nlm-skill

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. Always authenticate first: Run nlm login before any operations
2. Sessions expire in ~20 minutes: Re-run nlm login if commands start failing
3. ⚠️ 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.
4. --confirm is REQUIRED: All generation and delete commands need --confirm or -y (CLI) or confirm=True (MCP)
5. Research requires --notebook-id: The flag is mandatory, not positional
6. Capture IDs from output: Create/start commands return IDs needed for subsequent operations
7. Use aliases: Simplify long UUIDs with nlm alias set <name> <uuid>
8. Check aliases before creating: Run nlm alias list before creating a new alias to avoid conflicts with existing names.
9. 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.
10. 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.
11. Use --help when unsure: Run nlm <command> --help to see available options and flags for any command.

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
│   ├─► 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
│
├─► 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()

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

nlm login # Launch Chrome, 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 Chrome session, so you can be logged into multiple Google accounts simultaneously.

**Session lifetime**: ~20 minutes. Re-authenticate when commands fail with auth errors.

**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 tools: `notebook_list`, `notebook_create`, `notebook_get`, `notebook_describe`, `notebook_query`, `notebook_rename`, `notebook_delete`. All accept `notebook_id` parameter. Delete requires `confirm=True`.

#### 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 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` - Local file upload (`file_path` param)
- `drive` - Google Drive doc (`document_id` + `doc_type` params)

Other tools: `source_list_drive`, `source_describe`, `source_get_content`, `source_rename`, `source_sync_drive` (requires `confirm=True`), `source_delete` (requires `confirm=True`).

#### 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> # Drive doc (auto-detect type) nlm source add <nb-id> --drive <doc-id> --type slides