Obsidian MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides AI assistants with access to your Obsidian vault through the Obsidian Local REST API plugin.

Features

Tools

• obsidian-get-note: Retrieve note content by filename
• obsidian-create-note: Create new notes with optional frontmatter
• obsidian-update-note: Update existing note content and metadata
• obsidian-delete-note: Delete notes from the vault
• obsidian-search-notes: Search for notes containing specific text
• obsidian-list-files: List all files and folders in the vault
• obsidian-get-vault-info: Get vault information and statistics
• obsidian-create-folder: Create new folders in the vault
• obsidian-get-tags: Get all tags used in the vault
• obsidian-ping: Check server connectivity

Resources

• obsidian://note/{filename}: Access individual note content
• obsidian://vault/files: Complete file and folder listing
• obsidian://vault/info: Vault information and statistics
• obsidian://vault/tags: All tags in the vault
• obsidian://search/{query}: Dynamic search results

Prerequisites

1. Obsidian with the Local REST API plugin installed and enabled
2. Node.js (version 18 or higher)

Setting up Obsidian Local REST API

1. Install the Obsidian Local REST API plugin
2. Enable the plugin in Obsidian settings
3. Configure the plugin settings:
   • Port: Default is 27123 (or choose your preferred port)
   • API Key: Set a secure API key (optional but recommended)
   • CORS: Enable if needed for web-based MCP clients

Installation

From NPM (when published)

npm install -g obsidian-mcp-server

From Source

git clone <repository-url>
cd obsidian-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build

Configuration

The server uses environment variables for configuration:

Using .env File (Recommended)

1. Copy the example environment file:

cp .env.example .env

2. Edit .env file with your settings:

# Required: Obsidian Local REST API base URL
OBSIDIAN_API_BASE_URL=http://localhost:27123

# Optional: API key if configured in Obsidian plugin
OBSIDIAN_API_KEY=your-api-key-here

The server automatically loads the .env file when started.

Using Environment Variables

Alternatively, you can set environment variables directly:

# Required: Obsidian Local REST API base URL
export OBSIDIAN_API_BASE_URL="http://localhost:27123"

# Optional: API key if configured in Obsidian plugin
export OBSIDIAN_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"

With Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop configuration file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\\Claude\\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian": {
      "command": "obsidian-mcp-server",
      "env": {
        "OBSIDIAN_API_BASE_URL": "http://localhost:27123",
        "OBSIDIAN_API_KEY": "your-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

With Other MCP Clients

For stdio transport:

OBSIDIAN_API_BASE_URL="http://localhost:27123" OBSIDIAN_API_KEY="your-key" obsidian-mcp-server

Usage Examples

Once connected, you can ask your AI assistant to:

Basic Operations

• "Show me the content of my 'Meeting Notes.md' file"
• "Create a new note called 'Ideas.md' with the content 'My brilliant ideas'"
• "Search for notes containing 'project'"
• "List all files in my vault"

Advanced Operations

• "Create a note with frontmatter including tags and creation date"
• "Update my daily note with today's tasks"
• "Show me all tags in my vault"
• "Create a folder called 'Projects' for organizing my work"

Working with Resources

• Access note content directly: obsidian://note/filename.md
• View vault statistics: obsidian://vault/info
• Get search results: obsidian://search/your%20query

Development

Setup

git clone <repository-url>
cd obsidian-mcp-server
npm install

Development Mode

npm run dev

Build

npm run build

Testing

# Test with MCP Inspector
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector npm run dev

# Or test with a specific configuration
OBSIDIAN_API_BASE_URL="http://localhost:27123" npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector npm run dev

API Reference

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default	Required
OBSIDIAN_API_BASE_URL	Base URL for Obsidian Local REST API	http://localhost:27123	No
OBSIDIAN_API_KEY	API key for authentication	-	No

Tool Schemas

obsidian-get-note

{
  filename: string // The filename of the note to retrieve
}

obsidian-create-note

{
  filename: string // The filename for the new note
  content: string // The content of the note
  frontmatter?: Record<string, any> // Optional frontmatter metadata
}

obsidian-search-notes

{
  query: string // The search query text
}

Resource URIs

• obsidian://note/{filename} - Individual note content
• obsidian://vault/files - Complete file listing
• obsidian://vault/info - Vault information
• obsidian://vault/tags - All tags
• obsidian://search/{query} - Search results

Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

1. Server not accessible: Ensure Obsidian is running and the Local REST API plugin is enabled
2. Port conflicts: Check if port 27123 (or your configured port) is available
3. API key issues: Verify the API key matches your Obsidian plugin configuration

Common Problems

• "Cannot find module" errors: Run npm install to install dependencies
• Permission errors: Ensure proper file permissions for the build directory
• CORS errors: Enable CORS in the Obsidian Local REST API plugin settings

Debug Mode

Run with debug logging:

DEBUG=* OBSIDIAN_API_BASE_URL="http://localhost:27123" obsidian-mcp-server

📚 Documentation

📖 Complete Documentation

See the docs/ folder for comprehensive guides, or check the Documentation Index for organized access to all guides.

Setup & Configuration

• LM Studio Setup Guide - Complete LM Studio configuration and deployment
• LM Studio Quick Start - Quick reference for LM Studio integration
• Environment File Usage - Using .env files with LM Studio and other clients

Docker & Deployment

• Docker Deployment Guide - Complete Docker containerization guide
• Docker Summary - Docker toolkit integration overview

Publishing & Distribution

• Registry Publishing Guide - Complete guide to publish to Docker MCP Registry
• Publishing Summary - Quick publishing checklist and steps

Quick Links

Topic	Guide	Description
🚀 Getting Started	LM Studio Quick Start	Fastest way to get running
🐳 Docker	Docker Summary	Containerization overview
⚙️ Configuration	Environment Files	Managing environment variables
🏪 Publishing	Registry Publishing	Share with the community

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch: git checkout -b feature-name
3. Make your changes and add tests
4. Run the build: npm run build
5. Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Related Projects

• Obsidian - A powerful knowledge base
• Obsidian Local REST API - REST API plugin for Obsidian
• Model Context Protocol - Protocol for AI-context integration
• Claude Desktop - AI assistant supporting MCP

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