CLI commands

Run notewise COMMAND --help for command-specific flags. The command set is defined in src/notewise/cli/app.py.

Main commands

Command	Purpose
`notewise process [URL]`	Generate notes from one video, playlist, or batch file. Omit `URL` to be prompted.
`notewise setup`	Run the interactive config wizard.
`notewise config`	Print masked effective config.
`notewise config keys`	List every key `get`/`set`/`unset` accept.
`notewise config get [KEY]`	Print one config value (masked if secret). Omit `KEY` to pick from a numbered list.
`notewise config set [KEY] [VAL]`	Set one config value. Omit `KEY` to pick from a list; omit `VAL` for a sensitive key to be prompted with hidden input.
`notewise config unset [KEY]`	Remove one config value. Omit `KEY` to pick from a numbered list.
`notewise config edit`	Interactively browse and edit config, grouped by category.
`notewise config-path`	Print the active config database path.
`notewise edit-config`	Edit config as an env-style file in your editor.
`notewise auth login PROVIDER`	Login to OAuth providers.
`notewise info`	Show runtime config and state paths.
`notewise info URL`	Inspect YouTube metadata and cache status without generation.
`notewise transcript [URL]`	Download one video’s transcript (txt/json) without AI generation. Omit `URL` to be prompted.
`notewise inference`	List and manage saved inference endpoints.
`notewise doctor`	Check config, provider readiness, output, cache, and logs.
`notewise stats`	Show processing totals and model breakdown.
`notewise history`	Show recent processed videos.
`notewise cache`	Inspect or maintain the SQLite cache.
`notewise cache show [VIDEO_ID]`	Show cached metadata for a video. Omit `VIDEO_ID` to pick from a list of recently cached videos.
`notewise logs`	Inspect or clean session logs.
`notewise update`	Check whether a newer release is available.
`notewise version`	Show the installed version.
`notewise help`	Show the same output as `notewise --help`/`-h`.

Prompted arguments

Several commands accept their main argument as optional: leave it out and NoteWise prints a numbered list (when there’s a list to choose from) or a plain prompt, then reads your answer instead of failing with a usage error. This applies to notewise process, notewise transcript, notewise config get/set/unset, notewise cache show, and notewise inference add/update/delete (see Inference endpoints below). Sensitive values, such as config set for an API key or inference add/update --api-key, are always prompted with hidden input rather than left in shell history.

Process command

notewise process "https://youtu.be/VIDEO_ID" --format md,docx --quiz

Important flags: --model, --base-url, --api-key, --output, --format, --language, --target-language, --temperature, --max-tokens, --throttle, --force, --no-ui, --verbose, --quiz, --export-transcript, --timestamps, --chapter-directory-output, and --cookie-file.

Custom endpoint run overrides

Set up named custom endpoints with notewise setup, then select one through its <name>/<model-id> model name. --base-url sends only the current process run to a different OpenAI-compatible URL:

notewise process "<video-url>" --model <name>/<model-id> --base-url <base-url> --api-key <api-key>

Both flags are transient: they do not update config.db or ambient environment variables. --base-url takes precedence for the request URL. An explicitly passed --api-key takes precedence for the request key; otherwise, NoteWise reuses a saved profile key only when the normalized URL is the profile’s saved origin. Supply --api-key whenever --base-url changes that origin.

Inference endpoints

Saved custom endpoints use a model name in the form <name>/<model-id>. Manage those profiles with the inference command group:

notewise inference list
notewise inference add [<name>] [--base-url <url>] [--api-key <api-key>] [--model <model-id>]
notewise inference update [<name>] [--base-url <url>] [--api-key <api-key>] [--model <model-id>]
notewise inference delete [<name>]

list displays each saved endpoint’s name and base URL, never its API key. add and delete are fully interactive: any argument or option left out is prompted for instead of erroring. update is interactive when <name> is omitted; when <name> is passed on the command line, it still requires --base-url, --api-key, or both.

add prompts for a name, base URL, and (hidden-input) API key when they’re omitted. If --model is omitted, it launches the same paginated, searchable model picker described in Configuration against the live endpoint. It then discovers pricing (see Providers), verifies the model, and atomically adds or replaces the named profile.
update and delete list saved endpoints with a number next to each and prompt for a pick when <name> is omitted. For update, a blank answer at the base URL or API key prompt keeps the current saved value; changing the base URL still requires a new API key. If --model is omitted, NoteWise reuses the suffix of the current default model when it’s named <name>/<model-id>; otherwise it opens the model picker (when <name> was omitted) or requires --model explicitly (when <name> was passed on the command line).
delete refuses to remove a profile while the default model begins with <name>/.

API keys supplied on a command line can be retained in shell history. Prefer notewise setup, the prompted flow above, or direct configuration for persistent secrets.

Transcript command

notewise transcript "https://youtu.be/VIDEO_ID"
notewise transcript "https://youtu.be/VIDEO_ID" --format json -o ./exports
notewise transcript "https://youtu.be/VIDEO_ID" -l en -l hi -c cookies.txt

Downloads one video’s transcript without any AI generation and needs no API key. Use --format json for structured output instead of the default txt, --output for a different folder, --language (one code per flag, repeatable; defaults to the video’s spoken language), and --cookie-file for restricted videos. Playlists and batch files are not supported here; use notewise process --export-transcript instead.

Setup and auth

notewise setup
notewise setup --show
notewise setup --force
notewise auth login chatgpt
notewise auth login github_copilot
notewise auth login codex

Update command

notewise update

The update check compares the installed version with the latest GitHub release. It detects whether NoteWise is running as a standalone binary or as a Python package and prints the matching upgrade command group. Standalone binaries receive the short release installer command. Python package installs receive package-manager commands for uv tool, pipx, and python -m pip; use the one that matches how you installed NoteWise.

Exit behavior

Successful commands exit with 0. Processing failures exit with 1.

Last modified on November 6, 2026

Start

Use

Configure

Operate

Understand

Main commands

Prompted arguments

Process command

Custom endpoint run overrides

Inference endpoints

Transcript command

Setup and auth

Update command

Exit behavior

​Main commands

​Prompted arguments

​Process command

​Custom endpoint run overrides

​Inference endpoints

​Transcript command

​Setup and auth

​Update command

​Exit behavior

Main commands

Prompted arguments

Process command

Custom endpoint run overrides

Inference endpoints

Transcript command

Setup and auth

Update command

Exit behavior