NoteDiscovery is a self-hosted note-taking and knowledge base app: a Python/FastAPI service in a Docker image, notes stored as plain Markdown files in folders under ./data, and a browser interface that edits, searches and visualises them. It is aimed at people who want Obsidian-style local files with a Notion-style web interface, on their own server, without a database or a subscription.

Writing and organising

• Notes are Markdown files in nested folders, edited in a split view with the raw source on one side and a live preview on the other.
• Full-text search, favourites, a tags system and an outline panel that jumps between the headings of a long note.
• A drawing editor keeps sketches as drawing-*.png files next to the note, and LaTeX/MathJax plus Mermaid cover equations and diagrams.
• A graph view draws the links between notes, and backlinks show what points at the note you are reading.
• Themes, a plugin system, and export or print of a note as standalone HTML.

AI and integrations

• A built-in Model Context Protocol server lets Claude, Cursor or another MCP client search, create, tag and reorganise notes — either as a stdio container or over streamable HTTP when MCP_ENABLED=true points a client at /mcp.
• A bundled stack file brings up NoteDiscovery together with Ollama and Open WebUI for a fully local setup, and PikaPods will host the container for anyone who would rather not run it.

Running it

• One Docker command is the whole install: ghcr.io/gamosoft/notediscovery:latest on port 8000 with a single volume mounted at /app/data. Compose files ship for the prebuilt image and for building from source.
• Themes, plugins, locales and default configuration are baked into the image, so a deployment stays a container plus a data folder.
• Optional password protection for the instance and shareable notes, and every browser library is served locally rather than from a CDN — the app and its links work on an air-gapped network.

Alternatives

• Poznote — Docker note app that keeps notes as HTML or Markdown files, with kanban, revisions and Git sync
• LeafWiki — single Go binary wiki over a Markdown directory
• Memos — lightweight self-hosted memo hub