TriliumNext (trilium-mcp) — Claude Code MCP server: notes access
Lets an agent read and write your TriliumNext knowledge base over ETAPI. Useful when your notes live in Trilium and you want to file things there from a chat.
claude mcp add --env TRILIUM_URL=<TRILIUM_URL> --env TRILIUM_TOKEN=<TRILIUM_TOKEN> --env TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS=<TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS> --env TRILIUM_MCP_LOG=<TRILIUM_MCP_LOG> --transport stdio triliumnext-trilium-mcp -- docker run -i --rm -e TRILIUM_URL -e TRILIUM_TOKEN -e TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS -e TRILIUM_MCP_LOG ghcr.io/ovden13/trilium-mcp:0.1.5What TriliumNext (trilium-mcp) does
The server ships as a single static Go binary with no runtime dependencies. It speaks stdio to the client and HTTP or HTTPS to Trilium. The toolset covers note creation one at a time or in bulk, fetching metadata and whole subtrees, partial updates, appending text to a body, deletion, re-parenting, cloning and branch removal. Search and attribute handling sit alongside: labels, relations, listing them, dropping one by id.
You need a running TriliumNext instance plus an ETAPI token, which the settings page shows once. Connection details go into TRILIUM_URL and TRILIUM_TOKEN; TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS caps each request and TRILIUM_MCP_LOG sets log verbosity. TRILIUM_URL accepts a comma-separated list — the server walks it in order and moves on when a transport error hits, while an HTTP error such as 404 comes back right away.
Logs go to stderr because stdout carries the JSON-RPC stream. Running it in Docker means passing the environment variables into the container; without them the server has nothing to connect to.
What it helps with
- file links and notes into Trilium without leaving the agent chat
- build a table out of note rows tagged with labels as columns
- find entries by label, relation or a title regex
- append a line to a decision log and leave the rest untouched
- move or duplicate a note under a second parent
Example prompts for the agent
- Create a note titled Atomic Habits under the Books node with labels status=read, rating=9, author=Clear
- Search the Books subtree for notes tagged #status=read and #rating>=8
- Append a line to the journal note: shipping v0.2 on Monday
How to install TriliumNext (trilium-mcp)
Platform CLI
claude mcp add --env TRILIUM_URL=<TRILIUM_URL> --env TRILIUM_TOKEN=<TRILIUM_TOKEN> --env TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS=<TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS> --env TRILIUM_MCP_LOG=<TRILIUM_MCP_LOG> --transport stdio triliumnext-trilium-mcp -- docker run -i --rm -e TRILIUM_URL -e TRILIUM_TOKEN -e TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS -e TRILIUM_MCP_LOG ghcr.io/ovden13/trilium-mcp:0.1.5Replace <…> with your own values
Platform CLI
codex mcp add triliumnext-trilium-mcp --env TRILIUM_URL=<TRILIUM_URL> --env TRILIUM_TOKEN=<TRILIUM_TOKEN> --env TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS=<TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS> --env TRILIUM_MCP_LOG=<TRILIUM_MCP_LOG> -- docker run -i --rm -e TRILIUM_URL -e TRILIUM_TOKEN -e TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS -e TRILIUM_MCP_LOG ghcr.io/ovden13/trilium-mcp:0.1.5Replace <…> with your own values
Config file
{
"mcpServers": {
"triliumnext-trilium-mcp": {
"command": "docker",
"args": [
"run",
"-i",
"--rm",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_URL",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_TOKEN",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_MCP_LOG",
"ghcr.io/ovden13/trilium-mcp:0.1.5"
],
"env": {
"TRILIUM_URL": "<TRILIUM_URL>",
"TRILIUM_TOKEN": "<TRILIUM_TOKEN>",
"TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS": "<TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS>",
"TRILIUM_MCP_LOG": "<TRILIUM_MCP_LOG>"
}
}
}
}Replace <…> with your own values
Config file
{
"servers": {
"triliumnext-trilium-mcp": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "docker",
"args": [
"run",
"-i",
"--rm",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_URL",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_TOKEN",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS",
"-e",
"TRILIUM_MCP_LOG",
"ghcr.io/ovden13/trilium-mcp:0.1.5"
],
"env": {
"TRILIUM_URL": "<TRILIUM_URL>",
"TRILIUM_TOKEN": "<TRILIUM_TOKEN>",
"TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS": "<TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS>",
"TRILIUM_MCP_LOG": "<TRILIUM_MCP_LOG>"
}
}
}
}Replace <…> with your own values
Platform CLI
gemini mcp add -e TRILIUM_URL=<TRILIUM_URL> -e TRILIUM_TOKEN=<TRILIUM_TOKEN> -e TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS=<TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS> -e TRILIUM_MCP_LOG=<TRILIUM_MCP_LOG> triliumnext-trilium-mcp docker run -i --rm -e TRILIUM_URL -e TRILIUM_TOKEN -e TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS -e TRILIUM_MCP_LOG ghcr.io/ovden13/trilium-mcp:0.1.5Replace <…> with your own values
Step by step, with commands for each platform: How to add an MCP server to Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, VS Code, Gemini CLI and more
Questions about TriliumNext (trilium-mcp)
How do I install TriliumNext (trilium-mcp) in Claude Code?
Run `claude mcp add --env TRILIUM_URL=<TRILIUM_URL> --env TRILIUM_TOKEN=<TRILIUM_TOKEN> --env TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS=<TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS> --env TRILIUM_MCP_LOG=<TRILIUM_MCP_LOG> --transport stdio triliumnext-trilium-mcp -- docker run -i --rm -e TRILIUM_URL -e TRILIUM_TOKEN -e TRILIUM_HTTP_TIMEOUT_SECONDS -e TRILIUM_MCP_LOG ghcr.io/ovden13/trilium-mcp:0.1.5`, replacing the placeholders with your own values.
What does TriliumNext (trilium-mcp) do?
It gives an agent access to your TriliumNext base through ETAPI: creating, reading, updating and deleting notes, working with subtrees, labels and relations, and running searches.
What does the server need to run?
A TriliumNext instance and an ETAPI token from its settings. The address and token are set through TRILIUM_URL and TRILIUM_TOKEN.
