Cursor Chat Exporter

Export Cursor IDE chat history to markdown files with complete tool actions, context, and conversation data. Designed for backup, documentation, and auditing.

Features

• Complete Export: Full conversation history with zero truncation of diffs, terminal output, or tool results
• Rich Context: Includes git diffs, linting errors, web searches, attached files, cursor rules, and token usage
• Smart Filenames: Auto-generated from conversation content with timestamps and workspace identifiers
• File Tracking: Preserves manual edits via checksums with timestamped backups
• Safe & Local: Read-only database access, no data transmission, works offline
• Cross-Platform: macOS, Windows, Linux support with no external dependencies

Requirements

Python 3.7+ (uses standard library only, no external dependencies)

Quick Start

# Clone repository
git clone <repository-url>
cd cursor-exporter/main

# Basic export
python export-cursor.py

# Custom output directory
python export-cursor.py /path/to/exports

# Verbose mode
python export-cursor.py --verbose

# View help
python export-cursor.py --help

Output Structure

Flat directory with markdown files named: YYYY-MM-DD-descriptive-title-workspaceHash.md

cursor_exports/
├── .export_metadata.json          # Checksum tracking
├── terminal-history.md            # Last 50 shell commands
└── 2025-09-18-conversation-21f0973c.md

Each conversation file includes complete, untruncated content: messages, code diffs, terminal output, git context, linting errors, web searches, cursor rules, token usage, and tool actions. Designed for grep-ability and audit trails.

File Modification Tracking

Exported files are SHA256-tracked. If you manually edit an exported markdown file, the next export creates a timestamped backup (e.g., filename.modified_20240318_143022.md) before updating. Use --status to view tracking information.

Automation with Cron

# Daily at 2 AM
0 2 * * * cd /path/to/cursor-exporter/main && python3 export-cursor.py /path/to/exports >> /path/to/export.log 2>&1

# Every minute (near real-time)
* * * * * cd /path/to/cursor-exporter/main && python3 export-cursor.py /path/to/exports >> /path/to/export.log 2>&1

# With error notifications
* * * * * cd /path/to/cursor-exporter/main && /usr/local/bin/python3 export-cursor.py /path/to/exports >> /path/to/export.log 2>&1 || /path/to/notify.sh "Export failed"

Use full paths for python3 (find with which python3 or use pyenv paths like ~/.local/share/pyenv/shims/python3).

Troubleshooting

No databases found: Ensure Cursor IDE is installed and you've used the AI chat feature at least once.

Permission errors: Check read access to Cursor's data directory:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Cursor/User/globalStorage
• Windows: %APPDATA%/Cursor/User/globalStorage
• Linux: ~/.config/Cursor/User/globalStorage

Empty exports: Database structure may have changed. Check exported JSON in markdown files.

Metadata issues: Delete .export_metadata.json to reset tracking or use --status to inspect.

Security & Privacy

Read-only database access, no network transmission, all data stays local. Handle exported markdown files according to your privacy requirements.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details