What is the 'Neural Link'?

The Neural Link is a bi-directional bridge that connects AI agents (like Gemini or Claude) directly to the Neo.mjs runtime. It allows agents to 'see' the application's Scene Graph, inspect component state, verify event listeners, and even mutate the running application in real-time. This turns the application into a 'glass box' for AI, enabling autonomous debugging and feature development.

Why is Neo.mjs called an 'Application Engine' instead of a framework?

Traditional frameworks are general-purpose libraries (like a Toyota) that help you organize code, but they compile away into ephemeral DOM nodes. Neo.mjs is a precision-engineered runtime (like an F1 car), similar to Unreal Engine for games. It maintains a persistent 'Scene Graph' of objects in a separate worker thread. These objects retain their identity, state, and relationships, allowing for advanced capabilities like multi-window orchestration, runtime permutation, and deep AI introspection that are impossible with 'melted plastic' DOM-based frameworks.

What is 'Context Engineering'?

Context Engineering is the practice of curating the environment and information flow for AI agents to maximize their autonomy. In Neo.mjs, this is implemented via three Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers: a Knowledge Base for semantic code understanding, a Memory Core for learning from past sessions, and a GitHub Workflow server for project management. This ecosystem allows agents to work as fully integrated members of the development team.

What is 'Object Permanence' in the context of Neo.mjs?

In Neo.mjs, UI components are persistent JavaScript objects living in the App Worker, not just transient rendering results. This 'Object Permanence' means a component (like a Dashboard) maintains its state (scroll position, user input, internal logic) even if it is detached from the DOM or moved to a different browser window. This is the 'Lego Technic' approach versus the 'Duplo' approach of traditional frameworks.

What is an 'Agent Operating System'?

Neo.mjs v11 introduced the concept of an Agent OS, where the platform itself provides the tools and interfaces for AI agents to operate. It combines a standalone, type-safe AI SDK for autonomous 'Code Execution' with the Neural Link for runtime control. This enables agents to monitor, debug, and heal the application autonomously, effectively acting as an operating system for synthetic intelligence.

How does Neo.mjs handle multi-window applications?

Neo.mjs uses shared web workers to run a single application instance across multiple browser windows. All windows share the same application state and data in real-time. Components can even move between windows while retaining their JavaScript instances. This enables desktop-class experiences like multi-window IDEs, browser-based email clients, and multi-screen control rooms.

What makes Neo.mjs different from React, Angular, or Vue?

Neo.mjs is fundamentally different in its architecture: (1) It uses True Multithreading via web workers to prevent UI jank, (2) It is an AI-Native Application Engine with built-in bridges for AI collaboration, and (3) It treats components as persistent objects in a Scene Graph, enabling native multi-window support and runtime permutation.

Frontmatter

id	7596
title	Bug: ChromaDB Fails on x64 Systems Without WSL
state	Closed
labels	bugdocumentationgood first issuehacktoberfest
assignees	Alachi24
createdAt	Oct 21, 2025, 4:18 PM
updatedAt	Oct 24, 2025, 4:17 PM
githubUrl	https://github.com/neomjs/neo/issues/7596
author	Alachi24
commentsCount	2
parentIssue	null
subIssues	[]
subIssuesCompleted	0
subIssuesTotal	0
blockedBy	[]
blocking	[]
closedAt	Oct 24, 2025, 4:17 PM

Bug: ChromaDB Fails on x64 Systems Without WSL

Name: Neo.mjs Application Engine
Author: Neo.mjs

Closed v11.0.0 bugdocumentationgood first issuehacktoberfest

Alachi24 commented on Oct 21, 2025, 4:18 PM

Describe the bug Developers on x64 systems (Intel/AMD) will likely encounter this error when running npm run ai:server:

Error: Cannot find module 'chromadb-js-bindings-linux-x64-gnu'

This happens because ChromaDB bindings are architecture-dependent and the setup process currently assumes an ARM64 environment. As a result, contributors using x64 Ubuntu or Windows cannot start the AI server directly.

Impact

Blocks contributors using standard x64 hardware
Prevents local testing of AI-related features
Creates setup friction during onboarding and Hacktoberfest participation

To Reproduce Steps to reproduce the behavior:

Clone the repository on an x64 system (Ubuntu 22.04, WSL2, or Intel-based environment)
Run npm install
Attempt to start the AI server: npm run ai:server
Observe the module error

Expected behavior The AI server should start successfully on x64 systems with ChromaDB bindings properly installed for the detected architecture.

Actual Behavior The server crashes immediately with a missing module error, suggesting the correct x64 bindings were not installed or linked during npm install.

Desktop (please complete the following information):

OS: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS / Windows 10/11 (x64)
Node.js: v20.19.5
npm: 10.8.2
Architecture: x86_64 (x64)

Confirmed Workaround Using WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) with Ubuntu 22.04 LTS resolves the issue completely.

Developers can install Neo within WSL, open it in VS Code via the WSL extension (Microsoft), and run:

NEO_CODE_BLOCK_1` ✅ The AI server launches successfully under this setup.

Suggested Documentation Update

Add a new markdown file: 📄 .github/DOCS/setup-x64-wsl-guide.md

This file should include:

Instructions for enabling virtualization in BIOS
WSL installation and Ubuntu setup
VS Code configuration (with WSL extension)
Steps to copy existing forks into WSL safely
Commands to verify ChromaDB runs correctly

This keeps the main README lightweight while providing detailed help for x64 users.

Labels

setup, bug, documentation, hacktoberfest, good first issue

@tobiu , I'd love to work on this issue.

Alachi24 added the bug label on Oct 21, 2025, 4:18 PM

tobiu Oct 21, 2025, 4:36 PM

this one is tricky. i would say, chroma should resolve it on their own, e.g.: https://github.com/chroma-core/chroma/issues/5188

what we could do on our end, until this is fixed: a try / catch block around starting chroma, if there is a missing OS related module, install it as a dev dependency. however, these ones can not get into the neo repo package.json, since they are OS related. and this can easily get messed up in PRs.

npm run ai:server is close to be fully deprecated. we now have 3 "real" mcp servers inside: https://github.com/neomjs/neo/tree/dev/ai/mcp/server

for gemini we now have this as the starting point: https://github.com/neomjs/neo/blob/dev/.gemini/settings.json (important: no longer relying on package.json scripts).

this would affect: https://github.com/neomjs/neo/blob/dev/ai/mcp/server/knowledge-base/services/ChromaManager.mjs#L45 https://github.com/neomjs/neo/blob/dev/ai/mcp/server/memory-core/services/ChromaManager.mjs#L62 (i kept them separate, since after v11, it would make sense to move the memory-core into a separate repo, so that non-neo related projects can use it too.)

creating a guide is definitely fine too.

tobiu assigned to @Alachi24 on Oct 21, 2025, 4:37 PM

Alachi24 Oct 21, 2025, 4:47 PM

Thank you, I'll start working on it. Can you also include the labels I requested, especially the Documentation & Hacktoberfest @tobiu

tobiu added the documentation label on Oct 21, 2025, 4:48 PM

tobiu added the good first issue label on Oct 21, 2025, 4:48 PM

tobiu added the hacktoberfest label on Oct 21, 2025, 4:48 PM

Alachi24 referenced in commit c837a7a - "docs: add setup guide for x64 systems using WSL to resolve ChromaDB binding issues (#7596)" on Oct 22, 2025, 8:24 PM

Alachi24 cross-referenced by PR #7617 on Oct 23, 2025, 6:30 AM

Alachi24 referenced in commit 055fed6 - "docs: add guide for running AI/ChromaDB tooling on Windows via WSL (#7596)" on Oct 24, 2025, 3:45 PM

tobiu referenced in commit 269b0da - "docs: add setup guide for x64 systems using WSL to resolve ChromaDB binding issues (#7596)" on Oct 24, 2025, 4:17 PM

tobiu closed this issue on Oct 24, 2025, 4:17 PM

tobiu referenced in commit fdfd63c - "docs: add guide for running AI/ChromaDB tooling on Windows via WSL (#7596)" on Oct 24, 2025, 4:17 PM