Getting Started with Docunara

Docunara is a web-based document editor for Docusaurus. It provides a visual interface for managing your documentation site — including a document tree, visual and code editors, resource file management, and full-text search — all from your browser.

Features

• Document Tree — Browse and manage your docs folder structure visually with drag-and-drop reordering
• Visual Editor — WYSIWYG rich text editing powered by Plate.js with slash commands, floating toolbar, and drag-and-drop blocks
• Code Editor — Write Markdown/MDX directly with syntax highlighting and live preview
• Auto-save — Changes are automatically saved with a 2-second debounce, plus manual save via Ctrl+S / Cmd+S
• Resource Panel — Upload and reference images, videos, audio, and PDF assets attached to documents
• Document Operations — Create, duplicate, move, rename, and delete documents and folders
• Clone Between Locales — Clone documents from one locale to another with conflict detection and preview
• Build / Publish — Rebuild the Docusaurus static site from the editor with real-time progress streaming
• Document Search — Full-text search with regex, case-sensitive, and whole-word options (requires DB_ENABLED=true)
• AI Chat — Built-in AI assistant for writing, translating, summarizing, and improving documentation (setup guide)
• User Management — Multi-user authentication with role-based access control (requires license)
• Multi-Locale Support — Manage translated documentation for internationalization

Quick Start

1. Configure Environment

Copy the example environment file and edit as needed:

cp .env.example .env

See Configuration for details on all available options.

2. Install Dependencies

npm install

3. Start the Editor

Production mode — builds the static site first, then serves everything (API + static files) on a single port:

npm run editor

The editor is accessible at the URL shown in the terminal output (e.g., http://localhost:<API_PORT>/editor).

Development mode — runs both the Docusaurus dev server (with hot reload) and the API server concurrently:

npm run editor:dev

In development mode, Docusaurus and the API server run on separate ports (configured in .env and package.json). The editor UI is available at the Docusaurus dev server URL (e.g., http://localhost:<PORT>/editor).

tip

Use npm run editor:dev during development for hot reload. Use npm run editor for production-like testing on a single port.

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Authentication Modes

Docunara supports different authentication modes depending on your configuration:

Configuration	Auth Behavior	Search	User Management
DB_ENABLED=false, ADMIN_PASSWORD empty	Open access (no login)	No	No
DB_ENABLED=false, ADMIN_PASSWORD set	Admin ID or email login	No	No
DB_ENABLED=true	Admin login required	Yes	No
DB_ENABLED=true + valid license	Multi-user login	Yes	Yes

For production deployments, we recommend enabling the database for search functionality. See Licensing for edition details and feature availability.

Further Reading

• Configuration — Environment variables and setup options
• AI Chat — AI-powered writing assistant setup and usage
• Roles & Permissions — User roles and access control
• Licensing — License policy and feature availability