CLAUDE.md — lfnovo/open-notebook

An Open Source implementation of Notebook LM with more flexibility and features

6/19/2026 · 16 viewsCLAUDE.md

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Domain Module

Core data models for notebooks, sources, notes, and settings with async SurrealDB persistence, auto-embedding, and relationship management.

Purpose

Two base classes support different persistence patterns: ObjectModel (mutable records with auto-increment IDs) and RecordModel (singleton configuration with fixed IDs).

Key Components

base.py

  • ObjectModel: Base for notebooks, sources, notes

    • save(): Create/update with auto-embedding for searchable content
    • delete(): Remove by ID
    • relate(relationship, target_id): Create graph relationships (reference, artifact, refers_to)
    • get(id): Polymorphic fetch; resolves subclass from ID prefix
    • get_all(order_by): Fetch all records from table
    • Integrates with ModelManager for automatic embedding
  • RecordModel: Singleton configuration (ContentSettings, DefaultPrompts)

    • Fixed record_id per subclass
    • update(): Upsert to database
    • Lazy DB loading via _load_from_db()

notebook.py

  • Notebook: Research project container

    • get_sources(), get_notes(), get_chat_sessions(): Navigate relationships
    • get_delete_preview(): Returns counts of notes, exclusive sources, and shared sources that would be affected by deletion
    • delete(delete_exclusive_sources): Cascade deletion - always deletes notes, optionally deletes exclusive sources, always unlinks all sources
  • Source: Content item (file/URL)

    • vectorize(): Submit async embedding job (returns command_id, fire-and-forget)
    • get_status(), get_processing_progress(): Track job via surreal_commands
    • get_context(): Returns summary for LLM context
    • add_insight(): Submit async insight creation via create_insight_command (fire-and-forget, returns command_id)
  • Note: Standalone or linked notes

    • save(): Submits embed_note command after save (fire-and-forget)
    • add_to_notebook(): Link to notebook
  • SourceInsight, SourceEmbedding: Derived content models

  • ChatSession: Conversation container with optional model_override

  • Asset: File/URL reference helper

  • Search functions:

    • text_search(): Full-text keyword search. On a SurrealDB search::highlight "position overflow" (large/multi-byte chunks) it falls back to vector_search(); if that also fails it raises DatabaseOperationError (never silently returns an empty list)
    • vector_search(): Semantic search via embeddings (default minimum_score=0.2)

content_settings.py

  • ContentSettings: Singleton for processing engines, embedding strategy, file deletion, YouTube languages

transformation.py

  • Transformation: Reusable prompts for content transformation
  • DefaultPrompts: Singleton with transformation instructions

credential.py

  • Credential: Individual credential records for API keys and provider configuration

    • One record per credential: Each credential (e.g., "My OpenAI Key", "Work Anthropic") is a separate Credential record in SurrealDB
    • Fields: name, provider, modalities (list), api_key (SecretStr), base_url, endpoint, api_version, endpoint_llm/embedding/stt/tts, project, location, credentials_path
    • SecretStr protection: API key field uses Pydantic's SecretStr (values masked in logs/repr)
    • Encryption integration: Uses encrypt_value()/decrypt_value() from open_notebook.utils.encryption
      • Keys encrypted with Fernet before database storage
      • Requires OPEN_NOTEBOOK_ENCRYPTION_KEY environment variable (warns if not set)
    • Key methods:
      • to_esperanto_config(): Builds config dict for Esperanto's AIFactory methods
      • get_by_provider(provider): Class method to fetch all credentials for a provider
      • get_linked_models(): Returns all Model records linked to this credential
    • Custom serialization: _prepare_save_data() extracts SecretStr values and encrypts before storage
    • Decryption on read: get() and get_all() overridden to decrypt api_key after fetch
  • Note: provider_config.py still exists for legacy migration support (migrating old ProviderConfig records to Credential)

Important Patterns

  • Async/await: All DB operations async; always use await
  • Polymorphic get(): ObjectModel.get(id) determines subclass from ID prefix (table:id format)
  • Fire-and-forget embedding: Models submit embed_* commands after save via submit_command() (non-blocking)
  • Nullable fields: Declare via nullable_fields ClassVar to allow None in database
  • Timestamps: created and updated auto-managed as ISO strings
  • Fire-and-forget jobs: source.vectorize() returns command_id without waiting

Key Dependencies

  • surrealdb: RecordID type for relationships
  • pydantic: Validation and field_validator decorators
  • open_notebook.database.repository: CRUD and relationship functions
  • open_notebook.ai.models: ModelManager for embeddings
  • surreal_commands: Async job submission (vectorization, insights)
  • loguru: Logging

Quirks & Gotchas

  • Polymorphic resolution: ObjectModel.get() fails if subclass not imported (search subclasses list)
  • RecordModel singleton: new returns existing instance; call clear_instance() in tests
  • Source.command field: Stored as RecordID; auto-parsed from strings via field_validator
  • Text truncation: Note.get_context(short) hardcodes 100-char limit
  • Auto-embedding behavior:
    • Note.save() → auto-submits embed_note command
    • Source.save() → does NOT auto-submit (must call vectorize() explicitly)
    • Source.add_insight() → submits create_insight_command which handles DB insert + embed_insight command (all fire-and-forget)
  • Relationship strings: Must match SurrealDB schema (reference, artifact, refers_to)

How to Add New Model

  1. Inherit from ObjectModel with table_name ClassVar
  2. Define Pydantic fields with validators
  3. Override save() to submit embedding command if searchable (use submit_command("embed_*", id))
  4. Add custom methods for domain logic (get_X, add_to_Y)
  5. Implement _prepare_save_data() if custom serialization needed

Usage

notebook = Notebook(name="Research", description="My project")
await notebook.save()

obj = await ObjectModel.get("notebook:123")  # Polymorphic fetch

# Search
await text_search("quantum", results=5)
await vector_search("quantum computing", results=10, minimum_score=0.3)

Source: lfnovo/open-notebook · 31809★ Repo: An Open Source implementation of Notebook LM with more flexibility and features