Permissions

This page explains notebook-level access control and confirmation rules.

When to read this page: you see permission errors or need to reason about write and delete boundaries.

Related pages:

• Path Semantics
• Tools Index

Permission Levels

Level	Read	Write	Delete
rwd	Yes	Yes	Yes
rw	Yes	Yes	No
r	Yes	No	No
none	No	No	No

Notes:

• New notebooks default to r (read-only) unless configured otherwise
• Permissions are managed through notebook(action="set_permission")
• Changes apply to subsequent calls immediately

File-Tree Status Display

The plugin can show an R, RW, RWD, or NONE badge beside each notebook root in SiYuan's file tree. The badge only reflects the current MCP permission; it does not change note content or SiYuan's own access control. Child documents inherit their notebook permission, so they are not decorated individually.

Click a badge to cycle through NONE → R → RW → RWD → NONE and save immediately. Successful changes do not show a notification; a failed save restores the previous permission. Use Show MCP permissions in the file tree on the plugin's Permissions settings page to turn this display off. A dashed R means that the notebook has no explicit entry and is using the default read-only permission.

High-Risk Actions

These actions require explicit user confirmation:

• notebook.remove
• notebook.set_permission
• document.remove
• document.move
• block.delete
• block.move
• file.upload_asset
• file.remove_unused_assets
• file.delete_asset
• search.find_replace
• system.workspace_info
• system.perform_sync
• tag.remove
• flashcard.remove_card

Additional notes:

• file.upload_asset also requires special confirmation for large files
• file.export_resources with a local outputPath should be treated as high-risk operationally