Post

Connections Panel

Posted Updated
By Jason Rueckert
5 min read
Connections Panel

What is the Connections Panel?

The Connections Panel provides an always-visible sidebar showing all incoming backlinks and outgoing links for your current note. See your note’s relationships at a glance.

Overview

The Connections Panel automatically updates to show:

  • Outgoing Links: Notes that the current note links to
  • Backlinks: Notes that link to the current note
  • Context: Surrounding text for each connection
  • Quick Navigation: Click to jump to any connected note

Accessing the Panel

The Connections Panel appears in the sidebar under the “CONNECTIONS” section, below the main Notes tree view.

It automatically updates when you:

  • Switch to a different note
  • Save changes to a note
  • Create or modify wiki-style links

Panel Sections

Shows all notes that the current note links to using [[wiki-links]]:

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Outgoing Links (3)
  └── project-roadmap
      Line 15: "See [[project-roadmap]] for timeline"
  └── bug-auth
      Line 23: "Related to [[bug-auth]]"
  └── team-meeting
      Line 45: "Discussed in [[team-meeting]]"

Shows all notes that link to the current note:

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Backlinks (5)
  └── daily-standup
      Line 8: "Working on [[feature-auth]]"
  └── sprint-planning
      Line 12: "Priority: [[feature-auth]]"
  └── code-review
      Line 5: "Reviewed [[feature-auth]] implementation"

Context Preview

Each connection shows:

  • Source/Target Note: The connected note’s name
  • Line Number: Where the link appears
  • Context: The line containing the link
  • Tooltip: Extended context with file metadata

Hover over any connection to see:

  • Full file path
  • Complete context (configurable lines before/after)
  • Link display text (if using [[note|Display]] syntax)

Open Connection

Click any connection item to open the target note:

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Click on "project-roadmap" → Opens that note in editor

Open Connection Source

Right-click a connection and select “Open Connection Source” to:

  • Open the source note
  • Jump directly to the line containing the link
  • See the exact context where the connection was made

This is especially useful for understanding why a note links to another.

Connection Strength

When multiple connections exist between notes, they’re grouped together:

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Backlinks (3)
  └── daily-standup (2 connections)
      Line 8: "Working on [[feature-auth]]"
      Line 15: "[[feature-auth]] tests passing"
  └── code-review
      Line 5: "Reviewed [[feature-auth]]"

The number in parentheses shows how many times the source note links to the target.

Real-Time Updates

The panel updates automatically when:

  1. Active Editor Changes: Switch notes → Panel shows new note’s connections
  2. Document Saved: Save a note → Panel refreshes to reflect new links
  3. Backlinks Rebuilt: Manual rebuild → Panel shows updated connections

Use Cases

Understanding Note Relationships

See how a note fits into your knowledge base:

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# feature-authentication

Your note content here...

Connections Panel shows:

  • Outgoing: Links to related notes (specs, bugs, PRs)
  • Backlinks: Notes that reference this feature (standups, reviews, docs)

Discover where a topic is discussed:

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Click on backlink → See how others referenced this note
View context → Understand the relationship

Use the panel as a quick navigation tool:

  1. Open a central note (e.g., project-overview)
  2. See all connected notes in the panel
  3. Click through to explore the network

Ensure your notes are well-connected:

  • No backlinks? → Orphan note, consider linking from relevant notes
  • Many backlinks? → Hub note, good central resource
  • Few outgoing links? → Could be expanded with more context

Integration with Other Features

The panel shows all [[wiki-links]] in your notes:

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See [[project-roadmap]] for details.
Related: [[bug-123]], [[feature-auth]]

The panel uses the backlinks index (built automatically):

  • Indexes all notes on activation
  • Updates incrementally as you edit
  • Manual rebuild with Noted: Refresh Connections

When auto-backlinks are enabled (noted.autoBacklinks: true):

  • Backlinks are appended to note files
  • Format: - [[source-note]] - #tag1 #tag2
  • Includes tags from source note’s frontmatter
  • Panel shows same information, but always up-to-date

Commands

Refresh Connections

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Command: Noted: Refresh Connections

Rebuilds the backlinks index and refreshes the panel. Use this if:

  • Panel seems out of sync
  • You’ve made many link changes
  • You want to ensure accuracy
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Command: Noted: Rebuild Backlinks

Rebuilds the backlinks index AND regenerates auto-backlinks sections in all notes.

Configuration

Control whether backlinks are appended to note files:

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{
  "noted.autoBacklinks": true  // default
}

When enabled, notes will have a section like:

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---

## Backlinks
- [[daily-standup]] - #meeting #team
- [[code-review]] - #review

This doesn’t affect the Connections Panel, which always shows real-time data.

Best Practices

  1. Use Descriptive Link Text: Use [[note|Descriptive Text]] for clarity
  2. Check Backlinks Regularly: See how others are using your notes
  3. Link Liberally: More links = more context in the panel
  4. Explore Connection Sources: Use “Open Connection Source” to understand relationships
  5. Organize with Tags: Tags in source notes appear in backlinks

Tips & Tricks

Find Orphan Notes

Open a note with no backlinks → Consider linking from relevant notes:

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Backlinks (0)
  No backlinks found

Hub Notes

Notes with many backlinks are “hub notes” - great entry points:

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Backlinks (15)
  [Many notes linking here]

Bidirectional Connections

When a note appears in both sections, you have a bidirectional link:

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Outgoing: [[project-roadmap]]
Backlinks: [[project-roadmap]]

This indicates a strong relationship between notes.

Context Investigation

Use the panel to investigate how a concept evolved:

  1. Open a concept note
  2. View backlinks chronologically
  3. Click through to see how understanding developed

Troubleshooting

Panel Not Updating

Run Noted: Refresh Connections to rebuild the index.

Missing Connections

Ensure:

  • Links use correct [[note-name]] syntax
  • Notes have been saved recently
  • Link targets exist (broken links won’t show in outgoing)

Performance with Large Workspaces

The panel uses an efficient index:

  • Built once on activation
  • Updated incrementally on save
  • Minimal performance impact

Explore your note connections! 🔗

Features, Navigation
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This post is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the author.