Obsidian Official Cli 1.0.0

Work with Obsidian vaults using the official Obsidian CLI (v1.12+). Open, search, create, move, and manage notes from the terminal. Use when working with Obs...

Security Scan

The skill's instructions match an Obsidian CLI helper, but metadata/source inconsistencies and claims about auto-triggering / distribution raise proportionality and provenance concerns you should verify before installing.

Purpose & Capability

The name/description and SKILL.md consistently describe using the official Obsidian CLI to read, modify, and manage vaults. The permission footprint (no env vars, no installs) is appropriate for a CLI wrapper. HOWEVER the packaging/source metadata is inconsistent: registry owner ID differs from the _meta.json 'owner' (slmoloch) and README points to a GitHub releases URL while the skill's registry 'Source' and 'Homepage' are missing—this provenance mismatch is unexplained.

Instruction Scope

SKILL.md is an instruction-only skill that confines runtime actions to running the local 'obsidian' CLI and interacting with vault paths, templates, tasks, plugins, etc. It does not instruct reading unrelated system files, environment variables, or sending data to external endpoints. Note: many commands can read/modify or delete local vault files and access developer console/DOM via the running app—these are powerful but within the stated scope.

Install Mechanism

No install spec and no code files to execute (instruction-only) — lowest install risk. README suggests downloading a .skill file from GitHub releases, but no install actions are embedded in the SKILL.md.

Credentials

The skill requests no environment variables or credentials in metadata. It correctly documents that Obsidian must be running with CLI enabled and that a Catalyst license/insider build is required for the official CLI. Note: operations like 'Obsidian Sync' will rely on the local app's authenticated session rather than additional env vars.

Persistence & Privilege

always:false and default invocation settings are used. The skill does not request persistent/system-wide privileges or to modify other skills. Autonomous invocation is allowed by default (platform normal) but not combined with other high-risk flags here.

What to consider before installing

This skill appears to be an instruction-only helper that runs your local 'obsidian' CLI to read and modify vaults — that behavior is coherent with its description. Before installing: 1) Verify provenance: the registry owner ID, README GitHub links, and _meta.json owner are inconsistent; confirm you trust the publisher and download the .skill file from the official source. 2) Back up your vaults — CLI commands can modify or delete notes and plugins. 3) Confirm you have Obsidian 1.12+ with CLI enabled and understand that Obsidian Sync operations will use the local app's account. 4) Be cautious with plugin/theme install or 'plugin:uninstall' commands — they can change your environment. If you need more assurance, ask the publisher for the exact release URL or a signed package before proceeding.

Obsidian CLI

Official command-line interface for Obsidian. Anything you can do in Obsidian can be done from the command line — including developer commands for debugging, screenshots, and plugin reloading.

Prerequisites

• Obsidian 1.12+ and Catalyst license required
• Settings → General → Command line interface → Enable
• Follow prompt to register the obsidian command
• Restart terminal or source ~/.zprofile (macOS)
• Note: Obsidian must be running for CLI to work

Test setup: obsidian version

Core Patterns

Command Structure

# Single commands
obsidian <command> [parameters] [flags]

# TUI mode (interactive)
obsidian  # Enter TUI with autocomplete and history

# Vault targeting
obsidian vault=Notes <command>
obsidian vault="My Vault" <command>

Parameter Types

• Parameters: name=value (quote values with spaces)
• Flags: Boolean switches (just include to enable)
• Multiline: Use for newlines, \t for tabs
• Copy output: Add --copy to copy to clipboard

File Operations

Basic File Management

# Info and listing
obsidian file                          # Active file info
obsidian file file=Recipe              # Specific file info
obsidian files                         # List all files
obsidian files folder=Projects/        # Filter by folder
obsidian folders                       # List folders

# Open and read
obsidian open file=Recipe              # Open file
obsidian open path="Inbox/Note.md" newtab
obsidian read                          # Read active file
obsidian read file=Recipe --copy       # Read and copy to clipboard

# Create new notes
obsidian create name="New Note"
obsidian create name="Note" content="# Title Body"
obsidian create path="Inbox/Idea.md" template=Daily
obsidian create name="Note" silent overwrite

# Modify content
obsidian append file=Note content="New line"
obsidian append file=Note content="Same line" inline
obsidian prepend file=Note content="After frontmatter"

# Move and delete
obsidian move file=Note to=Archive/
obsidian move path="Inbox/Old.md" to="Projects/New.md"
obsidian delete file=Note              # To trash
obsidian delete file=Note permanent

File Targeting

• file=<name> — Wikilink resolution (matches by name)
• path=<path> — Exact path from vault root

Search and Discovery

Text Search

obsidian search query="meeting notes"
obsidian search query="TODO" matches    # Show context
obsidian search query="project" path=Projects/
obsidian search query="urgent" limit=10 case
obsidian search query="API" format=json
obsidian search:open query="search term"  # Open in Obsidian

Tags and Properties

# Tags
obsidian tags                          # Active file tags
obsidian tags all                      # All vault tags
obsidian tags all counts sort=count    # By frequency
obsidian tag name=project              # Tag info

# Properties (frontmatter)
obsidian properties file=Note
obsidian property:read name=status file=Note
obsidian property:set name=status value=done file=Note
obsidian property:set name=tags value="a,b,c" type=list file=Note
obsidian property:remove name=draft file=Note

Links and Structure

# Backlinks and outgoing links
obsidian backlinks file=Note           # What links to this
obsidian links file=Note               # Outgoing links

# Vault analysis
obsidian orphans                       # No incoming links
obsidian deadends                      # No outgoing links
obsidian unresolved                    # Broken links
obsidian unresolved verbose counts

Daily Notes and Tasks

Daily Notes

obsidian daily                         # Open today's note
obsidian daily paneType=split          # Open in split
obsidian daily:read                    # Print contents
obsidian daily:append content="- [ ] New task"
obsidian daily:prepend content="## Morning"

Task Management

# List tasks
obsidian tasks                         # Active file
obsidian tasks all                     # All vault tasks
obsidian tasks all todo                # Incomplete only
obsidian tasks file=Recipe             # Specific file
obsidian tasks daily                   # Daily note tasks

# Update tasks
obsidian task ref="Recipe.md:8" toggle
obsidian task file=Recipe line=8 done
obsidian task file=Recipe line=8 todo
obsidian task file=Note line=5 status="-"  # Custom [-]

Templates and Bookmarks

Templates

obsidian templates                     # List all templates
obsidian template:read name=Daily
obsidian template:read name=Daily resolve title="My Note"
obsidian template:insert name=Daily    # Insert into active file
obsidian create name="Meeting Notes" template=Meeting

Bookmarks

obsidian bookmarks                     # List all
obsidian bookmark file="Important.md"
obsidian bookmark file=Note subpath="#Section"
obsidian bookmark folder="Projects/"
obsidian bookmark search="TODO"
obsidian bookmark url="https://..." title="Reference"

Plugin and Theme Management

Plugins

# List and info
obsidian plugins                       # All installed
obsidian plugins:enabled               # Only enabled
obsidian plugin id=dataview            # Plugin info

# Manage plugins
obsidian plugin:enable id=dataview
obsidian plugin:disable id=dataview
obsidian plugin:install id=dataview enable
obsidian plugin:uninstall id=dataview
obsidian plugin:reload id=my-plugin    # Development

Themes and CSS

# Themes
obsidian themes                        # List installed
obsidian theme                         # Active theme
obsidian theme:set name=Minimal
obsidian theme:install name="Theme Name" enable

# CSS Snippets
obsidian snippets                      # List all
obsidian snippet:enable name=my-snippet
obsidian snippet:disable name=my-snippet

Advanced Features

Obsidian Sync

obsidian sync:status                   # Status and usage
obsidian sync on/off                   # Resume/pause
obsidian sync:history file=Note
obsidian sync:restore file=Note version=2
obsidian sync:deleted                  # Deleted files

File History

obsidian history file=Note             # List versions
obsidian history:read file=Note version=1
obsidian history:restore file=Note version=2
obsidian diff file=Note from=2 to=1   # Compare versions

Developer Tools

# Console and debugging
obsidian devtools                      # Toggle dev tools
obsidian dev:console                   # Show console
obsidian dev:errors                    # JS errors
obsidian eval code="app.vault.getFiles().length"

# Screenshots and DOM
obsidian dev:screenshot path=screenshot.png
obsidian dev:dom selector=".workspace-leaf"
obsidian dev:css selector=".mod-active" prop=background

# Mobile and debugging
obsidian dev:mobile on/off
obsidian dev:debug on/off

Utility Commands

Workspace and Navigation

# Workspace management
obsidian workspace                     # Current layout
obsidian workspace:save name="coding"
obsidian workspace:load name="coding"
obsidian tabs                          # Open tabs
obsidian tab:open file=Note

# Random and unique
obsidian random                        # Open random note
obsidian random folder=Inbox newtab
obsidian unique                        # Create unique name
obsidian wordcount file=Note           # Word count

Command Palette

obsidian commands                      # List all command IDs
obsidian commands filter=editor        # Filter commands
obsidian command id=editor:toggle-bold
obsidian hotkeys                       # List hotkeys

TUI Mode

Interactive terminal UI with enhanced features:

obsidian                               # Enter TUI mode

TUI Shortcuts:

• Navigation: ←/→ (Ctrl+B/F), Home/End (Ctrl+A/E)
• Editing: Ctrl+U (delete to start), Ctrl+K (delete to end)
• Autocomplete: Tab/↓ (enter), Shift+Tab/Esc (exit)
• History: ↑/↓ (Ctrl+P/N), Ctrl+R (reverse search)
• Other: Enter (execute), Ctrl+L (clear), Ctrl+C/D (exit)

Troubleshooting

Setup Issues

• Use latest installer (1.11.7+) with early access (1.12.x)
• Restart terminal after CLI registration
• Ensure Obsidian is running before using CLI

Platform-Specific

macOS: PATH added to ~/.zprofile

# For other shells, add manually:
export PATH="$PATH:/Applications/Obsidian.app/Contents/MacOS"

Linux: Symlink at /usr/local/bin/obsidian

# Manual creation if needed:
sudo ln -s /path/to/obsidian /usr/local/bin/obsidian

Windows: Requires Obsidian.com terminal redirector (Catalyst Discord)