] if category else [fts_query, limit]
-                cursor.execute(
-                    f"{base_select}WHERE memories_fts MATCH ? {cat_filter} ORDER BY {order} LIMIT ?",
-                    tuple(p for p in params if p is not None),
-                )
+        # Hold the shared lock for the whole read — the connection is shared across
+        # threads with the sync writer, so reads must serialize too.
+        with self.store.lock:
+            cursor = self.store.conn.cursor()
+            try:
+                # Try AND first for precise matches, fall back to OR for broader results
+                cat_filter = "AND m.category = ?" if category else ""
+                for fts_query in (and_query, or_query):
+                    params = [fts_query, category, limit] if category else [fts_query, limit]
+                    cursor.execute(
+                        f"{base_select}WHERE memories_fts MATCH ? {cat_filter} ORDER BY {order} LIMIT ?",
+                        tuple(p for p in params if p is not None),
+                    )
+                    rows = cursor.fetchall()
+                    if rows:
+                        break
+            except sqlite3.OperationalError:
+                like = f"%{context}%"
+                if category:
+                    cursor.execute(
+                        "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
+                        "WHERE (content LIKE ? OR tags LIKE ?) AND category = ? ORDER BY importance DESC LIMIT ?",
+                        (like, like, category, limit),
+                    )
+                else:
+                    cursor.execute(
+                        "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
+                        "WHERE content LIKE ? OR tags LIKE ? ORDER BY importance DESC LIMIT ?",
+                        (like, like, limit),
+                    )
                 rows = cursor.fetchall()
-                if rows:
-                    break
-        except sqlite3.OperationalError:
-            like = f"%{context}%"
-            if category:
-                cursor.execute(
-                    "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
-                    "WHERE (content LIKE ? OR tags LIKE ?) AND category = ? ORDER BY importance DESC LIMIT ?",
-                    (like, like, category, limit),
-                )
-            else:
-                cursor.execute(
-                    "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
-                    "WHERE content LIKE ? OR tags LIKE ? ORDER BY importance DESC LIMIT ?",
-                    (like, like, limit),
-                )
-            rows = cursor.fetchall()
 
         if not rows:
             return f"No memories found matching: {context}"
@@ -757,21 +820,22 @@ class MemoryServer:
         )
 
     def _sqlite_list(self, category: str | None, limit: int) -> str:
-        assert self.sqlite_conn is not None
-        cursor = self.sqlite_conn.cursor()
-        if category:
-            cursor.execute(
-                "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
-                "WHERE category = ? ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT ?",
-                (category, limit),
-            )
-        else:
-            cursor.execute(
-                "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
-                "ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT ?",
-                (limit,),
-            )
-        rows = cursor.fetchall()
+        assert self.store is not None
+        with self.store.lock:
+            cursor = self.store.conn.cursor()
+            if category:
+                cursor.execute(
+                    "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
+                    "WHERE category = ? ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT ?",
+                    (category, limit),
+                )
+            else:
+                cursor.execute(
+                    "SELECT id, content, category, tags, importance, created_at FROM memories "
+                    "ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT ?",
+                    (limit,),
+                )
+            rows = cursor.fetchall()
         if not rows:
             return f"No memories in category '{category}'" if category else "No memories stored yet"
 
@@ -785,25 +849,30 @@ class MemoryServer:
         return header + f" ({len(rows)} shown):\n\n" + "\n\n".join(results)
 
     def _sqlite_delete(self, memory_id: int) -> str:
-        assert self.sqlite_conn is not None
-        cursor = self.sqlite_conn.cursor()
-        cursor.execute("SELECT id, content FROM memories WHERE id = ?", (memory_id,))
-        row = cursor.fetchone()
-        if not row:
-            return f"Memory #{memory_id} not found"
-        preview = row["content"][:50]
-        cursor.execute("DELETE FROM memories WHERE id = ?", (memory_id,))
-        self.sqlite_conn.commit()
-        return f"Deleted memory #{memory_id}: {preview}..."
+        assert self.store is not None
+
+        def _delete(conn: sqlite3.Connection) -> str:
+            cursor = conn.execute("SELECT id, content FROM memories WHERE id = ?", (memory_id,))
+            row = cursor.fetchone()
+            if not row:
+                return f"Memory #{memory_id} not found"
+            preview = row["content"][:50]
+            conn.execute("DELETE FROM memories WHERE id = ?", (memory_id,))
+            conn.commit()
+            return f"Deleted memory #{memory_id}: {preview}..."
+
+        # SELECT + DELETE + commit as one serialized, retry-guarded unit.
+        return self.store.transaction(_delete)
 
     def _sqlite_secret_get(self, memory_id: int) -> str:
-        assert self.sqlite_conn is not None
-        cursor = self.sqlite_conn.cursor()
-        cursor.execute(
-            "SELECT id, content, category, is_sensitive FROM memories WHERE id = ?",
-            (memory_id,),
-        )
-        row = cursor.fetchone()
+        assert self.store is not None
+        with self.store.lock:
+            cursor = self.store.conn.cursor()
+            cursor.execute(
+                "SELECT id, content, category, is_sensitive FROM memories WHERE id = ?",
+                (memory_id,),
+            )
+            row = cursor.fetchone()
         if not row:
             return f"Memory #{memory_id} not found"
         if not row["is_sensitive"]:
@@ -825,9 +894,25 @@ class MemoryServer:
             tools.extend(SHARING_TOOLS)
         return {"tools": tools}
 
+    # Tools whose work is genuinely slow enough to warrant a progress signal.
+    _SLOW_TOOLS = frozenset({"memory_recall"})
+
     def handle_tools_call(self, params: dict[str, Any]) -> dict[str, Any]:
         tool_name: str = params.get("name", "")
         arguments: dict[str, Any] = params.get("arguments", {})
+
+        # If the client opted into progress (sent a token) and this is a slow tool, emit a
+        # single "working" progress notification so the call shows life instead of looking hung.
+        progress_token = (params.get("_meta") or {}).get("progressToken")
+        if progress_token is not None and tool_name in self._SLOW_TOOLS:
+            try:
+                self._notify(
+                    "notifications/progress",
+                    {"progressToken": progress_token, "progress": 0, "message": f"Running {tool_name}…"},
+                )
+            except Exception:
+                pass  # never let progress reporting break the actual call
+
         try:
             handler = {
                 "memory_store": self.memory_store,
@@ -851,6 +936,10 @@ class MemoryServer:
         except Exception as e:
             return {"content": [{"type": "text", "text": f"Error: {e!s}"}], "isError": True}
 
+    def _emit_notification(self, method: str, params: dict[str, Any]) -> None:
+        """Default notification sink: write a JSON-RPC notification line to stdout."""
+        print(json.dumps({"jsonrpc": "2.0", "method": method, "params": params}), flush=True)
+
     def process_message(self, message: dict[str, Any]) -> dict[str, Any] | None:
         method = message.get("method")
         params = message.get("params", {})

src/claude_memory/sync.py

@@ -5,14 +5,14 @@ Uses only stdlib — no pip install required.
 
 import json
 import logging
-import sqlite3
 import threading
 import urllib.error
 import urllib.parse
 import urllib.request
 from typing import Any
 from datetime import datetime, timezone
-from pathlib import Path
+
+from claude_memory.local_store import LocalStore
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
@@ -26,7 +26,14 @@ FULL_RESYNC_EVERY = 10
 class SyncEngine:
     """Background sync between local SQLite cache and remote API."""
 
-    def __init__(self, db_path: str, api_base_url: str, api_key: str, sync_interval: int = 60):
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        db_path: str,
+        api_base_url: str,
+        api_key: str,
+        sync_interval: int = 60,
+        store: "LocalStore | None" = None,
+    ):
         self.db_path = db_path
         self.api_base_url = api_base_url.rstrip("/")
         self.api_key = api_key
@@ -37,13 +44,20 @@ class SyncEngine:
         self._last_sync_success = False
         self._auth_failed = False
 
-        # Own connection for thread safety
-        Path(db_path).parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
-        self._conn = sqlite3.connect(db_path, timeout=30.0, check_same_thread=False)
-        self._conn.row_factory = sqlite3.Row
-        self._conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
-        self._conn.execute("PRAGMA busy_timeout=30000")
-        self._lock = threading.Lock()
+        # Share the caller's LocalStore (one connection, one lock) when given, so the
+        # background sync writer never opens a SECOND connection to the same file and
+        # never races the store path on the single SQLite writer. When run standalone
+        # (e.g. tests), open our own store. Either way, all SQLite access below goes
+        # through self._store / self._conn / self._lock, which now point at one shared
+        # connection guarded by one re-entrant lock.
+        if store is None:
+            self._store = LocalStore.open(db_path)
+            self._owns_store = True
+        else:
+            self._store = store
+            self._owns_store = False
+        self._conn = self._store.conn
+        self._lock = self._store.lock
 
         self._init_sync_tables()
 
@@ -121,7 +135,10 @@ class SyncEngine:
         self._stop_event.set()
         if self._thread and self._thread.is_alive():
             self._thread.join(timeout=5)
-        self._conn.close()
+        # Only close the connection if we opened it; when sharing the server's
+        # LocalStore, the server owns the connection lifecycle.
+        if self._owns_store:
+            self._store.close()
 
     def _sync_loop(self) -> None:
         """Periodic sync loop running in background thread."""

tests/test_mcp_server.py

@@ -2,7 +2,12 @@
 
 import json
 import os
+import sqlite3
 import sys
+import threading
+from datetime import datetime, timezone
+from typing import Any
+from unittest.mock import patch
 
 import pytest
 
@@ -408,3 +413,244 @@ class TestSchemaMigration:
         columns = {row["name"] for row in cursor.fetchall()}
         assert "server_id" in columns
         srv.sqlite_conn.close()
+
+
+def _server_rows(server: MemoryServer) -> int:
+    assert server.sqlite_conn is not None
+    return int(server.sqlite_conn.execute("SELECT COUNT(*) AS c FROM memories").fetchone()["c"])
+
+
+class TestConcurrentWrites:
+    """Regression tests for 'database is locked' under heavy concurrent local writes.
+
+    The store path (MemoryServer) and the background sync writer (SyncEngine) must not
+    contend on the single SQLite writer. Before the fix they used two separate connections
+    to the same file; under load the second writer blew past busy_timeout and raised
+    ``sqlite3.OperationalError: database is locked``. After the fix all local writes are
+    serialized through one shared, lock-guarded connection, so a lock error is impossible.
+    """
+
+    def test_concurrent_stores_all_rows_land(self, tmp_path):
+        """Many threads calling memory_store concurrently → every row lands, no lock error."""
+        db_path = str(tmp_path / "concurrent.db")
+        server = MemoryServer(sqlite_db_path=db_path)
+        try:
+            n_threads = 16
+            per_thread = 12
+            errors: list[BaseException] = []
+            barrier = threading.Barrier(n_threads)
+
+            def worker(tid: int) -> None:
+                barrier.wait()  # release all threads at once to maximise contention
+                for i in range(per_thread):
+                    try:
+                        server.memory_store({
+                            "content": f"thread {tid} memory {i}",
+                            "expanded_keywords": f"thread {tid} memory {i} concurrent write",
+                        })
+                    except BaseException as exc:  # noqa: BLE001 — capture everything for the assert
+                        errors.append(exc)
+
+            threads = [threading.Thread(target=worker, args=(t,)) for t in range(n_threads)]
+            for t in threads:
+                t.start()
+            for t in threads:
+                t.join()
+
+            assert errors == [], f"concurrent stores raised: {errors!r}"
+            assert _server_rows(server) == n_threads * per_thread
+        finally:
+            if server.sqlite_conn:
+                server.sqlite_conn.close()
+
+    def test_concurrent_stores_while_sync_writer_active_no_lock(self, tmp_path):
+        """Store path + background sync writer hammer the SAME file → no 'database is locked'.
+
+        Reproduces the production failure: ``MemoryServer`` and ``SyncEngine`` both write to
+        one SQLite file. We shrink ``busy_timeout`` so the structural race (two writers fighting
+        the single SQLite write lock) surfaces within seconds instead of 30s. The shared-writer
+        fix makes a lock error impossible regardless of busy_timeout.
+        """
+        from claude_memory.sync import SyncEngine
+
+        db_path = str(tmp_path / "hybrid.db")
+        server = MemoryServer(sqlite_db_path=db_path)
+        # The production hybrid wiring: the sync engine SHARES the server's LocalStore
+        # (one connection, one lock) — the structural fix for the cross-connection race.
+        engine = SyncEngine(
+            db_path=db_path,
+            api_base_url="http://fake-api:8080",
+            api_key="test-key",
+            sync_interval=3600,  # never auto-syncs; we drive the writer by hand
+            store=server.store,
+        )
+        assert engine._conn is server.sqlite_conn  # truly one shared connection
+
+        # Shrink the busy timeout so that, were there still two writers, the race would
+        # surface in ms not 30s. With one shared connection a lock error is impossible.
+        server.sqlite_conn.execute("PRAGMA busy_timeout=50")
+
+        now = datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat()
+
+        # A write-heavy pull: many rows upserted inside the sync engine's single lock block —
+        # exactly the kind of long-held writer that starved the store path.
+        def big_pull(method: str, path: str, body: Any = None) -> dict[str, Any]:
+            return {
+                "memories": [
+                    {
+                        "id": 10_000 + j,
+                        "content": f"server row {j}",
+                        "category": "facts",
+                        "tags": "",
+                        "expanded_keywords": "",
+                        "importance": 0.5,
+                        "is_sensitive": False,
+                        "created_at": now,
+                        "updated_at": now,
+                        "deleted_at": None,
+                    }
+                    for j in range(120)
+                ],
+                "server_time": now,
+            }
+
+        errors: list[BaseException] = []
+        stop = threading.Event()
+
+        def sync_writer() -> None:
+            with patch.object(engine, "_api_request", side_effect=big_pull):
+                while not stop.is_set():
+                    try:
+                        engine._pull_changes()
+                    except BaseException as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+                        errors.append(exc)
+
+        n_threads = 12
+        per_thread = 12
+        barrier = threading.Barrier(n_threads)
+
+        def store_worker(tid: int) -> None:
+            barrier.wait()
+            for i in range(per_thread):
+                try:
+                    server.memory_store({
+                        "content": f"local {tid}.{i}",
+                        "expanded_keywords": f"local thread {tid} item {i} keywords here",
+                    })
+                except BaseException as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+                    errors.append(exc)
+
+        writer = threading.Thread(target=sync_writer, daemon=True)
+        writer.start()
+        final_rows = 0
+        try:
+            store_threads = [threading.Thread(target=store_worker, args=(t,)) for t in range(n_threads)]
+            for t in store_threads:
+                t.start()
+            for t in store_threads:
+                t.join()
+            stop.set()
+            writer.join(timeout=5)
+            final_rows = _server_rows(server)  # read while the connection is still open
+        finally:
+            stop.set()
+            engine.stop()  # shares the server's store → does not close the connection
+            if server.sqlite_conn:
+                server.sqlite_conn.close()
+
+        locked = [e for e in errors if isinstance(e, sqlite3.OperationalError) and "locked" in str(e)]
+        assert locked == [], f"hit 'database is locked' under concurrency: {locked!r}"
+        assert errors == [], f"concurrent writes raised: {errors!r}"
+        # Every local store must have landed.
+        assert final_rows >= n_threads * per_thread
+
+
+class TestRecallProgressAndBounding:
+    """The slow path — a remote semantic ``memory_recall`` — must be bounded and give a
+    notion of progress instead of hanging silently and dropping the session."""
+
+    def test_remote_recall_timeout_returns_clear_signal_not_raise(self, server):
+        """A timed-out / unreachable remote recall returns a clear 'retry' message, never hangs/raises."""
+        import claude_memory.mcp_server as m
+
+        with patch.object(m, "_api_request", side_effect=RuntimeError("API connection error: timed out")):
+            text = server._recall_remote({"context": "x", "expanded_query": "a b c d e"})
+
+        assert "recall" in text.lower()
+        # Mentions the bound and that the caller should retry — a clear working/not-done signal.
+        assert "retry" in text.lower() or "again" in text.lower()
+        assert str(m.RECALL_TIMEOUT) in text
+
+    def test_remote_recall_success_formats_rows(self, server):
+        """A successful remote recall still formats results normally."""
+        import claude_memory.mcp_server as m
+
+        payload = {"memories": [
+            {"id": 7, "category": "facts", "importance": 0.8, "content": "hello",
+             "tags": "t", "created_at": "2026-01-01T00:00:00+00:00"},
+        ]}
+        with patch.object(m, "_api_request", return_value=payload):
+            text = server._recall_remote({"context": "x", "expanded_query": "a b c d e"})
+
+        assert "Found 1 memories" in text
+        assert "hello" in text
+
+    def test_remote_recall_uses_bounded_timeout(self, server):
+        """The remote recall passes the bounded RECALL_TIMEOUT to the HTTP layer."""
+        import claude_memory.mcp_server as m
+
+        with patch.object(m, "_api_request", return_value={"memories": []}) as mock_api:
+            server._recall_remote({"context": "x", "expanded_query": "a b c d e"})
+
+        _, kwargs = mock_api.call_args
+        assert kwargs.get("timeout") == m.RECALL_TIMEOUT
+
+    def test_api_request_accepts_timeout_kwarg(self):
+        """Module-level _api_request must accept an explicit timeout without breaking callers."""
+        import inspect
+        import claude_memory.mcp_server as m
+
+        sig = inspect.signature(m._api_request)
+        assert "timeout" in sig.parameters
+
+    def test_progress_notification_emitted_for_recall_with_token(self, server):
+        """When the client supplies a progressToken, a 'working' progress notification is emitted."""
+        sent: list[dict[str, Any]] = []
+        server._notify = lambda method, params: sent.append({"method": method, "params": params})
+
+        with patch.object(server, "memory_recall", return_value="ok"):
+            server.handle_tools_call({
+                "name": "memory_recall",
+                "arguments": {"context": "x", "expanded_query": "a b c d e"},
+                "_meta": {"progressToken": "tok-1"},
+            })
+
+        progress = [s for s in sent if s["method"] == "notifications/progress"]
+        assert progress, "expected a notifications/progress for a tokened recall"
+        assert progress[0]["params"]["progressToken"] == "tok-1"
+
+    def test_no_progress_notification_without_token(self, server):
+        """No token → no progress notification (don't spam clients that didn't opt in)."""
+        sent: list[dict[str, Any]] = []
+        server._notify = lambda method, params: sent.append({"method": method, "params": params})
+
+        with patch.object(server, "memory_recall", return_value="ok"):
+            server.handle_tools_call({
+                "name": "memory_recall",
+                "arguments": {"context": "x", "expanded_query": "a b c d e"},
+            })
+
+        assert [s for s in sent if s["method"] == "notifications/progress"] == []
+
+    def test_fast_tools_do_not_emit_progress(self, server):
+        """Only the slow recall path signals progress; a store with a token stays quiet."""
+        sent: list[dict[str, Any]] = []
+        server._notify = lambda method, params: sent.append({"method": method, "params": params})
+
+        server.handle_tools_call({
+            "name": "memory_store",
+            "arguments": {"content": "x", "expanded_keywords": "a b c d e"},
+            "_meta": {"progressToken": "tok-2"},
+        })
+
+        assert [s for s in sent if s["method"] == "notifications/progress"] == []