A local-first task queue and database your AI coding agents can read and write directly.
Most AI coding agents lose state the moment a chat ends. Their "memory" is a 500k-token thread that costs you a subscription and forgets the project the next morning.
Backlog moves the queue out of the chat and into a Backlog DB your agents read and write through MCP. Same database your CLI uses. Same database your other agents use. Every write is signed by the actor that made it (human:alice, ai:claude-code, ai:semgrep), so you always know who did what.
The result is the agentic loop: spawn a fresh subagent, let it pull a task, plan, ship, and exit — then do it again. Four parallel sessions, ~12× the throughput of one developer running one agent, ~10× cheaper per task than a long-running thread.
One queue. Many agents. Every write attributed.
Grab a pre-built binary for macOS or Linux (arm64 + amd64):
OS=$(uname -s | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')
ARCH=$(uname -m | sed 's/x86_64/amd64/;s/aarch64/arm64/')
curl -L https://github.com/mazen160/backlog/releases/latest/download/backlog_${OS}_${ARCH}.tar.gz | tar xz
sudo mv backlog /usr/local/bin/Or install from source:
go install github.com/mazen160/backlog/cmd/backlog@latestOne binary. No dependencies. No runtime to install.
Everything runs from your shell. backlog init creates the Backlog DB. Every command attributes the write to the actor who made it.
backlog web serves a clean, inline-editable dashboard from the same Backlog DB. Tasks created from a CLI or an AI agent show up here instantly with full attribution.
Wire Backlog into Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, or OpenCode via MCP. Your agent's writes land in the same database your shell reads from — fully attributed to the AI that made them.
A loop is one unit of work: pick → plan → ship → review → attribute. Backlog stores the queue, attributes every step, and keeps multiple agent sessions from stepping on each other.
Each task spawns a fresh subagent with only the context it needs. The average session fits in under 50k tokens instead of the 500k a long-running thread bloats into. Same quality, dramatically cheaper.
# 1. Create a workspace in your project directory
backlog init
# 2. Add a project
backlog project add "My App" --alias app
# 3. Create some tasks
backlog task add -p app -t "Fix login timeout" --type bug --priority P2
backlog task add -p app -t "Add rate limiting" --type feature --priority P3
# 4. See what's open
backlog task list
# 5. Start working on TASK-1
backlog task move TASK-1 --status doing
# 6. Attach a versioned plan
backlog plan add --task TASK-1 --title "Fix plan" \
--content "1. Increase timeout\n2. Add test"
# 7. Done
backlog task move TASK-1 --status doneThat's the whole workflow. No accounts. No webhooks. No SaaS.
For step-by-step setup, see Getting Started.
- Local-first — the Backlog DB sits next to your code. Commits with your repo (or doesn't — your call).
- Single binary — ~17 MB. No runtime, no dependencies, no daemon.
- JIRA-style refs — tasks are
TASK-1,TASK-2, … No UUIDs in your terminal. - Versioned plans — every plan edit creates an immutable version. Full history is always readable.
- Actor attribution — every write is signed
human:nameorai:name. Filter, audit, blame. - MCP server — plug into Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, OpenCode, or anything that speaks MCP.
- Full-text search —
backlog task list --search "injection*"runs in milliseconds. - Bulk findings import — structured JSON intake for security scanners and AI agents.
- Web UI —
backlog webserves a clean dashboard from the same Backlog DB. - Export anywhere — JSON, CSV, or Markdown.
- HTTP API — embedded server for scripts and integrations.
- No telemetry, no tracking — period.
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
backlog init |
Create a Backlog workspace |
backlog project add/list/show/update/archive |
Manage projects |
backlog task add/list/show/update/move/archive |
Manage tasks |
backlog plan add/update/show/history |
Versioned plans on tasks |
backlog comment add/list |
Comments on tasks |
backlog label create/attach/detach |
Per-project labels |
backlog import-findings <file.json> |
Bulk import from scanners/agents |
backlog import <other.db> |
Merge another workspace |
backlog export --format json|csv|md |
Export tasks |
backlog sync |
Reconcile backlog.json with DB |
backlog mcp serve |
Start MCP stdio server |
backlog web |
Serve the web UI |
backlog doctor check|backup |
Health check and backup |
backlog schema |
Print JSON Schema for all payload types |
backlog profile add/list/set-default |
Named workspace shortcuts |
Full reference: CLI Reference.
Every command accepts --as kind:name. Without it, the actor defaults to human:$USER.
backlog task add -p app -t "Investigate memory leak" --as human:alice
backlog plan add --task TASK-1 --title "Memory profiling plan" \
--content "Run pprof on /api/v2/search endpoint" \
--as ai:claude-code
backlog task list --actor-kind ai
backlog task list --actor-name aliceEvery row in the Backlog DB carries the actor that wrote it. Audit trails are free.
Connect any MCP-compatible AI assistant directly to your backlog:
backlog mcp serve --as ai:claude-code --db /path/to/backlog.dbClaude Code (~/.claude.json):
{
"mcpServers": {
"backlog": {
"command": "backlog",
"args": ["mcp", "serve", "--as", "ai:claude-code"],
"env": { "BACKLOG_DB": "/path/to/backlog.db" }
}
}
}Setup for Cursor, Codex, and OpenCode: MCP guide.
Security scanners and AI agents can write a structured JSON file and bulk-import:
cat > findings.json << 'EOF'
{
"version": 1,
"project": "app",
"items": [
{
"title": "SQL injection in /search",
"type": "vulnerability",
"priority": "P1",
"source": "semgrep",
"plans": [{ "title": "Fix", "body": "Use parameterized queries." }]
}
]
}
EOF
backlog import-findings findings.json --as ai:semgrepEvery finding becomes a task. Every task is attributed to the scanner that found it.
| Page | Description |
|---|---|
| Getting Started | Install, init, first task, plans, MCP setup |
| Core Concepts | Workspaces, projects, tasks, plans, actors, profiles |
| CLI Reference | Every command and flag with examples |
| MCP | Wire into Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, OpenCode |
| Skills | The four embedded agentic-loop skills |
| HTTP API | Routes exposed by backlog web |
| Working Across Sessions | Three-day cross-session walkthrough |
git clone https://github.com/mazen160/backlog
cd backlog
make build # build binary
make test # run all tests
make fmt # gofmt
make vet # go vet
make cover # test + coverage reportSee CONTRIBUTING.md for the full guide.
If Backlog saves you a context window, please star the repo — it's the only signal that tells me to keep building it in the open.
Share what you build:
The Backlog DB is an embedded SQLite store with WAL mode, full-text search (FTS5), and atomic backups. Backlog itself is written in Go and ships as a single static binary.
The project is currently licensed under MIT License.
Mazin Ahmed
- Website: https://mazinahmed.net
- Email: mazin [at] mazinahmed [dot] net
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/mazen160
- LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/infosecmazinahmed
- GitHub: https://github.com/mazen160