FAQ¶
Can I try noteui without setting anything up?¶
Yes. Run noteui --demo to launch the UI against a bundle of built-in sample
notes copied into a throwaway temporary directory. Your real notes directory
is not touched. The demo data is removed automatically when you quit.
See the Demo mode section of the usage guide for details about what is included.
Where are my notes stored?¶
By default, under $HOME/notes, unless you set NOTES_ROOT.
Does noteui use a database?¶
No. noteui works with normal files and directories.
What file types are supported?¶
.md.txt.org.norg
Does noteui change my existing files?¶
It works directly with your note files for operations like create, rename, move, delete, todo actions, and encrypted note workflows.
Where do deleted files go?¶
They are moved to the user trash.
Where is the config file?¶
If NOTEUI_CONFIG is not set, noteui looks in your user config directory under noteui/config.toml.
To validate the file without opening the TUI, run:
Where is the WebDAV credential fallback file?¶
If you use secrets.toml, noteui looks for it in your user config directory
under noteui/secrets.toml. On Linux that is usually
~/.config/noteui/secrets.toml.
This file is separate from config.toml. Setting NOTEUI_CONFIG does not move
it.
Where is noteui’s state stored?¶
By default in:
How do I change the editor used to open notes?¶
Set NOTEUI_EDITOR, or fall back to EDITOR.
Both variables may include command arguments such as code -w or
hx --wait. noteui splits the command string and then appends the note path.
Shell aliases and shell functions are still not supported.
Can I keep using my own editor and sync tools?¶
Yes. That is one of the main reasons noteui uses normal files on disk.
Where do I configure sync?¶
In the [sync] section of your config file. noteui supports two sync backends: SSH (the original) and WebDAV (for Nextcloud or any WebDAV server). See the Sync guide and the Configuration reference.
Can I sync through Nextcloud or another WebDAV server?¶
Yes. Set kind = "webdav" on a sync profile, provide the webdav_url, and configure authentication. Synced notes are stored as real Markdown files on the server, so you can view and edit them through Nextcloud or any WebDAV client.
The simple rule is:
webdav_urlpoints to your WebDAV user endpointremote_rootpoints to the notes directory under that endpoint
For example, to sync into a Nextcloud folder named Notes:
Export the environment variables named by username_env and password_env
before starting noteui, or put the same variable names in noteui/secrets.toml
inside your user config directory if you launch noteui from a desktop
environment that drops shell env vars. See the Sync guide
for the full setup.
Why is WebDAV sync slower than SSH?¶
WebDAV usually needs more network round trips than SSH sync, especially on the first sync to a new remote root.
That is expected because noteui has to:
- inspect remote metadata
- fetch note and mapping information
- create the remote directory and
.noteui-sync/structure when needed
Later syncs are usually faster once the remote structure exists.
Why does a note appear as remote-only?¶
That means the note exists on the sync server but has not been imported into the current notes root yet.
Use i to import the selected remote-only note or I to import all missing synced notes.
How do I resolve a sync conflict?¶
Select the conflicted synced note, press O to open the generated conflict copy, merge the content you want into the original note, then sync again.
The conflict copy is a safety file, not the canonical note path for future sync.
Where should I look for common problems?¶
Start with Troubleshooting. It covers editor launch problems, sync setup errors, remote-only notes, and contributor docs build issues.