Preface

During conversations with DeepSeek Harness (DSH), ideas, decisions, implementation details, and follow-up tasks constantly emerge. If these items remain only in chat records, they are easily buried or lost. Frequent switching between DSH and other editors can also interrupt the workflow.

dsh-notes-markdown aims to provide a lightweight, persistent Markdown note-taking space in the DSH sidebar. It lets you record decisions, plans, APIs, and tasks directly while keeping the current conversation visible, without switching windows.

Positioning

The plugin was developed by maintainer Tieboyh. Its core positioning is:
* Persistent Notes: A persistent Markdown Notes page in the sidebar.
* Real Files: Each note is a local .md file, stored by default in ~/.dsh/docs, and directly accessible to editors, Git, scripts, and agents.
* Workflow Integration: One-click creation, autosave, live preview, and source mode integrate documentation management into the DSH workflow.

Core Features

The plugin provides the following capabilities:

  • Document Creation and Management: Create notes with one click (using the current workspace name and automatic numbering), and open, search, rename, or delete notes. The note list is collapsible and remembers the user’s expanded/collapsed state.
  • Dual-mode Editing: Supports Typora-style live preview (Live edit) and precise source mode (Source mode). Source mode is useful when precise Markdown control is needed or when unsupported extensions are used.
  • GFM Rendering and Support: Supports real-time rendering of GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM), including headings, links, lists, task lists, blockquotes, tables, and fenced code blocks.
  • Autosave and Status Feedback: Autosave is triggered approximately 700 milliseconds after input stops, with a save status indicator in the UI. Unsaved content is refreshed before switching or renaming a document.
  • Content and Path Operations: Copy the current Markdown content or the absolute file path of a document (useful for collaborating with agents).
  • Conflict Detection and Safety: Includes version checking. If another DSH window has modified the file, it reports a conflict instead of overwriting newer content. Supports atomic saves, duplicate-name protection, path traversal protection, and symlink rejection.

Installation and Enablement

  1. Install the plugin:
    dsh plugin --profile web add github:Tieboyh/dsh-notes-markdown
  1. After installing, upgrading, or removing a plugin, restart DSH Web for changes to take effect.
  2. Find and open Markdown Notes in the + menu of Better Sidebar.

Typical Usage

  • Note While Chatting: Record technical designs, API debugging plans, or implementation checklists in the DSH conversation window.
  • Keep a File Stream: Save ideas generated in conversations as local .md files to ensure data is not lost and can be processed later.
  • Agent Collaboration: Copy the absolute file path of a note and pass it directly to an agent in the same environment.
  • Common Scenarios: Technical design documents, API records, meeting conclusions, reusable prompts, code snippets, and Mermaid flowchart source.

Notes

  • Storage Location: Notes are stored by default in the ~/.dsh/docs directory, which is created automatically. To use a different directory, set the environment variable DSH_NOTES_MARKDOWN_DIR before starting DSH Web.
  • Filename Restrictions: In the current version, notes are stored in a single-level directory. Filenames cannot contain /, \, hidden-file prefixes (such as .), or path traversal segments.
  • Versioning Mechanism: Saving is triggered approximately 700 milliseconds after editing stops. If the file is detected as modified elsewhere, a conflict is reported.

Conclusion

dsh-notes-markdown addresses the pain point of recording and saving key information during DSH conversations through file-level persistence and sidebar integration. It makes note management lightweight and transparent, suitable for developers who frequently record and review technical documentation.