workspaces

created	"2026-04-30T00:00:00.000Z"
modified	"2026-05-09T00:00:00.000Z"
reviewed	"2026-04-30T00:00:00.000Z"
name	workspaces
description	Obsidian editor workspace: list open tabs, recent files, saved Workspaces. Use when checking what's open, switching layouts, or opening files into tabs.
user-invocable	false
allowed-tools	Bash(obsidian *), Read, Grep, Glob

Obsidian Workspaces, Tabs & Recents

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when...	Use the alternative instead when...
Inspecting the current workspace tree, tabs, or recently opened files	Reading or writing note content — use vault-files
Saving / loading layouts via the Workspaces core plugin	Switching between vaults — use vault-management
Opening a file into a specific tab group	Triggering a generic UI command — use command-palette

The Workspaces core plugin must be enabled for workspace:save / :load / :delete and the workspaces list to return data. tabs, tab:open, recents, and the bare workspace tree command work without it.

Prerequisites

• Obsidian desktop v1.12.4+ with CLI enabled
• Obsidian must be running
• For saved-layout commands: enable the Workspaces core plugin

Inspect the Current Workspace

# Tree of the active workspace (groups, splits, leaves)
obsidian workspace

# Include item IDs (needed for tab:open group=)
obsidian workspace ids

Tabs

# Open tabs in the active window
obsidian tabs

# Include tab IDs
obsidian tabs ids

# Open a file into a new tab (defaults to active group)
obsidian tab:open file="Notes/Recipe"

# Open into a specific group (use ids from `obsidian workspace ids` or `obsidian tabs ids`)
obsidian tab:open group=<group-id> file="Notes/Recipe"

# Open a non-file view (graph, file explorer, etc.)
obsidian tab:open view=graph
obsidian tab:open view=file-explorer

Recent Files

# Recently opened files (tab history)
obsidian recents

# Just the count
obsidian recents total

Saved Workspaces (core plugin)

# All saved layouts
obsidian workspaces
obsidian workspaces total

# Save the current layout
obsidian workspace:save name="Writing"

# Switch to a saved layout
obsidian workspace:load name="Writing"

# Delete a saved layout
obsidian workspace:delete name="Writing"

Common Patterns

"What is the user looking at right now?"

obsidian workspace
obsidian tabs
obsidian recents

"Open these three notes side-by-side, then save the layout"

obsidian open file="Brief"
obsidian command id=workspace:split-vertical
obsidian tab:open file="Spec"
obsidian command id=workspace:split-vertical
obsidian tab:open file="Notes"
obsidian workspace:save name="Triage"

"Restore the writing layout for a focused session"

obsidian workspace:load name="Writing"

"Open the graph view in a new tab"

obsidian tab:open view=graph

Agentic Optimizations

Context	Command
Workspace tree	obsidian workspace
Workspace with IDs	obsidian workspace ids
Open tabs	obsidian tabs
Recently opened	obsidian recents
Open file in new tab	obsidian tab:open file=X
Open view (graph, etc.)	obsidian tab:open view=Y
List saved layouts	obsidian workspaces
Switch layout	obsidian workspace:load name=X
Save layout	obsidian workspace:save name=X

Related Skills

• vault-files — Read or write the file you just opened
• command-palette — workspace:split-vertical, workspace:split-horizontal, etc.
• vault-management — Switch vaults before inspecting their workspace