fix: remove hardcoded "main" default from default_project (#575)

When a user's config.json had projects with names other than "main" and
no explicit default_project key, the hardcoded field default of "main"
would not match any project. The model_post_init fixup logic existed but
was untested and only handled the stale-name case, not the None case.

Changes:
- Change default_project field default from "main" to None
- Use model_fields_set to distinguish "config omitted the key" (auto-resolve
  to first project) from "user explicitly set None" (preserve for discovery mode)
- Split model_post_init into two branches: auto-resolve when not explicitly
  provided, correct stale names when explicitly set but invalid
- Remove # pragma: no cover from now-tested branches
- Add 10 new tests covering valid defaults, stale defaults, empty string,
  single project, config file round-trips, and discovery mode preservation

Fixes #575

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Signed-off-by: phernandez <paul@basicmachines.co>

Author: phernandez

src/basic_memory/config.py

@@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ class BasicMemoryConfig(BaseSettings):
         description="Mapping of project names to their ProjectEntry configuration",
     )
     default_project: Optional[str] = Field(
-        default="main",
+        default=None,
         description="Name of the default project to use. When set, acts as fallback when no project parameter is specified. Set to null to disable automatic project resolution.",
     )
 
@@ -493,18 +493,25 @@ def model_post_init(self, __context: Any) -> None:
         if self.database_backend == DatabaseBackend.POSTGRES:  # pragma: no cover
             return  # pragma: no cover
 
-        # Ensure at least one project exists; if none exist then create main
-        if not self.projects:  # pragma: no cover
+        # Trigger: no projects configured (fresh install or empty config)
+        # Why: every config needs at least one project to be functional
+        # Outcome: creates "main" project using BASIC_MEMORY_HOME or ~/basic-memory
+        if not self.projects:
             self.projects["main"] = ProjectEntry(
                 path=str(Path(os.getenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", Path.home() / "basic-memory")))
             )
 
-        # Ensure default project is valid (i.e. points to an existing project)
-        # None means "no default" — intentionally left unset
-        if (
-            self.default_project is not None and self.default_project not in self.projects
-        ):  # pragma: no cover
-            # Set default to first available project
+        # Trigger: default_project was not explicitly provided in the input data
+        #          (config file omitted the key, or BasicMemoryConfig() called with no args)
+        # Why: callers like get_project_config() expect a valid project name;
+        #      but explicit None (discovery mode) must be preserved
+        # Outcome: sets default_project to the first available project
+        if "default_project" not in self.model_fields_set:
+            self.default_project = next(iter(self.projects.keys()))
+        # Trigger: default_project was explicitly set but references a non-existent project
+        # Why: project may have been removed or renamed since config was saved
+        # Outcome: corrects to the first available project
+        elif self.default_project is not None and self.default_project not in self.projects:
             self.default_project = next(iter(self.projects.keys()))
 
     @property

tests/test_config.py

@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ def test_default_behavior_without_basic_memory_home(self, config_home, monkeypat
         # Should use the default path (home/basic-memory)
         expected_path = config_home / "basic-memory"
         assert Path(config.projects["main"].path) == expected_path
+        assert config.default_project == "main"
 
     def test_respects_basic_memory_home_environment_variable(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
         """Test that config respects BASIC_MEMORY_HOME environment variable."""
@@ -65,6 +66,7 @@ def test_model_post_init_respects_basic_memory_home_sets_non_main_default(
         # model_post_init should not add main project with BASIC_MEMORY_HOME
         assert "main" not in config.projects
         assert Path(config.projects["other"].path) == other_path
+        assert config.default_project == "other"
 
     def test_model_post_init_fallback_without_basic_memory_home(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
         """Test that model_post_init can set a non-main default when BASIC_MEMORY_HOME is not set."""
@@ -78,6 +80,7 @@ def test_model_post_init_fallback_without_basic_memory_home(self, config_home, m
         # model_post_init should not add main project, but "other" should now be the default
         assert "main" not in config.projects
         assert Path(config.projects["other"].path) == other_path
+        assert config.default_project == "other"
 
     def test_basic_memory_home_with_relative_path(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
         """Test that BASIC_MEMORY_HOME works with relative paths."""
@@ -121,6 +124,124 @@ def test_app_database_path_defaults_to_home_data_dir(self, config_home, monkeypa
         assert config.data_dir_path == config_home / ".basic-memory"
         assert config.app_database_path == config_home / ".basic-memory" / "memory.db"
 
+    def test_explicit_default_project_preserved(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
+        """Test that a valid explicit default_project is not overwritten by model_post_init."""
+        monkeypatch.delenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", raising=False)
+
+        config = BasicMemoryConfig(
+            projects={
+                "alpha": {"path": str(config_home / "alpha")},
+                "beta": {"path": str(config_home / "beta")},
+            },
+            default_project="beta",
+        )
+
+        assert config.default_project == "beta"
+
+    def test_invalid_default_project_corrected(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
+        """Test that an invalid default_project is corrected to the first project."""
+        monkeypatch.delenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", raising=False)
+
+        config = BasicMemoryConfig(
+            projects={
+                "alpha": {"path": str(config_home / "alpha")},
+                "beta": {"path": str(config_home / "beta")},
+            },
+            default_project="nonexistent",
+        )
+
+        assert config.default_project == "alpha"
+
+    def test_no_default_project_key_uses_first_project(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
+        """Test that config without default_project key sets it to the first project."""
+        monkeypatch.delenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", raising=False)
+
+        # Simulate loading a config file that has no default_project key —
+        # the field default (None) kicks in, and model_post_init resolves it
+        config = BasicMemoryConfig(
+            projects={
+                "research": {"path": str(config_home / "research")},
+                "notes": {"path": str(config_home / "notes")},
+            },
+        )
+
+        assert config.default_project == "research"
+
+    def test_empty_string_default_project_corrected(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
+        """Test that an empty-string default_project is corrected to the first project."""
+        monkeypatch.delenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", raising=False)
+
+        config = BasicMemoryConfig(
+            projects={
+                "alpha": {"path": str(config_home / "alpha")},
+            },
+            default_project="",
+        )
+
+        # Empty string is not in projects, so model_post_init corrects it
+        assert config.default_project == "alpha"
+
+    def test_single_project_default_always_matches(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
+        """Test that a config with one project always resolves default_project to it."""
+        monkeypatch.delenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", raising=False)
+
+        config = BasicMemoryConfig(
+            projects={"only": {"path": str(config_home / "only")}},
+        )
+
+        assert config.default_project == "only"
+
+    def test_stale_default_project_loaded_from_file(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
+        """Test that a config file with a stale default_project is corrected on load."""
+        import json
+        import basic_memory.config
+
+        monkeypatch.delenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", raising=False)
+
+        config_manager = ConfigManager()
+        config_manager.config_dir = config_home / ".basic-memory"
+        config_manager.config_file = config_manager.config_dir / "config.json"
+        config_manager.config_dir.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+
+        # Write a config file where default_project references a removed project
+        config_data = {
+            "projects": {
+                "research": {"path": str(config_home / "research")},
+                "notes": {"path": str(config_home / "notes")},
+            },
+            "default_project": "deleted-project",
+        }
+        config_manager.config_file.write_text(json.dumps(config_data, indent=2))
+        basic_memory.config._CONFIG_CACHE = None
+
+        loaded = config_manager.load_config()
+        assert loaded.default_project == "research"
+
+    def test_config_file_without_default_project_key(self, config_home, monkeypatch):
+        """Test that a config file with no default_project key resolves dynamically."""
+        import json
+        import basic_memory.config
+
+        monkeypatch.delenv("BASIC_MEMORY_HOME", raising=False)
+
+        config_manager = ConfigManager()
+        config_manager.config_dir = config_home / ".basic-memory"
+        config_manager.config_file = config_manager.config_dir / "config.json"
+        config_manager.config_dir.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+
+        # Write a config file that deliberately omits default_project
+        config_data = {
+            "projects": {
+                "work": {"path": str(config_home / "work")},
+                "personal": {"path": str(config_home / "personal")},
+            },
+        }
+        config_manager.config_file.write_text(json.dumps(config_data, indent=2))
+        basic_memory.config._CONFIG_CACHE = None
+
+        loaded = config_manager.load_config()
+        assert loaded.default_project == "work"
+
 
 class TestConfigManager:
     """Test ConfigManager functionality."""