Zen
Lightweight self-hosted notes app with Markdown and SQLite
Zen is a simple, lightweight self-hosted notes application designed for fast writing and long-term portability. Notes are stored as standard Markdown files with a local SQLite database for indexing and search.
Key Features
- Single Go binary deployment (or Docker Compose) with very low resource usage
- Notes stored as Markdown with a local SQLite database
- Full-text search with BM25 ranking across titles and content
- Flexible tagging and custom views (“Focus Modes”) instead of rigid folder structures
- Rich Markdown support (tables, code blocks, task lists, highlights, and more)
- Templates and pinned notes for faster capture and organization
- Archive and soft delete with restore capability
- Import/export for portability (Markdown, JSON, and referenced images)
- Responsive, mobile-friendly UI with PWA support, dark mode, and offline reading
- Experimental features: canvas view (JSON Canvas) and MCP server for searching/reading notes
Use Cases
- Personal knowledge management with portable Markdown-based storage
- Fast searchable note-taking for developers, students, and researchers
- Lightweight notes service for homelabs or low-resource servers
Limitations and Considerations
- Some capabilities (canvas, MCP server, semantic/similar-image features) are experimental and may change
- Automated backups are handled via a separate companion tool rather than built in
Zen focuses on a clean interface, minimal dependencies, and future-proof storage so your notes remain accessible and easy to migrate. It’s a good fit for users who want a self-contained, low-ops notes app without proprietary formats.
Categories:
Tags:
Tech Stack:
SQLite
JavaScript
Go
HTML
Docker
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