Nightly vs. Stable and Database Compatibility

[mahammadsahin]

Hi,

First of all, I've been using Trilium Notes since 2019, and I absolutely love this application.

I regularly download and test the latest nightly builds because I enjoy exploring newly introduced features and improvements.
Recently, I've been testing some new features, such as Notes Tabs, Columns, Drawing Canvas, and others, for my long-term note-taking workflow.

However, I encountered a compatibility issue when trying to open my database with the stable version (v0.106.1).
The nightly build upgraded my database to version 242, whereas the stable version (v0.106.1) supports database version 240. As a result, I'm unable to open my database using the stable version.

I have a few questions and would appreciate some guidance:

1. Are the newly introduced features in the nightly builds stable enough to use in my primary, long-term notes database, or should I wait until they are included in an official stable release?
2. Is there any supported way to downgrade the database from version 242 to version 240 so that I can use it with the stable release?
3. What is the recommended approach for Linux users? Should I stick to the stable release for my primary database and use nightly builds only for testing, or is it safe to use nightly builds for everyday note-taking?

I'd really appreciate any recommendations or best practices from the developers and experienced users.

Thanks for developing and maintaining such a great application!

[dosubot[bot]]

Hi @mahammadsahin! I'm Dosu and I'm helping the TriliumNext team.

For a database you've maintained since 2019, I'd recommend stable for your primary notes, nightly in a separate test instance. Your compatibility error is expected: a maintainer recently confirmed that the current nightly is not backwards-compatible with v0.106.x. [1]

1. Nightly stability: The documentation describes the main branch as generally stable because PRs are tested before merging, but nightlies are also used to catch problems before release. That isn't a guarantee for each new feature. For irreplaceable notes, waiting for stable is the lower-risk choice; everyday nightly use means accepting development regressions and potentially needing a backup to return to stable. [[2]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Advanced Usage/Nightly release.md)

2. Returning from database 242 to 240: There is no supported in-place downgrade described. The documented route when database versions change is to restore a compatible backup, not simply reinstall the older application. The migration code applies upgrades and rejects databases newer than the application expects. [[2]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Advanced Usage/Nightly release.md) [3]

   Before changing anything, close Trilium and preserve a copy of your current data directory. Look for a backup from before the nightly upgrade, normally in its backup subdirectory. Trilium creates a pre-migration backup, but check that yours is actually from the version-240 database, especially if you've installed several nightlies. Restoring it rolls your notes back to that point, so preserve any later work first. [[4]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Data directory.md) [[5]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Backup.md) [3]

   For an unencrypted .db backup, the documented manual procedure is: stop Trilium, remove document.db, document.db-wal and document.db-shm from the working data directory, then copy the compatible backup there as document.db before starting stable. Do this only after preserving the current directory. If you sync, coordinate restoration across the sync instances rather than restoring just one. [[5]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Backup.md)

3. Linux testing: Installing nightly separately isn't enough: by default it uses the same database as stable. Launch the nightly with a separate data directory, for example: [[2]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Advanced Usage/Nightly release.md) [[4]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Data directory.md)

   TRILIUM_DATA_DIR="$HOME/trilium-nightly-test" /path/to/nightly/trilium

   Use a fresh test database or a copy made while Trilium is closed, and keep it disconnected from your production sync setup. Keep independent backups too; the backup guide recommends additional backups beyond Trilium's built-in rotation. [[4]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Data directory.md) [[5]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/8cb404778d49839993da12678fd7d1b48fb4118d/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Backup.md)

To reply, just mention @dosu.

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[eliandoran]

@dosu's answer is pretty much spot-on. I daily drive the nightlies, including for work so generally the nightly is pretty stable.

Even if there's an issue, write a bug report and we'll fix it relatively fast.

[mahammadsahin]

Hi, @dosu

Thanks for the detailed explanation!
I have one additional concern regarding my actual workflow.
My intention is not just to test nightly builds with an empty or separate database. I want to test new features using my existing notes, because that's the only way I can properly evaluate how these features work with my real, long-term note-taking workflow.
For example, if I create a copy of my stable database, open it with nightly, and spend several days creating and editing notes using new features, there seems to be no straightforward way to transfer those changes back to the stable version because of database version incompatibility.
In this situation, would you recommend using nightly as my primary version with proper backups, or is there another recommended workflow that allows me to test new features with my existing notes and eventually move back to stable?

[dosubot[bot]]

Yes, for the workflow you describe, using nightly as your primary version is a reasonable choice if you accept development-build risks. @eliandoran’s experience using it daily, including for work, supports that choice. My earlier recommendation was the conservative option, not a requirement to use a disposable database. [1]

The important distinction is returning to today’s stable versus switching to a future compatible stable. You cannot directly reopen your upgraded database in v0.106.1, but you can plan to keep working in nightly until a stable release supports that database. The application checks database compatibility, not whether the database was previously used by a nightly. [2]

For your situation, I’d suggest:

• Keep a separately saved, dated backup from before adopting nightly, plus regular independent backups of your ongoing work. Trilium’s automatic backups are a basic rotating set, and the documentation recommends additional backups elsewhere. Backups made after upgrading protect your newer work, but do not make it readable by an older stable release. [[3]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Backup.md) [[4]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Advanced Usage/Nightly release.md)
• Use the nightly database as your single working copy rather than maintaining two diverging copies. When you want to leave nightly, keep that build while waiting for a compatible stable release, then test the stable release against a backup copy before switching. This is a forward transition, not a database downgrade. [2]

If you need to return to v0.106.1 immediately, restoring the old backup still means rolling back to its contents. Selective export/import can help carry ordinary notes across, but I would not treat it as a lossless merge or a guaranteed compatibility bridge for nightly-only features: exports omit some information that database backups preserve. [[4]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Advanced Usage/Nightly release.md) [[5]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Basic Concepts and Features/Import & Export.md)

So I’d choose nightly for your real workflow only if waiting for a compatible stable is an acceptable exit plan. If immediate rollback with every edit intact is essential, waiting for stable remains the safer fit. [[4]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Advanced Usage/Nightly release.md)

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[mahammadsahin]

@dosu, Thanks for the clarification! I now have a much better understanding of the recommended workflow.

I'm considering using Nightly as my primary version, with regular independent backups.

Before making that decision, I'd like to clarify one more thing:

Regarding recently introduced features such as Notes Tabs, Columns, and Drawing Canvas:

1. Are these features considered stable enough for everyday, long-term use, or are they still experimental and subject to significant changes?
2. Is there any risk that future changes to these features could affect, modify, or cause data loss in notes I've already created using them?
3. If any of these features are redesigned or changed in future updates, will existing notes and their content remain compatible?

I understand that Nightly is a development build and that occasional bugs are expected. I just want to understand the risks associated with using these newer features for my long-term notes.

Thanks again for your guidance!

[dosubot[bot]]

@mahammadsahin, I’d distinguish usable today from a guaranteed long-term format contract. The sources support using these features, but not a promise that every future nightly will preserve their behavior without bugs.

1. Are they experimental? Tabs and Columns are documented as regular text-editor features, without an experimental warning on their guide pages. Drawing Canvas is also documented, and its developer described it as intended for the next release while continuing to improve its performance. That suggests features intended for ongoing use, rather than disposable experiments, but it is not a feature-by-feature stability guarantee. [[1]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Content tabs.md) [[2]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Multicolumn layout.md) [[3]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Include Note.md) [4]

2. Could future changes affect existing content? I cannot promise zero risk of modification or data loss. There are reassuring implementation details: Tabs saves every panel as titled sections in HTML, Columns saves its content in HTML containers, and Drawing Canvas stores its editable drawing in a Canvas.excalidraw attachment. So the content is persisted, not merely temporary UI state. Those storage choices do not, by themselves, guarantee that future editing or conversion code cannot introduce a regression. [5] [6] [[3]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Include Note.md)

3. Will redesigned features remain compatible? I found no explicit commitment covering all future redesigns of these three features. Current implementations show attention to preservation and portability: Tabs has readable HTML fallbacks and prints every panel; Columns supports removing the layout while keeping its content; drawings retain their Excalidraw source attachment. These are useful safeguards, not a guarantee about unreleased changes. [[1]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Content tabs.md) [[2]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Multicolumn layout.md) [[3]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Include Note.md)

My recommendation remains conditional: use them in nightly if you are comfortable relying on recoverable snapshots rather than guaranteed compatibility. Keep dated independent backups from before each update, and test an update on a copy containing representative tabs, columns and drawings before letting it edit your working database. For especially important notes, also keep a readable export, such as PDF, alongside the full database backup. Tabs and Columns both support PDF output. [[7]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Installation & Setup/Backup.md) [[1]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Content tabs.md) [[2]](https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium/blob/332a7d7542f2e1a0f777ab99a04ac2982df6ef86/docs/User Guide/User Guide/Note Types/Text/Multicolumn layout.md)

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[adoriandoran]

@mahammadsahin, the current nightly version uses a newer database version, because the previous Trilium version can't handle the newly introduced text editor blocks. Generally, the nightly version keeps the same sync and DB version as the previous stable release.

I'm using the nightly version as a daily driver as well. The nightly version is safe to use, but you may experience bugs and the new features may still be incomplete, since they are still under development.