obsidian-vault

name	obsidian-vault
description	Use whenever the user works with their Obsidian vault — "find my notes on X", "create a note", "add this to my daily note", "what links here", "tag this note", "summarize my notes about Y". The vault is the working directory (Markdown files); route intent to the official `obsidian` CLI for vault-aware actions and to direct file edits for note content.
license	MIT
metadata	{"category":"obsidian-routing","primary-interface":"obsidian CLI + file tools"}
triggers	["Obsidian","vault","note","notes","daily note","wikilink","backlink","tag","笔记","知识库","双链","标签"]

Obsidian Vault

The user's Obsidian vault is your current working directory. Every note is a Markdown (.md) file on disk. You have two ways to act, and choosing the right one matters:

• The official obsidian CLI — for anything that maps to an Obsidian feature: search, daily note, backlinks/outgoing links, tags, properties (frontmatter), and running any command-palette action. Prefer it over hand-rolling the same thing from raw files.
• Your normal file tools — for reading and editing note content, since the vault is just files in the working directory. Editing the Markdown directly is often the most reliable way to change a note's body.

The CLI — the commands you'll actually use

Run obsidian help to see the full list; the load-bearing ones:

Goal	Command
Full-text search the vault	obsidian search "<text>" (paths) / obsidian search:context "<text>" (with matching lines)
Read a note	obsidian read file="<name>" (by name, like a wikilink) or path="folder/note.md" (exact)
Create a note	obsidian create path="folder/note.md" content="..."
Append / prepend	obsidian append path="..." content="..." / obsidian prepend ...
Today's daily note	obsidian daily (and obsidian append to add to it)
What links here / outgoing	obsidian backlinks file="<name>" / obsidian links file="<name>"
List notes / folders / tags	obsidian files / obsidian folders / obsidian tags
Frontmatter property	obsidian property:set path="..." key=<k> value=<v> / property:read
Recently opened (the active note)	obsidian recents
Run any command-palette action	obsidian command id=<command-id> (list ids with obsidian commands)

Notes on syntax: file= resolves by name (like [[wikilinks]]); path= is an exact vault-relative path. Quote values with spaces: name="My Note". Use \n for newlines in content=.

Grounding rule

When the user says "this note", "the note I'm in", "here" without naming a file, find the active note with obsidian recents (most recent first) rather than guessing. When the user wants something across the vault ("my notes on X", "where did I write about Y"), use obsidian search / search:context — do NOT read many files by hand to simulate a search.

Editing notes — preserve the user's conventions

Notes use Obsidian-native syntax that must survive your edits:

• Wikilinks [[Note]] / [[Note|alias]] and embeds ![[Note]].
• Tags #tag / #nested/tag.
• Frontmatter — a YAML block at the very top between --- fences (properties). Edit it as YAML; use obsidian property:set for single fields.
• Callouts > [!note], tasks - [ ] / - [x].

When asked for a small change, make the small change — don't reformat or rewrite a whole note. Keep existing links, tags, and frontmatter intact.

Anti-patterns (do NOT do these)

1. Reading the whole vault to answer a search. Use obsidian search / search:context. It's faster and it's what Obsidian is for.
2. Guessing the active note. Call obsidian recents when the user says "this note" without naming it.
3. Clobbering frontmatter or links when editing a note's body.
4. Re-pasting the note back to the user after editing it — they can see the vault update. Confirm in ~1 line and stop.
5. Treating this like a code repo. It's a personal knowledge base; frame everything around notes, links, and writing, not files-as-source-code.

When in doubt

Match the user's verb to one tool:

• "find" / "search" / "where did I write" → obsidian search / search:context
• "read" / "open" / "show me [note]" → obsidian read
• "create" / "new note" → obsidian create
• "add to" / "append" → obsidian append (or obsidian daily + append)
• "what links to" → obsidian backlinks
• "tag" / "set property" → obsidian property:set (or edit frontmatter)
• "edit the note" / "rewrite this paragraph" → your file tools on the .md

One well-chosen action beats several guesses.