NeuroTrace
Local Reasoning Versioning for Developers > Your second brain in VS Code. Reasoning, notes, tasks and more linked to your code, stored 100% offline and secure.
✨ What it looks like

Interactive Thought Graph

🚀 Why NeuroTrace?
- Capture hypotheses, decisions, insights, and tasks right next to your code.
- Stay secure: all reasoning is stored locally and encrypted by default.
- Boost productivity: semantic search and graph visualization help you see patterns others miss.
- Works 100% offline — no cloud, no leaks, no distractions.
🆓 Free vs Premium
Feature |
Free Plan (Forever) |
Premium (US$9.99/mo) |
Local Reasoning Log |
✅ |
✅ |
Inline Code Decorations |
❌ |
✅ |
Thought Limit |
⚠️ 45/month |
✅ Unlimited |
Text Search |
✅ |
✅ |
Semantic Search (all-MiniLM-L6-v2 of SentenceTransformers) |
❌ |
✅ |
Related Thought Suggestions |
❌ |
✅ |
Interactive Thought Graph |
❌ |
✅ |
Encrypted Storage (AES-256) |
✅ |
✅ |
Works Offline |
✅ |
✅ |
🔒 Privacy & Security by Design
For maximum transparency, all security-critical code is open source in our GitHub repository. You can verify that our privacy claims match our code.
- 100% Local: Everything stays on your machine
- Encrypted Storage: SQLite + SQLCipher3 (AES-256 at rest)
- Anonymous Telemetry: Optional usage stats
- Works Offline: No cloud required
🛠️ Installation & Usage
Install from Marketplace
- Search for "NeuroTrace" in the Extensions panel (
Ctrl+Shift+X
).
- Click Install.
- Note: When you first open the NeuroTrace sidebar, click the download button to get the AI backend (up to 250MB) including the AI model (all-MiniLM-L6-v2) and general dependencies for extension functions. This is a one-time download that enables powerful offline AI features.
Initialize in Your Workspace
- The NeuroTrace sidebar appears automatically after installation.
- Click the "Initialize Database" button in the sidebar. This will create the local
.neurotrace
folder.
Add .neurotrace to .gitignore (Recommended)
- To prevent accidentally sharing your encrypted database with others, add
.neurotrace/
to your .gitignore
file.
- This ensures your personal thoughts and reasoning data remain private.
Add Your First Thought
- Open any code file.
- Select your Snipet
- Press
Alt+N
or click the "+" button in the NeuroTrace sidebar.
- Fill in your idea and press Enter. You're all set!
More details in walkthrough/init.md
🎉 Done! Your reasoning is now versioned locally.
🏗️ Backend Architecture
NeuroTrace uses a platform-aware backend system that automatically detects your operating system:
Windows, Linux & macOS
- ✅ Download platform-specific executable on first use
- ✅ No Python installation required
- ✅ Works out of the box
Key Technologies
- SQLCipher3: Encrypted database with AES-256
- FAISS: High-speed semantic search engine
- Sentence Transformers: AI-powered embeddings (all-MiniLM-L6-v2)
✨ Premium Features & Account Management
Accessing Premium Features
To unlock premium features like unlimited thoughts, semantic search, and the interactive thought graph:
Open Advanced Settings:
- Use the Command Palette (
Ctrl+Shift+P
)
- Run "NeuroTrace: Open Advanced Settings"
- Or click the settings button in the NeuroTrace sidebar
Sign in with GitHub:
- In Advanced Settings, click "Sign in with GitHub"
- Complete the OAuth flow in your browser
- Return to VS Code - you'll be automatically signed in
Manage your account:
- View your authentication status
- Subscribe to premium features
- Sign out when needed
All account management is handled through the Advanced Settings panel for a clean, centralized experience.
� Quick Troubleshooting
Subscription Status Not Updating?
If your premium subscription status isn't reflecting correctly in the extension:
Quick Fix:
- Sign out and sign back in:
- Open Advanced Settings (
Ctrl+Shift+P
→ "NeuroTrace: Open Advanced Settings")
- Click "Sign Out"
- Click "Sign in with GitHub" and complete the login process
Alternative:
- Close and reopen the Advanced Settings panel
- The extension will automatically sync your latest subscription status
This usually resolves sync issues between your account and the extension.
Database Corrupted or Inaccessible?
If you encounter database errors, corruption, or can't access your thoughts:
Reset Database:
- Close VS Code completely
- Delete the
.neurotrace
folder from your workspace root
- Restart VS Code and open your workspace
- Re-initialize: Click "Initialize Database" in the NeuroTrace sidebar
⚠️ Warning: This will permanently delete all your thoughts and data. Make sure to export any important thoughts first using the export feature.
Need help or want to connect with other NeuroTrace users?
We're here to help! Feel free to reach out with questions, suggestions, or feedback.
📄 License
NeuroTrace uses a hybrid licensing model: security-critical code is open source, while premium features remain proprietary. See LICENSE.md for complete terms.
Version your reasoning. 🧠
© 2025 BlackIron Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.