Outline Export Tool

Export Outline wiki data with full hierarchy and tree visualization.

Quick Start

1. Configure Settings

Ensure settings.json contains your Outline API token:

cat settings.json

2. Run Export

./export_with_trees.sh

Command Line Options

# Standard export with tree visualization
./export_with_trees.sh

# Preview without exporting (dry run)
./export_with_trees.sh --dry-run

# Verbose output
./export_with_trees.sh -v

# Debug output
./export_with_trees.sh -vv

# Skip verification step
./export_with_trees.sh --skip-verify

# Custom output directory
./export_with_trees.sh -o /path/to/output

All CLI Options

Option	Short	Description
--dry-run	-n	Preview without writing files
--output	-o	Output directory (overrides settings)
--verbose	-v	Increase verbosity (-vv for debug)
--skip-verify		Skip post-export verification
--skip-health-check		Skip pre-export health check
--settings		Path to settings file

What It Does

1. Health check - Verifies API connectivity and authentication
2. Shows current structure - Tree view from Outline API
3. Backs up previous exports - Timestamped .tar.gz archives
4. Exports all documents - With full hierarchy preserved
5. Shows exported structure - Tree view of files
6. Verifies counts - Compares API vs exported documents

Features

• Retry logic: Failed API requests retry up to 3 times with exponential backoff
• Health check: Verifies API before starting export
• Dry-run mode: Preview what would be exported
• Structured logging: Configurable verbosity levels
• Document caching: Prevents duplicate API fetches
• Checksum verification: Ensures export integrity

File Structure

outline-tools/
├── export_with_trees.sh        # Main export script
├── outline_export_fixed.py     # Python export logic
├── settings.json               # API configuration
├── CLAUDE.md                   # AI assistant docs
├── README.md                   # This file
│
└── Output (created after export):
    ├── exports/                # Exported documents
    └── exports_backup_*.tar.gz # Previous backups

Configuration

settings.json

{
  "source": {
    "url": "http://outline:3000",
    "token": "ol_api_..."
  },
  "export": {
    "output_directory": "exports",
    "verify_after_export": true
  },
  "advanced": {
    "max_hierarchy_depth": 100,
    "api_timeout_seconds": 30,
    "progress_bar": true,
    "max_retries": 3,
    "retry_backoff": 1.0
  }
}

Configuration Options

Section	Key	Default	Description
source	url	-	Outline API URL
source	token	-	API authentication token
export	output_directory	exports	Where to save files
export	verify_after_export	true	Run verification after export
advanced	max_hierarchy_depth	100	Prevent infinite recursion
advanced	progress_bar	true	Show progress bars
advanced	max_retries	3	API retry attempts
advanced	retry_backoff	1.0	Retry backoff multiplier

How It Works

Docker Network Access

The script runs in a Docker container on domnet to access Outline internally:

export_with_trees.sh → Docker Container (domnet) → outline:3000

This bypasses Authentik SSO that would block external HTTPS requests.

Export Process

1. Health check - Verify API connectivity
2. Fetch collections from Outline API
3. Build hierarchy from navigation tree (source of truth)
4. Export recursively maintaining parent-child structure
5. Save metadata per collection
6. Verify document counts and checksums

Output Format

Collection Structure

exports/
├── Collection_Name/
│   ├── _collection_metadata.json
│   ├── Document.md
│   └── Child_Document.md
├── export_metadata.json
└── manifest.json

Document Format

# Document Title

<!-- Document ID: abc123 -->
<!-- Created: 2025-01-13T10:00:00Z -->
<!-- Updated: 2025-01-13T14:30:00Z -->
<!-- URL: https://outline.domverse.de/doc/... -->

---

Document content here...

Troubleshooting

Health Check Fails

# Check if Outline is accessible
docker exec -it outline curl -s http://localhost:3000/api/auth.info

# Verify API token
docker run --rm --network domnet python:3.11-slim \
  python3 -c "import requests; r=requests.post('http://outline:3000/api/auth.info', headers={'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_TOKEN'}); print(r.status_code)"

Docker Permission Denied

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
newgrp docker

Container Not Found

# Verify Outline is running
docker ps | grep outline

Verification Fails

# Clean start
rm -rf exports/
./export_with_trees.sh

API Errors

Check exports/export_errors.json for details on failed documents.

Security

• settings.json contains API token - never commit to git
• Backup files may contain sensitive wiki content
• Consider restricting file permissions:

  chmod 600 settings.json
  chmod 700 exports/
  

---

Last Updated: 2026-01-14