obsidian-mcp
by: StevenStavrakis
A simple MCP server for Obsidian
📌Overview
Purpose: To provide a server that allows AI assistants to interact seamlessly with Obsidian vaults for effective note management.
Overview: The Obsidian MCP Server is built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP), enabling functionalities for reading, creating, editing, and managing notes and tags within Obsidian vaults. It streamlines the integration of AI capabilities into users' note-taking workflows.
Key Features:
-
Read and Search Notes: Efficiently locate and access any notes within the vault, enhancing productivity.
-
Create and Edit Notes: Allows users to create new notes and modify existing ones, facilitating dynamic content management.
-
Tag Management: Users can add, remove, and rename tags, aiding in organized note categorization.
-
Move and Delete Notes: Provides flexibility in managing the organization of notes by moving or deleting as needed.
-
Manage Multiple Vaults: Features tools to list available vaults, supporting users with multiple Obsidian setups.
Obsidian MCP Server
An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that enables AI assistants to interact with Obsidian vaults, providing tools for reading, creating, editing, and managing notes and tags.
Warning
This MCP has read and write access (if you allow it). Please backup your Obsidian vault prior to using obsidian-mcp to manage your notes. Use any backup method you prefer, such as git. These tools have been tested but not thoroughly, and this MCP is in active development.
Features
- Read and search notes in your vault
- Create new notes and directories
- Edit existing notes
- Move and delete notes
- Manage tags (add, remove, rename)
- Search vault contents
Requirements
- Node.js 20 or higher (might work on lower, but untested)
- An Obsidian vault
Installation
Manual Installation
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": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "obsidian-mcp", "/path/to/your/vault", "/path/to/your/vault2"]
}
}
}
Replace /path/to/your/vault
with the absolute path to your Obsidian vault.
Examples:
macOS/Linux:
"/Users/username/Documents/MyVault"
Windows:
"C:\\Users\\username\\Documents\\MyVault"
Restart Claude Desktop after saving the configuration. The hammer icon should appear, indicating the server is connected.
If connection issues occur, check logs at:
- macOS:
~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp*.log
- Windows:
%APPDATA%\Claude\logs\mcp*.log
Installation via Smithery
Warning: Not affiliated with Smithery. Use manual installation if possible.
To install Obsidian MCP automatically via Smithery:
npx -y @smithery/cli install obsidian-mcp --client claude
Development
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/StevenStavrakis/obsidian-mcp
cd obsidian-mcp
# Install dependencies
npm install
# Build
npm run build
Then add to your Claude Desktop configuration:
{
"mcpServers": {
"obsidian": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["<absolute-path-to-obsidian-mcp>/build/main.js", "/path/to/your/vault", "/path/to/your/vault2"]
}
}
}
Available Tools
read-note
- Read the contents of a notecreate-note
- Create a new noteedit-note
- Edit an existing notedelete-note
- Delete a notemove-note
- Move a note to a different locationcreate-directory
- Create a new directorysearch-vault
- Search notes in the vaultadd-tags
- Add tags to a noteremove-tags
- Remove tags from a noterename-tag
- Rename a tag across all notesmanage-tags
- List and organize tagslist-available-vaults
- List all available vaults (for multi-vault setups)
Documentation
Additional documentation can be found in the docs
directory:
creating-tools.md
- Guide for creating new toolstool-examples.md
- Examples of using the available tools
Security
This server requires access to your Obsidian vault directory. When configuring the server:
- Only provide access to your intended vault directory
- Review tool actions before approving them
Troubleshooting
Common Issues
-
Server not showing up in Claude Desktop
- Verify configuration file syntax
- Ensure the vault path is absolute and exists
- Restart Claude Desktop
-
Permission errors
- Ensure the vault path is readable and writable
- Check file permissions in your vault
-
Tool execution failures
- Check Claude Desktop logs at:
- macOS:
~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp*.log
- Windows:
%APPDATA%\Claude\logs\mcp*.log
- macOS:
- Check Claude Desktop logs at:
License
MIT