anki-editor.nvim

Neovim plugin to edit Anki card templates directly in the editor, with automatic synchronization via Anki-Connect.

This project adapts the VSCode extension anki-editor to Neovim, implemented in Lua instead of TypeScript.

Requirements

Required

• Neovim 0.6+ (0.10+ recommended for better vim.system)
• Anki desktop installed and running
• Anki-Connect add-on

Optional (better UX)

• Anki Preview Reloader — refreshes previews in Anki when templates change
• nvim-notify — nicer notifications
• Telescope.nvim — improved selection UI (future)

Features

MVP (implemented / planned)

• HTTP client for Anki-Connect with error handling
• Buffer management for Front, Back, and CSS
• Configuration system
• :AnkiEdit command for template selection and editing
• Auto-sync on save (:w)
• Success/error notifications
• Connectivity check with :AnkiPing

Future

• Syntax highlighting for fields, filters, and conditionals
• Autocomplete for Anki fields and filters +- Diagnostics for template issues
• Rename for conditional tags ({{#if}} → {{/if}})
• LSP integration
• Rendered HTML preview

Installation

lazy.nvim (recommended)

-- In your lazy.nvim spec:
{
  'limaon/anki-editor.nvim',
  event = 'VeryLazy',
  config = function()
    require('anki-editor').setup({
      anki_connect_url = "http://127.0.0.1:8765",
    })
  end,
  keys = {
    { '<leader>ne', ':AnkiEdit<CR>', desc = 'Edit Anki template' },
  },
}

vim-plug

Plug 'limaon/anki-editor.nvim'

" In your init.vim or init.lua:
lua require('anki-editor').setup()

Manual

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/limaon/anki-editor.nvim.git \
  ~/.local/share/nvim/site/pack/manual/start/anki-editor.nvim

2. Add setup to your init.lua:

require('anki-editor').setup()

Configuration

require('anki-editor').setup({
  -- Anki-Connect URL and port
  anki_connect_url = "http://127.0.0.1:8765",

  -- Optional API key (if configured in Anki-Connect)
  api_key = nil,

  -- Automatically sync on :w
  auto_save = true,

  -- Buffer name prefix
  buffer_prefix = "[Anki]",

  -- HTTP timeout (ms)
  timeout_ms = 5000,

  -- Debounce time for rapid saves (ms)
  debounce_ms = 200,

  -- Validate template before saving
  check_on_write = true,

  -- Notification provider: "vim.notify" or "nvim-notify"
  notify_provider = "vim.notify",
})

See examples/ for additional configurations (lazy.nvim, vim-plug).

Usage

Commands

:AnkiEdit       " Interactive selection and editing of templates
:AnkiList       " List available note types
:AnkiRefresh    " Clear model cache
:AnkiPing       " Check Anki-Connect connectivity

Basic Flow

1. Run :AnkiEdit
2. Select the note type (model)
3. Select the card (e.g., "Card 1")
4. Select the side (Front, Back, or Styling)
5. The selected side opens in the current window (other sides are created in the background). Use :bnext, :bprev or :buffer [name] to switch to Back/Styling buffers.
6. Save with :w to sync with Anki

Example Keybindings

-- In your init.lua
local opts = { noremap = true, silent = true }
vim.keymap.set('n', '<leader>ne', ':AnkiEdit<CR>', opts)
vim.keymap.set('n', '<leader>nl', ':AnkiList<CR>', opts)
vim.keymap.set('n', '<leader>np', ':AnkiPing<CR>', opts)

Troubleshooting

Anki-Connect does not connect

1. Ensure Anki is running: pgrep anki
2. Verify Anki-Connect is installed and enabled in Anki
3. Test the URL: curl http://127.0.0.1:8765
4. Run :AnkiPing in Neovim

Plugin does not load

:checkhealth
:messages

Check if the plugin is in the runtimepath:

:set runtimepath?

Buffers do not save

• Verify the Anki-Connect API is responding
• Check for errors in :messages
• Use :AnkiList to validate connectivity

Development

See development.md for:

• Local development setup
• Code style (StyLua, Luacheck)
• How to test locally
• How to contribute

Contributing Checklist

• Fork the repository
• Your branch: git checkout -b feature/your-feature
• Clear commit messages
• Run stylua lua/ plugin/ for formatting
• Run luacheck lua/ --globals vim for linting
• Push: git push origin feature/your-feature
• Pull Request with description

License

MIT License

Credits

• Inspired by anki-editor by Pedro Bronsveld for VSCode
• Anki-Connect by FooSoft
• Anki Documentation

Resources

• Neovim Lua API
• Anki-Connect API Reference
• Neovim plugin development guide
• PLANO.md — Roadmap and architecture