Hister is a private search engine that indexes the pages you visit and files you keep for full-text search across web, terminal, and AI assistant interfaces.
The tool solves the problem of finding information you have already encountered but cannot easily locate again. It works by running a local server that indexes web pages captured through browser extensions for Firefox and Chrome, as well as local files and directories. Search queries support field filters, phrases, wildcards, negation, and aliases. The tool optionally integrates semantic search through an embeddings endpoint you configure, allowing you to find documents by meaning rather than exact text matching.
Hister suits developers and privacy-conscious users who want to search their personal information without relying on cloud services or accepting telemetry. It works well for anyone who regularly needs to rediscover content from their browsing history or local file collections. The project emphasizes local-first operation; by default all indexing and search happen on infrastructure you control. Multi-user support allows separate document collections and search results for each user on a shared server instance. The tool provides multiple interfaces—a web UI, terminal client, and MCP server integration for AI assistants—so you can search from your preferred environment.
Development activity shows consistent maintenance with regular updates addressing user needs. The project maintains comprehensive documentation covering installation, configuration, and usage patterns. Bug reports and feature requests receive responses indicating active engagement with the user community. The codebase demonstrates attention to both core functionality and user experience, with refinements to search capabilities and interface usability appearing regularly.
