Claude Code + NoteDiscovery Setup

Self-hosted Markdown Notes with Web UI and Claude Code CLI via SSH.

Overview

Service	Purpose	Access
NoteDiscovery	Web UI for Markdown Notes	http://server:8800
Claude Code	AI Assistant via SSH	ssh -p 2222 root@server

Both containers share the same notes directory.

File Structure

project/
├── docker-compose.yml
├── .env                    # Create from .env.example
├── .env.example
├── claude-ssh/
│   ├── Dockerfile
│   └── entrypoint.sh
├── claude-data/            # Created automatically (Claude Config)
└── notes/                  # Your Markdown Notes

Setup

1. Clone repository / Copy files

2. Configure environment variables

cp .env.example .env

Edit .env:

GITHUB_USERS=your-github-username
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-xxxxx

Multiple GitHub users: GITHUB_USERS=user1,user2,user3 (no spaces)

3. Create notes directory (optional)

mkdir -p notes

4. Start

docker compose up -d --build

First build takes ~5 minutes (npm install).

Usage

Web UI (NoteDiscovery)

Open browser: http://server:8800

Claude Code via SSH

ssh -p 2222 root@server
cd /workspace/notes
claude

Useful Claude Code commands:

• /status - Auth method, model, account
• /cost - API usage costs
• /doctor - Check installation
• /init - Create CLAUDE.md for project

How it works

SSH Key Import

The container automatically fetches SSH keys from GitHub on startup:

1. Reads GITHUB_USERS environment variable
2. ssh-import-id-gh fetches keys from https://github.com/<user>.keys
3. Keys are written to /root/.ssh/authorized_keys

API Key Setup

Instead of browser OAuth, the API key is configured directly:

1. Key is exported in /root/.bashrc
2. ~/.claude.json marks the key as trusted (last 20 characters)
3. Onboarding is skipped

Persistence

Path	Bind Mount	Persistent?
/workspace/notes	./notes	✅
/root/.claude	./claude-data	✅
/root/.claude.json	-	❌ (recreated on start)

Troubleshooting

SSH Permission denied

# Check if key exists on GitHub
curl https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME.keys

# Check container logs
docker compose logs claude-code

Claude Code doesn't start / wants OAuth

# Check inside container
docker exec -it claude-code bash
echo $ANTHROPIC_API_KEY
cat /root/.claude.json

Show logs

docker compose logs -f
docker compose logs -f claude-code

Rebuild after changes

docker compose down && docker compose up -d --build

Customization

Change notes path

Adjust both volumes in docker-compose.yml:

volumes:
  - /your/path:/app/data          # NoteDiscovery
  - /your/path:/workspace/notes   # Claude Code

Enable NoteDiscovery authentication

notediscovery:
  environment:
    - AUTHENTICATION_ENABLED=true
    - AUTHENTICATION_PASSWORD=your-password

Use different model

In Claude Code: /model or on startup: claude --model opus

Git from Container (⚠️ Working, persistence not tested)

Since /root/.ssh is not persistent, use GitHub Personal Access Token:

Setup

# Inside the claude-code container
ssh -p 2222 root@server

# Configure git to store credentials in persistent directory
git config --global user.name "your-name"
git config --global user.email "your@email.com"
git config --global credential.helper 'store --file=/root/.claude/.git-credentials'

First Push

git push
# Username: your-github-username
# Password: <paste your personal access token>

The token is stored in /root/.claude/.git-credentials (persistent bind mount).

Create Personal Access Token:

1. https://github.com/settings/tokens/new
2. Note: claude-workspace
3. Expiration: 90 days or longer
4. Scopes: Check repo
5. Generate and copy token

Note: Credentials persist across container restarts since /root/.claude is mounted. However, full persistence has not been extensively tested.