nlm-skill

name	nlm-skill
version	0.9.0
description	Expert guide for the NotebookLM CLI (`nlm`) and MCP server - interfaces for Google NotebookLM. Use this skill when users want to interact with NotebookLM programmatically, including: creating/managing notebooks, adding sources (URLs, YouTube, text, Google Drive), generating content (podcasts, reports, quizzes, flashcards, mind maps, slides, infographics, videos, data tables), conducting research, chatting with sources, or automating NotebookLM workflows. Triggers on mentions of "nlm", "notebooklm", "notebook lm", "podcast generation", "audio overview", "refactor document", "critique draft", or any NotebookLM-related automation task.

NotebookLM CLI & MCP Expert

This skill provides comprehensive guidance for using NotebookLM via both the nlm CLI and MCP tools.

Tool Detection (CRITICAL - Read First!)

ALWAYS check which tools are available before proceeding:

1. Check for MCP tools: Look for tools starting with mcp__notebooklm-mcp__* or mcp_notebooklm_*
2. If BOTH MCP tools AND CLI are available: ASK the user which they prefer to use before proceeding
3. If only MCP tools are available: Use them directly (refer to tool docstrings for parameters)
4. If only CLI is available: Use nlm CLI commands via Bash

Decision Logic:

has_mcp_tools = check_available_tools()  # Look for mcp__notebooklm-mcp__* or mcp_notebooklm_*
has_cli = check_bash_available()  # Can run nlm commands

if has_mcp_tools and has_cli:
    # ASK USER: "I can use either MCP tools or the nlm CLI. Which do you prefer?"
    user_preference = ask_user()
else if has_mcp_tools:
    # Use MCP tools directly
    mcp__notebooklm-mcp__notebook_list()
else:
    # Use CLI via Bash
    bash("nlm notebook list")

This skill documents BOTH approaches. Choose the appropriate one based on tool availability and user preference.

Quick Reference

Run nlm --ai to get comprehensive AI-optimized documentation - this provides a complete view of all CLI capabilities.

nlm --help              # List all commands
nlm <command> --help    # Help for specific command
nlm --ai                # Full AI-optimized documentation (RECOMMENDED)
nlm --version           # Check installed version

Critical Rules (Read First!)

1. Authenticate when needed: Run nlm login for first-time setup or confirmed stale/missing credentials. Saved cookies often remain usable for weeks.
2. Do not confuse network failures with expired auth: auth_status="unverified" means the probe was inconclusive. Check connectivity or try an API call before asking the user to log in again.
3. Auto-Authentication Recovery: The CLI includes automatic 3-layer auth recovery (CSRF refresh -> Token reload -> Headless Auth) and 3x server error retries. Most errors are handled automatically. You only need to manually run nlm login if all recovery layers fail.
4. ⚠️ ALWAYS ASK USER BEFORE DELETE: Before executing ANY delete command, ask the user for explicit confirmation. Deletions are irreversible. Show what will be deleted and warn about permanent data loss.
5. Always obtain approval before generation or deletion: Direct studio_create and delete operations enforce --confirm / confirm=True. The current MCP batch Studio path does not enforce its confirm parameter, so the agent must preserve the approval gate.
6. Research needs a destination: Pass --notebook-id <id> for an existing notebook or --title <title> to create one.
7. Capture IDs from output: Create/start commands return IDs needed for subsequent operations
8. Use aliases: Simplify long UUIDs with nlm alias set <name> <uuid>
9. Check aliases before creating: Run nlm alias list before creating a new alias to avoid conflicts with existing names.
10. DO NOT launch REPL: Never use nlm chat start - it opens an interactive REPL that AI tools cannot control. Use nlm notebook query for one-shot Q&A instead.
11. Choose output format wisely: Default output (no flags) is compact and token-efficient—use it for status checks. Use --quiet to capture IDs for piping. Only use --json when you need to parse specific fields programmatically.
12. Use --help when unsure: Run nlm <command> --help to see available options and flags for any command.
13. Studio: fast track by default: Infer format/style/prompt silently—one compact line, then studio_create(confirm=True). No intake questionnaires. Fast track reduces clarifying questions, not the confirm gate. Cinematic video is always guided (quota-limited). Full preview only when vague, high-stakes, cinematic, or user asks. See references/studio-prompting-guide.md.

Current MCP surface: 40 tools. Consolidated action tools include note, label, studio_status, batch, pipeline, and tag. Consolidated type tools include source_add, studio_create, and download_artifact.

Workflow Decision Tree

Use this to determine the right sequence of commands:

User wants to...
│
├─► Work with NotebookLM for the first time
│   └─► nlm login → nlm notebook create "Title"
│
├─► Add content to a notebook
│   ├─► From a URL/webpage → nlm source add <nb-id> --url "https://..."
│   ├─► From YouTube → nlm source add <nb-id> --url "https://youtube.com/..."
│   ├─► From pasted text → nlm source add <nb-id> --text "content" --title "Title"
│   ├─► From Google Drive → nlm source add <nb-id> --drive <doc-id> --type doc
│   └─► Discover new sources → nlm research start "query" --notebook-id <nb-id>
│
├─► Generate content from sources (→ Studio Prompting for optimal focus_prompt)
│   ├─► Podcast/Audio → nlm audio create <nb-id> --confirm
│   ├─► Written summary → nlm report create <nb-id> --confirm
│   ├─► Study materials → nlm quiz/flashcards create <nb-id> --confirm
│   ├─► Visual content → nlm mindmap/slides/infographic create <nb-id> --confirm
│   ├─► Video → nlm video create <nb-id> --confirm
│   └─► Extract data → nlm data-table create <nb-id> "description" --confirm
│
├─► Refactor, critique, or improve a draft document
│   └─► See Workflow 15 in references/workflows.md
│
├─► Ask questions about sources
│   └─► nlm notebook query <nb-id> "question"
│       (Use --conversation-id for follow-ups)
│       ⚠️ Do NOT use `nlm chat start` - it's a REPL for humans only
│
├─► Check generation status
│   └─► nlm studio status <nb-id>
│
└─► Manage/cleanup
    ├─► List notebooks → nlm notebook list
    ├─► List sources → nlm source list <nb-id>
    ├─► Delete source → nlm source delete <source-id> --confirm
    └─► Delete notebook → nlm notebook delete <nb-id> --confirm

Command Categories

1. Authentication

MCP Authentication

If using MCP tools and encountering authentication errors:

# Run the CLI authentication (works for both CLI and MCP)
nlm login

# Then reload tokens in MCP
mcp__notebooklm-mcp__refresh_auth()
# Returns status: "success" (valid), "expired" (tokens dead, run `nlm login`),
# or "error". `nlm login` is the only recovery path for "expired".

Or manually save cookies via MCP (fallback):

# Extract cookies from Chrome DevTools and save
mcp__notebooklm-mcp__save_auth_tokens(cookies="<cookie_header>")

#### CLI Authentication

```bash
nlm login                           # Launch browser, extract cookies (primary method)
nlm login --check                   # Validate current session
nlm login --profile work            # Use named profile for multiple accounts
nlm login --provider openclaw --cdp-url http://127.0.0.1:18800  # External CDP provider
nlm login switch <profile>          # Switch the default profile
nlm login profile list              # List all profiles with email addresses
nlm login profile delete <name>     # Delete a profile
nlm login profile rename <old> <new> # Rename a profile

Multi-Profile Support: Each profile gets its own isolated browser session (supports Chrome, Arc, Brave, Edge, Chromium, and more), so you can be logged into multiple Google accounts simultaneously.

Auth status: configured means usable; stale means run nlm login; not_configured means first-time setup is required; unverified means the probe was inconclusive; error means the health check itself failed.

Switching MCP Accounts: The MCP server always uses the active default profile. If you need to switch which Google account the MCP server is communicating with, you MUST use the CLI: run nlm login switch <name>. Your next MCP tool call will instantly use the new account.

Note: Both MCP and CLI share the same authentication backend, so authenticating with one works for both.

2. Notebook Management

MCP Tools

Use notebook_list, notebook_create, notebook_get, notebook_describe, notebook_query, notebook_rename, and notebook_delete. The get/describe/query/rename/delete tools require notebook_id; list and create do not. Delete requires confirm=True.

For large notebooks or long-running questions, call notebook_query_start, then poll notebook_query_status(query_id) until completed or errored.

CLI Commands

nlm notebook list                      # List all notebooks
nlm notebook list --json               # JSON output for parsing
nlm notebook list --quiet              # IDs only (for scripting)
nlm notebook create "Title"            # Create notebook, returns ID
nlm notebook create "Title" --json     # Stable machine-readable ID capture
nlm notebook get <id>                  # Get notebook details
nlm notebook describe <id>             # AI-generated summary + suggested topics
nlm notebook query <id> "question"     # One-shot Q&A with sources
nlm notebook rename <id> "New Title"   # Rename notebook
nlm notebook delete <id> --confirm     # PERMANENT deletion

3. Source Management

MCP Tools

Use source_add with these source_type values:

• url - Web page or YouTube URL (url param)
• text - Pasted content (text + title params)
• file - Server-local file upload (file_path param). The path must exist on the machine running the MCP server, not merely on the client host. Failures preserve the concrete reason and include a host-path hint. Supported: PDF, TXT, MD, DOCX, CSV, EPUB, MP3, M4A, WAV, AAC, OGG, OPUS, MP4, JPG, JPEG, PNG, GIF, WEBP.
• drive - Google Drive doc (document_id + doc_type params)

Other tools: source_list_drive (skip_freshness=True reports stale/is_stale=null, meaning unknown, not fresh), source_describe, source_get_content, source_rename, source_sync_drive, and source_delete. Bulk URL add uses source_add(source_type="url", urls=[...]); bulk delete uses source_delete(source_ids=[...], confirm=True). MCP Drive sync requires explicit source UUIDs: list first, select stale IDs, then call source_sync_drive(source_ids=[...], confirm=True).

Source Labels

Use label with actions auto, list, reorganize, create, rename, set_emoji, move_source, and delete. Full reorganization and deletion require confirm=True; reorganize(unlabeled_only=True) does not.

CLI Commands

# Adding sources
nlm source add <nb-id> --url "https://..."           # Web page
nlm source add <nb-id> --url "https://youtube.com/..." # YouTube video
nlm source add <nb-id> --text "content" --title "X"  # Pasted text
nlm source add <nb-id> --drive <doc-id>              # Defaults to Drive doc
nlm source add <nb-id> --drive <doc-id> --type slides # Explicit type
nlm source add <nb-id> --file "/path/to/diagram.png" --wait # Local file upload (images, PDFs, documents, audio, video)

# Listing and viewing
nlm source list <nb-id>                # Table of sources
nlm source list <nb-id> --drive        # Show Drive sources with freshness
nlm source list <nb-id> --drive -S     # Skip freshness checks (faster)
nlm source get <source-id>             # Source metadata
nlm source describe <source-id>        # AI summary + keywords
nlm source content <source-id>         # Raw text content
nlm source content <source-id> -o file.txt  # Export to file

# Drive sync (for stale sources)
nlm source stale <nb-id>               # List outdated Drive sources
nlm source sync <nb-id> --confirm      # Sync all stale sources
nlm source sync <nb-id> --source-ids <ids> --confirm  # Sync specific

# Rename
nlm source rename <source-id> "New Title" --notebook <nb-id>
nlm rename source <source-id> "New Title" --notebook <nb-id>  # verb-first

# Deletion
nlm source delete <source-id> --confirm

Drive types: doc, slides, sheets, pdf

4. Research (Source Discovery)

Research finds NEW sources from the web or Google Drive.

MCP Tools

Use research_start with:

• source: web or drive
• mode: fast (~30s) or deep (~5min, web only)

Preferred workflow: research_start → research_status(auto_import=True). For manual source selection, poll without auto-import and then call research_import. research_start accepts either notebook_id or title to create a destination notebook. MCP status defaults to a 900-second wait with 30-second polling.

CLI Commands

# Start research in an existing notebook or create one with --title
nlm research start "query" --notebook-id <id>              # Fast web (~30s)
nlm research start "query" --title "New Research"           # Create destination notebook
nlm research start "query" --notebook-id <id> --mode deep  # Deep web (~5min)
nlm research start "query" --notebook-id <id> --source drive  # Drive search
nlm research start "query" --notebook-id <id> --mode deep --auto-import

# Check progress
nlm research status <nb-id>                   # Poll until done
nlm research status <nb-id> --max-wait 0      # Single check, no waiting
nlm research status <nb-id> --task-id <tid>   # Check specific task
nlm research status <nb-id> --full            # Full details

# Import discovered sources
nlm research import <nb-id> <task-id>            # Import all
nlm research import <nb-id> <task-id> --indices 0,2,5  # Import specific
nlm research import <nb-id> <task-id> --cited-only      # Import cited sources
nlm research import <nb-id> <task-id> --timeout 600    # Custom timeout (default: 300s)

Modes: fast (~30s, ~10 sources) | deep (~5min, ~40+ sources, web only)

5. Content Generation (Studio)

MCP Tools (Unified Creation)

Use studio_create with artifact_type and type-specific options. All require confirm=True. studio_create runs a pre-flight auth check before firing the request, so stale auth fails immediately with an nlm login hint instead of returning a fake success that collapses seconds later.

artifact_type	Key Options
audio	audio_format: deep_dive/brief/critique/debate, audio_length: short/default/long
video	video_format: explainer/brief/cinematic/short, visual_style: auto_select/classic/whiteboard/kawaii/anime/watercolor/retro_print/heritage/paper_craft (not for cinematic/short), video_style_prompt
report	report_format: Briefing Doc/Study Guide/Blog Post/Create Your Own, custom_prompt
quiz	question_count, difficulty: easy/medium/hard
flashcards	difficulty: easy/medium/hard
mind_map	title
slide_deck	slide_format: detailed_deck/presenter_slides, slide_length: short/default
infographic	orientation: landscape/portrait/square, detail_level: concise/standard/detailed, infographic_style: auto_select/sketch_note/professional/bento_grid/editorial/instructional/bricks/clay/anime/kawaii/scientific
data_table	description (REQUIRED)

Common options: source_ids, language (BCP-47 code, including regional locales such as es-419), focus_prompt

Audio accent: NotebookLM has been observed using the language region subtag, not the prompt, to choose the Audio Overview accent. For example, es/es-ES produces Spain Spanish, while es-US/es-419 produces Latin-American Spanish. NOTEBOOKLM_HL can set the same regional locale as the default. Treat this as observed upstream behavior, not a guaranteed API contract.

Revise Slides: Use studio_revise to revise individual slides in an existing slide deck.

• Requires artifact_id (from studio_status) and slide_instructions
• Creates a NEW artifact — the original is not modified
• Slide numbers are 1-based (slide 1 = first slide)
• Poll studio_status after calling to check when the new deck is ready

CLI Commands

All generation commands share --confirm, --source-ids, and --profile. --language is available for audio, report, slides, infographic, video, and data-table:

• --confirm or -y: REQUIRED to execute
• --source-ids <id1,id2>: Limit to specific sources
• --language <code>: BCP-47 code (en, es-ES, es-US, es-419, fr, etc.)

# Audio (Podcast)
nlm audio create <id> --confirm
nlm audio create <id> --format deep_dive --length default --confirm
nlm audio create <id> --format brief --focus "key topic" --confirm
# Formats: deep_dive, brief, critique, debate
# Lengths: short, default, long

# Report
nlm report create <id> --confirm
nlm report create <id> --format "Study Guide" --confirm
nlm report create <id> --format "Create Your Own" --prompt "Custom..." --confirm
# Formats: "Briefing Doc", "Study Guide", "Blog Post", "Create Your Own"

# Quiz
nlm quiz create <id> --confirm
nlm quiz create <id> --count 5 --difficulty 3 --confirm
nlm quiz create <id> --count 10 --difficulty 3 --focus "Focus on key concepts" --confirm
# Count: number of questions (default: 2)
# Difficulty: 1-5 (1=easy, 5=hard)
# Focus: optional text to guide quiz generation

# Flashcards
nlm flashcards create <id> --confirm
nlm flashcards create <id> --difficulty hard --confirm
nlm flashcards create <id> --difficulty medium --focus "Focus on definitions" --confirm
# Difficulty: easy, medium, hard
# Focus: optional text to guide flashcard generation

# Mind Map
nlm mindmap create <id> --confirm
nlm mindmap create <id> --title "Topic Overview" --confirm
nlm studio status <id>  # Includes existing mind maps

# Slides
nlm slides create <id> --confirm
nlm slides create <id> --format presenter_slides --length short --confirm
# Formats: detailed_deck, presenter_slides | Lengths: short, default
nlm slides revise <artifact-id> --slide '1 Make the title larger' --confirm
# Each --slide value must be: '<slide-number> <instruction>'
# Creates a NEW deck with revisions. Original unchanged.

# Infographic
nlm infographic create <id> --confirm
nlm infographic create <id> --orientation portrait --detail detailed --style professional --confirm
# Orientations: landscape, portrait, square
# Detail: concise, standard, detailed
# Styles: auto_select, sketch_note, professional, bento_grid, editorial, instructional, bricks, clay, anime, kawaii, scientific

# Video
nlm video create <id> --confirm
nlm video create <id> --format brief --style whiteboard --confirm
nlm video create <id> --format cinematic --focus "Full creative brief..." --confirm
nlm video create <id> --format short --focus "Key topic" --confirm
# Formats: explainer, brief, cinematic (English, 18+, quota-limited), short (English, 18+, vertical ~60s, rolling out)
# Styles: auto_select, classic, whiteboard, kawaii, anime, watercolor, retro_print, heritage, paper_craft (not for cinematic/short)
# Cinematic/short: put full brief in --focus; --style-prompt merges into --focus

# Data Table
nlm data-table create <id> "Extract all dates and events" --confirm
# DESCRIPTION is required as second argument

Studio Prompting (Read Before Generating)

Full guides: studio-prompting-guide.md | studio-prompt-examples.md

Fast track (default): Silently infer (user message → notebook title → notebook_describe if needed) → minimal 1–3 sentence prompt with grounding anchor → one-line notice → studio_create(confirm=True). Never run multi-question intake.

Guided preview (exception): Vague request, any cinematic video, high-stakes deliverable, empty notebook, or user asks → show settings + full prompt → one optional refine → generate.

Grounding anchor (every prompt): Use only uploaded sources. Do not invent statistics, quotes, or examples not in the sources.

Iterate only on failure or user dissatisfaction — do not proactively offer regen on success. Slides: use studio_revise for targeted fixes.

Prompt parameters by artifact:

Artifact	Prompt field	CLI flag
audio, video, infographic, slide_deck, quiz, flashcards	focus_prompt	--focus
report (Create Your Own)	custom_prompt	--prompt
data_table	description	positional arg (required)

Quick format picks:

User intent	Default
Podcast / learn	audio: deep_dive, default
Quick audio recap	audio: brief, short
Teach / explain	video: explainer
Exec video summary	video: brief
Narrative / launch video	video: cinematic + full brief in focus
Shareable slides	slide_deck: detailed_deck
Live presentation	slide_deck: presenter_slides
LinkedIn visual	infographic: square, concise, bento_grid
Custom report	report: Create Your Own + custom_prompt
Structured extraction	data_table: explicit column schema in description

After generation: Poll studio_status by artifact_id. Revise slides with studio_revise. Request include_details=True only when reusing a successful prompt from custom_instructions.

6. Studio (Artifact Management)

MCP Tools

Use studio_status to check progress, rename with action="rename", or inspect supported types with action="list_types". Failed artifacts include error_reason. Detailed mode also includes source_ids; an empty list means the upstream payload did not expose provenance, not necessarily that no sources were used. Use download_artifact with artifact_type and output_path, download_all_artifacts to fetch every completed artifact of a notebook (or every notebook with all_notebooks=True) into per-notebook folders, export_artifact with export_type (docs/sheets), and studio_delete with confirm=True.

CLI Commands

# Check status
nlm studio status <nb-id>                          # List all artifacts
nlm studio status <nb-id> --full                   # Show full details (including custom prompts)
nlm studio status <nb-id> --json                   # JSON output
nlm studio status <nb-id> --json --full            # Includes artifact source_ids
nlm studio status <nb-id> --artifact-id <id>       # Poll one artifact
nlm studio status <nb-id> --json --mcp-compatible  # MCP-shaped paginated output
nlm video list <nb-id> --json                      # List videos only

# Download artifacts
nlm download audio <nb-id> --output podcast.mp3
nlm download video <nb-id> --output video.mp4
nlm download report <nb-id> --output report.md
nlm download slide-deck <nb-id> --output slides.pdf           # PDF (default)
nlm download slide-deck <nb-id> --output slides.pptx --format pptx  # PPTX
nlm download quiz <nb-id> --output quiz.html --format html    # Also: json, markdown
nlm download all <nb-id> -d ./exports                          # Every completed artifact
nlm download all --all-notebooks -d ./exports --skip-existing  # Sweep every notebook

# Export to Google Docs/Sheets
nlm export sheets <nb-id> <artifact-id> --title "My Data Table"
nlm export docs <nb-id> <artifact-id> --title "My Report"

# Delete artifact
nlm studio delete <nb-id> <artifact-id> --confirm

Status values: completed (✓), in_progress (●), failed (✗)

Prompt Extraction: MCP studio_status is lean and returns at most 20 artifacts by default. Pass include_details=True to retrieve custom_instructions, source IDs, report content, and media details. Pass artifact_id when polling a newly created artifact. CLI --full preserves the detailed output.

Renaming Resources

Rename a Source

MCP Tool: source_rename(notebook_id, source_id, new_title)

CLI:

nlm source rename <source-id> "New Title" --notebook <notebook-id>
nlm rename source <source-id> "New Title" --notebook <notebook-id>  # verb-first

Rename a Studio Artifact

MCP Tools

Use studio_status with action="rename", artifact_id, and new_title.

CLI Commands

nlm studio rename <artifact-id> "New Title"
nlm rename studio <artifact-id> "New Title"  # verb-first alternative

Server Info (Version Check)

MCP Tools

Use server_info to get version and check for updates:

mcp__notebooklm-mcp__server_info()
# Returns version/update fields plus auth_status

Treat stale as requiring nlm login. unverified is an inconclusive probe, not confirmed expiration.

CLI Commands

nlm --version  # Shows version and update availability

7. Chat Configuration and Notes

MCP Tools

Use chat_configure with goal: default/learning_guide/custom. Use note with action: create/list/update/delete. Delete requires confirm=True.

CLI Commands

⚠️ AI TOOLS: DO NOT USE nlm chat start - It launches an interactive REPL that cannot be controlled programmatically. Use nlm notebook query for one-shot Q&A instead.

For human users at a terminal:

nlm chat start <nb-id>  # Launch interactive REPL

REPL Commands:

• /sources - List available sources
• /clear - Reset conversation context
• /help - Show commands
• /exit - Exit REPL

Configure chat behavior (works for both REPL and query):

nlm chat configure <id> --goal default
nlm chat configure <id> --goal learning_guide
nlm chat configure <id> --goal custom --prompt "Act as a tutor..."
nlm chat configure <id> --response-length longer  # longer, default, shorter

Notes management:

nlm note create <nb-id> --content "Content" --title "Title"
nlm note list <nb-id>
nlm note update <nb-id> <note-id> --content "New content"
nlm note delete <nb-id> <note-id> --confirm

8. Notebook Sharing

MCP Tools

Use notebook_share_status to check, notebook_share_public to enable/disable public links, and notebook_share_invite for one collaborator. Use notebook_share_batch with recipients=[{"email": "...", "role": "viewer|editor"}] and confirm=True for multiple collaborators.

CLI Commands

# Check sharing status
nlm share status <nb-id>

# Enable/disable public link
nlm share public <nb-id>          # Enable
nlm share public <nb-id> --off    # Disable

# Invite collaborator
nlm share invite <nb-id> [e-mail]
nlm share invite <nb-id> [e-mail] --role editor

9. Aliases (UUID Shortcuts)

Simplify long UUIDs:

nlm alias set myproject abc123-def456...  # Create alias (auto-detects notebook/source)
nlm alias get myproject                    # Resolve to UUID
nlm alias list                             # List all aliases
nlm alias delete myproject                 # Remove alias

# Use aliases anywhere
nlm notebook get myproject
nlm source list myproject
nlm audio create myproject --confirm

10. Configuration

CLI-only commands for managing settings:

nlm config show                              # Show current config
nlm config get <key>                         # Get specific setting
nlm config set <key> <value>                 # Update setting
nlm config set output.format json            # Change default output

# For switching profiles, prefer the simpler command:
nlm login switch work                        # Switch default profile

Available Settings:

Key	Default	Description
output.format	table	Default output format (table, json)
output.color	true	Enable colored output
output.short_ids	true	Show shortened IDs
auth.browser	auto	Preferred browser for login (auto, chrome, arc, brave, edge, chromium, vivaldi, opera)
auth.default_profile	default	Profile to use when --profile not specified

Diagnostics & Setup

Diagnose and fix issues with your NotebookLM installation, MCP server, and AI tools:

nlm doctor                                   # Full diagnostic check
nlm setup mcp                                # Show MCP server config JSON
nlm setup add json                           # Interactive MCP config generator
nlm setup add claude                         # Setup MCP for Claude Desktop
nlm setup add cursor                         # Setup MCP for Cursor
nlm setup remove cursor                      # Remove MCP from Cursor

11. Skill Management

Manage the NotebookLM skill installation for various AI assistants:

nlm skill list                              # Show installation status
nlm skill update                            # Update all outdated skills
nlm skill update <tool>                     # Update specific skill (e.g., claude-code)
nlm skill install <tool>                    # Install skill
nlm skill uninstall <tool>                  # Uninstall skill

Verb-first aliases: nlm update skill, nlm list skills, nlm install skill

Output Formats

Most list commands support multiple formats:

Flag	Description
(none)	Rich table (human-readable)
--json	JSON output (for parsing)
--quiet	IDs only (for piping)
--title	"ID: Title" format
--url	"ID: URL" format (sources only)
--full	All columns/details

12. Batch Operations

Perform the same action across multiple notebooks at once.

MCP Tools

Use batch with action parameter. Select notebooks by notebook_names, tags, or all=True.

batch(action="query", query="What are the key findings?", notebook_names="AI Research, Dev Tools")
batch(action="add_source", source_url="https://example.com", tags="ai,research")
batch(action="create", titles="Project A, Project B, Project C")
batch(action="delete", notebook_names="Old Project", confirm=True)
batch(action="studio", artifact_type="audio", tags="research", confirm=True)

CLI Commands

nlm batch query "What are the key takeaways?" --notebooks "id1,id2"
nlm batch query "Summarize" --tags "ai,research"      # Query by tag
nlm batch query "Summarize" --all                      # Query ALL notebooks
nlm batch add-source "https://..." --notebooks "id1,id2"
nlm batch create "Project A, Project B, Project C"     # Create multiple
nlm batch delete --notebooks "id1,id2" --confirm       # Delete multiple
nlm batch studio audio --tags "research"                   # Generate across notebooks

13. Cross-Notebook Query

Query multiple notebooks and get aggregated answers with per-notebook citations.

MCP Tools

cross_notebook_query(query="Compare approaches", notebook_names="Notebook A, Notebook B")
cross_notebook_query(query="Summarize", tags="ai,research")
cross_notebook_query(query="Everything", all=True)

CLI Commands

nlm cross query "What features are discussed?" --notebooks "id1,id2"
nlm cross query "Compare approaches" --tags "ai,research"
nlm cross query "Summarize everything" --all

14. Pipelines

Define and execute multi-step notebook workflows. Three built-in pipelines plus support for custom YAML pipelines.

MCP Tools

pipeline(action="list")  # List available pipelines
pipeline(action="run", notebook_id="...", pipeline_name="ingest-and-podcast", input_url="https://...")

CLI Commands

nlm pipeline list                                         # List available pipelines
nlm pipeline run ingest-and-podcast --notebook <id> --input-url "https://..."
nlm pipeline run research-and-report --notebook <id> --input-url "https://..."
nlm pipeline run multi-format --notebook <id>             # Audio + report + flashcards
nlm pipeline create my-pipeline --file pipeline.yaml

Built-in pipelines: ingest-and-podcast, research-and-report, multi-format

Create custom pipelines: add YAML files to ~/.notebooklm-mcp-cli/pipelines/

15. Tags & Smart Select

Tag notebooks for organization and use tags to target batch operations.

MCP Tools

tag(action="add", notebook_id="...", tags="ai,research,llm")
tag(action="remove", notebook_id="...", tags="ai")
tag(action="list")                           # List all tagged notebooks
tag(action="select", query="ai research")    # Find notebooks by tag match

CLI Commands

nlm tag add <notebook> --tags "ai,research,llm"           # Add tags
nlm tag add <notebook> --tags "ai" --title "My Notebook"  # With display title
nlm tag remove <notebook> --tags "ai"                     # Remove tags
nlm tag list                                              # List all tagged notebooks
nlm tag select "ai research"                              # Find notebooks by tag match

16. Long-Lived MCP Server Configuration

The MCP server runs as a long-lived process. For 24/7 deployments (e.g. an always-on assistant), a few knobs help bound memory and tune behavior.

Conversation cache bounds (added in 0.6.14)

The in-process conversation history cache used to grow without bound, eventually OOM'ing the host on always-on servers. Three env-var knobs cap memory. Set any to 0 to disable that specific cap and restore the old unbounded behavior:

Env var	Default	Purpose
NOTEBOOKLM_CONVERSATION_MAX_TURNS	50	Max turns kept per conversation. Older turns are FIFO-dropped. Survivors are renumbered 1..N so turn_number stays a stable 1-indexed position in the current list.
NOTEBOOKLM_CONVERSATION_MAX_CONVS	500	Max distinct conversations cached. On overflow, the least-recently-used conversation is evicted. Reads and writes both promote to MRU.
NOTEBOOKLM_CONVERSATION_MAX_CHARS_PER_TURN	100000	Per-turn answer char cap. Safety net against pathological payloads. Queries are user input and not truncated.

With all defaults: 500 convs × 50 turns × up to 100k chars = hard upper bound around ~2.5 GB of answer text. In practice answers are 1–10 KB, so the typical ceiling is ~25 MB.

Negative values are clamped to 0 (unlimited) with a warning. Invalid values fall back to the default with a warning.

Cache stats (added in 0.6.14)

For monitoring from Python, the BaseClient exposes get_conversation_cache_stats() which returns:

{
    "conversations": int,            # current number of cached conversations
    "total_turns": int,              # current number of cached turns across all convs
    "max_turns_per_conversation": int,
    "max_conversations": int,
    "max_chars_per_turn": int,
}

There's no MCP or CLI tool wrapper in 0.6.14. Call it directly from Python if you need to surface cache pressure in your own tooling.

Server startup flags (notebooklm-mcp)

When starting the MCP server directly, two flags control transport-layer behavior. Neither affects the conversation cache above.

• --stateless / --no-stateless (default: true, env NOTEBOOKLM_MCP_STATELESS): Controls whether the MCP HTTP transport keeps per-session state. Leave it true unless you know you need sessions. The flag exists to work around an MCP SDK double-response crash (python-sdk#2416) and is unrelated to the conversation cache.
• --transport http / --transport stdio (default: stdio): Pick the transport. --transport http requires --port (default 8000).
• --host <addr> (default 127.0.0.1): Bind address for HTTP/SSE. Refuses external binds unless NOTEBOOKLM_ALLOW_EXTERNAL_BIND=1 is set.

Remote MCP security

The server has no built-in endpoint authentication or TLS and uses one process-wide Google account. Never expose it directly to the public internet. Put authentication, TLS, and network restrictions in front of remote deployments. Browser/phone-local files are not transferred automatically; source_add(file) requires a path already present on the server host.

Common Patterns

Pattern 1: Research → Podcast Pipeline

nlm notebook create "AI Research 2026"   # Capture ID
nlm alias set ai <notebook-id>
nlm research start "agentic AI trends" --notebook-id ai --mode deep
nlm research status ai --max-wait 900    # Deep research can take up to 15 min
nlm research import ai <task-id>         # Or use research start --auto-import
nlm audio create ai --format deep_dive --confirm
nlm studio status ai                     # Check generation progress

Pattern 2: Quick Content Ingestion

nlm source add <id> --url "https://example1.com"
nlm source add <id> --url "https://example2.com"
nlm source add <id> --text "My notes..." --title "Notes"
nlm source list <id>

Pattern 3: Study Materials Generation

nlm report create <id> --format "Study Guide" --confirm
nlm quiz create <id> --count 10 --difficulty 3 --focus "Exam prep" --confirm
nlm flashcards create <id> --difficulty medium --focus "Core terms" --confirm

Pattern 4: Drive Document Workflow

nlm source add <id> --drive 1KQH3eW0hMBp7WK... --type slides
# ... time passes, document is edited ...
nlm source stale <id>                    # Check freshness
nlm source list <id> --drive -S           # Fast list without freshness checks
nlm source sync <id> --confirm           # Sync if stale

Pattern 5: Batch & Cross-Notebook Workflow

# Tag notebooks for organization
nlm tag add <id1> --tags "ai,research"
nlm tag add <id2> --tags "ai,product"

# Query across tagged notebooks
nlm cross query "What are the main conclusions?" --tags "ai"

# Batch generate podcasts for all tagged notebooks
nlm batch studio audio --tags "ai"

# Run a pipeline on a single notebook
nlm pipeline run ingest-and-podcast --notebook <id> --input-url "https://example.com"

Error Recovery

Error	Cause	Solution
"Cookies have expired"	Session timeout	nlm login
"authentication may have expired"	Session timeout	nlm login
"Notebook not found"	Invalid ID	nlm notebook list
"Source not found"	Invalid ID	nlm source list <nb-id>
"Rate limit exceeded"	Too many calls	Studio creation: wait 1-2 minutes; avoid parallel video batches
"Research already in progress"	Pending research	Use --force or import first
"Import timed out"	Too many sources	Use --timeout 600 for larger notebooks
"Google API error code 3"	Transient deep research error	Retry in a few minutes, or use --mode fast
Browser doesn't launch	Port conflict	Close browser, retry
nlm login crashes with ClientAuthenticationError	(Fixed in 0.6.14) Disk tokens fully expired	nlm login now works directly, no manual nlm login profile delete needed
RPCDriftError / rotated method ID	NotebookLM changed an internal RPC ID	Run with --debug, apply the suggested NOTEBOOKLM_RPC_OVERRIDES JSON mapping, then restart the MCP server
File upload path not found	Path exists on the client but not the CLI/MCP host	Use a path accessible on the machine running nlm or the MCP server

Rate Limiting

Wait between operations to avoid rate limits:

• Source operations: 2 seconds
• Content generation: run sequentially; after a rate limit, wait 1-2 minutes
• Research operations: 2 seconds
• Query operations: 2 seconds

Advanced Reference

For detailed information, see:

• references/studio-prompting-guide.md: Studio prompt best practices, fast vs guided modes, per-artifact decision trees
• references/studio-prompt-examples.md: Copy-paste prompt templates and command examples
• references/command_reference.md: Complete command signatures
• references/troubleshooting.md: Detailed error handling
• references/workflows.md: End-to-end task sequences
• references/remote-mcp.md: Remote HTTP deployment boundaries, security, account isolation, and file-transfer limitations