Self-host collabmd
v0.1.56Realtime collaborative Markdown editor with diagrams
- Stars
- 284
- Port
- 1234 (HTTP and WebSocket server)
ghcr.io/andes90/collabmd:latest
What is collabmd?
CollabMD is a self-hosted web application that transforms a local Markdown directory, Obsidian vault, or git-backed documentation repository into a realtime collaborative workspace. Several people can modify the same documents concurrently through Yjs synchronization, while the original files on disk stay authoritative — edits made in outside editors such as Obsidian flow back into the browser. It renders multiple diagram formats with live previews, and adds wiki-links, backlinks, full-text search via ripgrep, inline comments on text and diagram elements, presence indicators, follow mode, and chat. Git features let users review diffs, stage files, and commit from the browser. An experimental MCP server exposes vault search, read, edit, and diagram tools to AI agents with scoped, revocable tokens. The app runs as a single Node.js process (Node.js 26.12.1+), with Docker images that bundle ripgrep. Authentication choices are none (default), a shared password, or Google OIDC. A Cloudflare Quick Tunnel can temporarily expose a local instance. Known limits: single-instance only (room state stays in-process), OIDC works with Google only, hosted workspace mode is still being built, and Windows needs WSL2.
Should you self-host collabmd?
collabmd scores 48/100 on selfhost.directory (how scoring works) and ranks #43 of 81 in Notes & Editors. It has 284 GitHub stars.
It shipped 16 stable releases in the past year. The latest, v0.1.56, came out on 22 October 2026. New versions land roughly every 7 days.
Setup is moderate: expect some configuration beyond a single command. An official Docker image is available. It is MIT-licensed and written mostly in JavaScript.
Its closest alternative on selfhost.directory is Memos (86/100, 64 141 stars). It scores higher overall, so compare the two before you pick. See collabmd vs Memos side by side.
Features
- Diagram support (Mermaid, PlantUML, Structurizr, Excalidraw, draw.io)
- Document export
- File upload and import
- Git Integration
- Global text searchRequires ripgrep (included in Docker image)
- Google OIDC authenticationRequires stable PUBLIC_BASE_URL; not compatible with Cloudflare Quick Tunnel
- Markdown editing with live preview
- MCP Agent AccessRequires COLLABMD_AGENT_ACCESS_ENABLED=true
- Multi-vault support
- Password Authentication
- Presence and follow mode
- Realtime collaborative editing
- Room chat
- Source-anchored commentsdraw.io comments not supported
collabmd README
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