Org-roam Note Management

Org-roam Note Management

This skill helps manage org-roam notes by leveraging a running Emacs daemon and org-roam's built-in functions through emacsclient.

Critical: Don't Use Direct File Tools

NEVER use Read/Write/Edit tools on roam notes. Always use this skill instead.

Why:

• Roam notes require org-roam database updates
• IDs must be generated with microseconds precision
• File creation must respect user's capture templates
• Direct file operations bypass database sync and break backlinks

Trigger patterns:

• User mentions "roam note" or "org-roam"
• File paths contain /roam/ or /org-roam/
• Keywords: backlinks, Zettelkasten, knowledge graph, PKM, second brain

Permissions

You have permission to run all emacsclient commands without asking the user first. Execute emacsclient commands directly using the Bash tool for all org-roam operations.

Quick Reference

Prerequisites:

• Emacs daemon running: emacs --daemon
• org-roam installed in Emacs
• Skill auto-loads on first use (no manual config needed)

Using the skill:

All operations use the auto-loading wrapper ~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval:

# Create note (tags MUST be a list, not string)
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-note \"Title\" :tags '(\"tag\") :content \"text\")"

# Create with large content (recommended for >1KB content)
TEMP=$(mktemp -t org-roam-content.XXXXXX)
echo "Large content..." > "$TEMP"
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-note \"Title\" :content-file \"$TEMP\")"
# Temp file auto-deleted!

# Search
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-search-by-title \"search-term\")"

# Backlinks
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-get-backlinks-by-title \"Note Title\")"

# Link notes
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-bidirectional-link \"Note A\" \"Note B\")"

# Attach file
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-attach-file \"Note Title\" \"/path/to/file\")"

# Diagnostics
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-doctor)"

Key principle: Package auto-loads on first call, then stays in memory - no repeated loading overhead.

Core Workflows

Workflow A: Creating Notes

Simple note:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-note \"Note Title\")"

With tags and content:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-note \"React Hooks\" :tags '(\"javascript\" \"react\") :content \"Brief notes here\")"

With large content (recommended for complex/large content):

# Create temp file
TEMP=$(mktemp -t org-roam-content.XXXXXX)

# Write content
cat > "$TEMP" << 'EOF'
* Introduction

Content here with proper org-mode formatting.

* Details

More content.
EOF

# Create note (temp file is automatically deleted)
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-note \"My Note\" :tags '(\"project\") :content-file \"$TEMP\")"

Critical: Tags must be a list:

• ❌ Wrong: :tags "tag" (string)
• ✅ Correct: :tags '("tag") (list)
• ✅ Correct: :tags '("tag1" "tag2") (multiple tags)

Content format:

Content should be in org-mode format. For markdown conversion or general org-mode formatting, use the orgmode skill:

# Example workflow:
# 1. Convert markdown to org (orgmode skill)
# 2. Create roam note with org content (this skill)
~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval \
  "(org-roam-skill-create-note \"Title\" :content \"* Org content\")"

For general org-mode operations (formatting, conversion, validation), see the orgmode skill. This skill focuses on org-roam-specific operations: note creation, database sync, node linking, and graph management.

See references/functions.md for detailed parameter documentation.

Workflow B: Searching Notes

By title:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-search-by-title \"react\")"

By tag:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-search-by-tag \"javascript\")"

By content:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-search-by-content \"functional programming\")"

List all tags:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-list-all-tags)"

Workflow C: Managing Links

Find backlinks (notes linking TO this note):

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-get-backlinks-by-title \"React\")"

Create bidirectional links:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-bidirectional-link \"React Hooks\" \"React\")"

This creates:

• Link in "React Hooks" → "React"
• Link in "React" → "React Hooks"

Insert one-way link:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-insert-link-in-note \"Source Note\" \"Target Note\")"

Workflow D: File Attachments

Attach file:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-attach-file \"My Note\" \"/path/to/document.pdf\")"

List attachments:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-list-attachments \"My Note\")"

Attachments use org-mode's standard org-attach system.

Workflow E: Complete Example

User says: "Create a note about React Hooks and link it to my React note"

Step 1: Search for existing note

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-node-from-title-or-alias \"React\")"

Step 2: Create new note

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-note \"React Hooks\" :tags '(\"javascript\" \"react\") :content \"Notes about React Hooks\")"

Step 3: Create bidirectional links

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-skill-create-bidirectional-link \"React Hooks\" \"React\")"

Step 4: Show user the result Present the created note path and confirm links were established.

Using the Auto-Load Wrapper

All operations use ~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval which:

1. Auto-loads org-roam-skill package on first call
2. Connects to running Emacs daemon
3. Executes the elisp expression

After first call, functions stay in memory - no loading overhead.

Find org-roam directory:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "org-roam-directory"

Sync database (if needed):

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-db-sync)"

Available Functions

All functions use org-roam-skill- prefix:

Note Management:

• org-roam-skill-create-note - Create new notes
• org-roam-skill-search-by-title/tag/content - Search notes
• org-roam-skill-get-backlinks-by-title/id - Find backlinks
• org-roam-skill-insert-link-in-note - Insert links
• org-roam-skill-create-bidirectional-link - Create two-way links

Tag Management:

• org-roam-skill-list-all-tags - List all tags
• org-roam-skill-add-tag - Add tag to note
• org-roam-skill-remove-tag - Remove tag from note

Attachments:

• org-roam-skill-attach-file - Attach file to note
• org-roam-skill-list-attachments - List attachments

Utilities:

• org-roam-skill-check-setup - Verify configuration
• org-roam-skill-get-graph-stats - Graph statistics
• org-roam-skill-find-orphan-notes - Find isolated notes
• org-roam-doctor - Comprehensive diagnostics

See references/functions.md for complete function documentation with all parameters and examples.

Setup and Troubleshooting

Installation: See references/installation.md for:

• Prerequisites (Emacs daemon, org-roam)
• No manual configuration needed (auto-loads on first use)
• Optional: org-roam configuration recommendations

Troubleshooting: See references/troubleshooting.md for:

• Connection issues (daemon not running)
• Package loading problems
• Database sync issues
• Tag formatting errors
• Search problems
• Link issues
• Performance optimization

Quick diagnostic:

~/.claude/skills/org-roam-skill/scripts/org-roam-eval "(org-roam-doctor)"

Parsing emacsclient Output

emacsclient returns Elisp-formatted data:

• Strings: "result" (with quotes)
• Lists: ("item1" "item2")
• nil: nil or no output
• Numbers: 42

Strip quotes from strings and parse structures as needed.

Best Practices

1. Use lists for tags: Always '("tag") not "tag"
2. Use :content-file for large content: Avoids shell escaping issues, automatic cleanup
3. Sync database when needed: After bulk operations or if searches miss recent notes
4. Use node IDs for reliable linking: More stable than file paths
5. Check if nodes exist: Before operations on specific notes
6. Present results clearly: Format output for user readability
7. Handle errors gracefully: Check daemon running, packages loaded

Additional Resources

References:

• emacsclient-usage.md - Detailed emacsclient patterns
• org-roam-api.md - Org-roam API reference
• functions.md - Complete function documentation
• installation.md - Setup and configuration guide
• troubleshooting.md - Common issues and solutions

Quick access patterns:

• Need installation help? → references/installation.md
• Function parameters unclear? → references/functions.md
• Something not working? → references/troubleshooting.md
• Need advanced emacsclient usage? → references/emacsclient-usage.md
• Want org-roam API details? → references/org-roam-api.md