From obsidian-cli
Runs Obsidian CLI commands for vault ops: search, backlinks, tags, tasks, properties, daily notes, file read/write/create/move. Use for indexed features; fallback to file tools otherwise.
npx claudepluginhub jackal092927/obsidian-official-cli-skills --plugin obsidian-cliThis skill uses the workspace's default tool permissions.
**Use CLI** when you need Obsidian's index or app features:
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Generates original PNG/PDF visual art via design philosophy manifestos for posters, graphics, and static designs on user request.
Share bugs, ideas, or general feedback.
Use CLI when you need Obsidian's index or app features: search, backlinks, links, tags, tasks, properties, bases, templates, outline, orphans, unresolved links
Use file tools (Read/Write/Edit/Grep/Glob) for: simple file read/write, bulk text replacement, grep across files — no app dependency
Rule of thumb: if Obsidian's index adds value, use CLI. If it's plain text manipulation, use file tools.
obsidian <command> [param=value ...] [flag ...]
vault="My Vault" as first param, or run from inside vault dirpath=exact/path.md (vault-relative) vs file=name (link-style resolution)key=value — quote values with spaces: name="My Note"= — e.g. silent, overwrite, counts, total\n for newline, \t for tab in content stringsformat=json (search, base:query), format=tsv (properties, tags)--copy to copy outputobsidian read path=<path> # read file content
obsidian append path=<path> content="<text>" # append to file
obsidian prepend path=<path> content="<text>" # prepend after frontmatter
obsidian create name=<name> content="<text>" silent # create file (safe — won't overwrite)
obsidian create name=<name> template=<template> overwrite silent # create from template
obsidian move path=<from> to=<to> # move/rename file
obsidian delete path=<path> # move to system trash (safe)
Gotchas:
create without silent opens the file in Obsidian's UI — always add silent during agent operations.create doesn't auto-create directories — use mkdir -p via Bash first if the parent folder doesn't exist.create with template= may place the file in the template's configured folder, ignoring path=. Verify the actual path with search or files after creation.obsidian daily # open today's daily note
obsidian daily:read # read daily note content
obsidian daily:append content="<text>" # append to daily note
obsidian daily:prepend content="<text>" # prepend to daily note
obsidian property:set name=<key> value=<val> path=<path> # set property
obsidian property:set name=<key> value=<val> type=<type> path=<path> # set with explicit type
obsidian property:read name=<key> path=<path> # read one property
obsidian property:remove name=<key> path=<path> # remove property
obsidian properties path=<path> # list all properties
obsidian properties path=<path> format=tsv # list as TSV (key\tvalue)
obsidian search query="<text>" # search vault (file paths)
obsidian search query="<text>" path=<folder> limit=10 # scoped search
obsidian search query="<text>" format=json # JSON array of paths
obsidian search query="<text>" format=json matches # structured JSON with line numbers (preferred)
obsidian search query="<text>" matches # text format with matching lines
Tip: format=json matches returns [{"file":"path","matches":[{"line":N,"text":"..."}]}] — use this for programmatic search.
obsidian tags all counts # list ALL vault tags with counts
obsidian tags all counts sort=count # sorted by frequency
obsidian tag name=<tag> # files with specific tag
obsidian tasks all todo # vault-wide open tasks
obsidian tasks all done # vault-wide completed tasks
obsidian tasks daily # tasks from daily note
obsidian tasks path=<path> # tasks in file/folder
obsidian task ref="<path>:<line>" toggle # toggle task status
obsidian task ref="<path>:<line>" done # mark done
Note: tags without all lists tags for the active/specified file only.
Note: tasks without a scope (all, daily, path=) defaults to the active file — use tasks all for vault-wide results.
obsidian backlinks path=<path> # incoming links to file
obsidian backlinks path=<path> counts # with link counts
obsidian links path=<path> # outgoing links from file
obsidian unresolved # broken/unresolved links
obsidian orphans # files with no incoming links
obsidian deadends # files with no outgoing links
obsidian files folder=<path> ext=md # list files in folder
obsidian folders # list all folders
obsidian outline path=<path> # heading structure of file
obsidian bases # list .base files
obsidian base:query path=<path> format=json # query a base
obsidian base:query path=<path> view=<name> format=json # query specific view
obsidian templates # list available templates
obsidian template:read name=<name> # read template source
obsidian template:read name=<name> resolve # render with variables filled
Never run without explicit user request:
eval — arbitrary code executiondelete permanent — bypasses trashplugin:install / plugin:uninstall — modifies plugin statedev:cdp — Chrome DevTools protocol accessPrefer safe patterns:
append / prepend over full file overwritecreate without overwrite flag is safe (won't replace existing files)obsidian vault # confirm CLI connection — returns vault name, path, file count
obsidian version # show CLI version (e.g. "1.12.1 (installer 1.11.4)")
| Symptom | Likely cause | Action |
|---|---|---|
obsidian version fails | CLI not installed or not on PATH | Fall back to file tools |
| Command hangs or times out | Obsidian app not running | Start Obsidian or use file tools |
| "Unknown command" | CLI version too old | Run obsidian help to check available commands |
| Empty results from search/tags | Vault index not ready | Wait a moment, retry, or use Grep as fallback |
General fallback: if CLI is unavailable, use Read/Write/Edit/Grep/Glob for file operations. The CLI requires the Obsidian desktop app to be running.