Which integrations are available for this server?

Provides tools to interact with an Obsidian vault via the Obsidian CLI, supporting note operations (read, create, edit, delete, move, rename), property management, search, backlinks, file info, diff, and governed workflows with template and promotion capabilities.

How do I use obsidian-cli-mcp?

1. Click on "Install Server". 2. Wait a few minutes for the server to deploy. Once ready, it will show a "Started" state. 3. In the chat, type @ followed by the MCP server name and your instructions, e.g., "@obsidian-cli-mcp search my vault for notes on AI" That's it! The server will respond to your query, and you can continue using it as needed. Here is a step-by-step guide with screenshots.

obsidian-cli-mcp

by amalikn

Overview Schema Related Servers Score Discussions

TypeScript

Local

obsidian-cli-mcp

MCP server for the Obsidian CLI with explicit runtime profiles for governed and personal use. The default profile is governed-readonly; governed-mutation adds bounded template and promotion workflows on top of the read surface, and the broad legacy surface remains available only through an explicit personal-unrestricted profile.

Requirements

Obsidian desktop app running (macOS, Linux, Windows)
Obsidian CLI installed:
- macOS / Linux (via Homebrew): brew install obsidianmd/tap/obsidian
- Windows: see Obsidian CLI releases
Node.js 22+

Platform notes: Fully tested on macOS. Linux is supported via the same Homebrew tap (Linuxbrew). Windows support is untested — env var injection (HOME/TMPDIR) may behave differently; contributions welcome.

Related MCP server: mcp-obsidian-ek

Installation

No installation required — run directly with npx:

npx -y @joemugen/obsidian-cli-mcp

Or install globally:

npm install -g @joemugen/obsidian-cli-mcp

Configuration

Variable	Description	Default
`OBSIDIAN_BIN`	Path to the Obsidian CLI binary	`obsidian`
`OBSIDIAN_VAULT`	Default pinned vault name	required in governed profiles; optional in `personal-unrestricted`
`OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT`	Canonical filesystem root of the pinned vault	required in governed profiles
`OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE`	JSON vault policy file	required in governed profiles
`MCP_PROFILE`	`governed-readonly`, `governed-mutation`, or `personal-unrestricted`	`governed-readonly`
`MCP_TRANSPORT`	`stdio` or `http`	`stdio`
`MCP_PORT`	HTTP port (when `MCP_TRANSPORT=http`)	`3000`
`MCP_HTTP_HOST`	HTTP bind host (when `MCP_TRANSPORT=http`)	`127.0.0.1`
`MCP_HTTP_AUTH_TOKEN`	Shared bearer token for HTTP auth	required for governed HTTP and any remote HTTP bind
`MCP_HTTP_ALLOW_REMOTE_BIND`	Explicit remote bind opt-in (`true`)	disabled by default

Important (macOS): always point OBSIDIAN_BIN to the Homebrew binary ($(brew --prefix)/bin/obsidian). The Homebrew binary flushes stdout to the pipe correctly; a plain app bundle symlink does not.

Profiles

governed-readonly
- Safe default.
- Registers exact-path note/property reads plus policy-filtered governed discovery (obsidian_search, obsidian_search_context, filtered links, filtered backlinks).
- Requires OBSIDIAN_VAULT, OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT, and OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE.
- Disables per-call vault overrides.
governed-mutation
- Adds the exact-path mutation surface plus governed template and promotion helpers on top of governed-readonly.
- Allows exact-path note/property edits and the governed workflow tools: obsidian_create_note_from_template, obsidian_create_review_note, obsidian_create_promotion_candidate, obsidian_create_curated_note, and obsidian_log_promotion.
- Blocks rename, move, delete, task toggle, template insertion into the active note, daily mutation, plugin/theme/snippet mutation, runtime-state mutation, and execute/eval surfaces.
- Requires the same pinned-vault and policy inputs as governed-readonly.
personal-unrestricted
- Compatibility profile for the full legacy surface, including mutating and developer-oriented tools.
- Not the default.
- Intended for controlled personal use, not governed deployment.

Governed vault policy

Governed profiles enforce a real path policy before the Obsidian CLI is invoked:

exact-path note/property operations only
bounded discovery only inside configured discoveryAllowlist roots
approved template reads only inside configured templateAllowlist roots
workflow routing for review notes, promotion candidates, curated destinations, and promotion logs
default deny for writes outside the configured write allowlist
explicit denylist support
hidden path and .obsidian/** denial by default
canonical path normalization against the pinned OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT
optional symlink traversal denial

See examples/governed-vault-policy.example.json for a conservative second-brain example.

Client Setup

Claude Desktop

Edit the config file for your OS:

OS	Path
macOS	`~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`
Linux	`~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`
Windows	`%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json`

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-cli": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@joemugen/obsidian-cli-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "MCP_PROFILE": "governed-readonly",
        "OBSIDIAN_BIN": "/opt/homebrew/bin/obsidian",
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "MyVault",
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "/path/to/MyVault",
        "OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE": "/path/to/governed-vault-policy.json"
      }
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop after saving.

Claude Code

Add to your project's .mcp.json (or ~/.claude/mcp.json for global):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-cli": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@joemugen/obsidian-cli-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "MCP_PROFILE": "governed-readonly",
        "OBSIDIAN_BIN": "/opt/homebrew/bin/obsidian",
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "MyVault",
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "/path/to/MyVault",
        "OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE": "/path/to/governed-vault-policy.json"
      }
    }
  }
}

Or add it directly from the CLI:

claude mcp add obsidian-cli --transport stdio \
  -e MCP_PROFILE=governed-readonly \
  -e OBSIDIAN_BIN=/opt/homebrew/bin/obsidian \
  -e OBSIDIAN_VAULT=MyVault \
  -e OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT=/path/to/MyVault \
  -e OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE=/path/to/governed-vault-policy.json \
  -- npx -y @joemugen/obsidian-cli-mcp

Cursor

Edit ~/.cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-cli": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@joemugen/obsidian-cli-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "MCP_PROFILE": "governed-readonly",
        "OBSIDIAN_BIN": "/opt/homebrew/bin/obsidian",
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "MyVault",
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "/path/to/MyVault",
        "OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE": "/path/to/governed-vault-policy.json"
      }
    }
  }
}

Zed

Edit ~/.config/zed/settings.json:

{
  "context_servers": {
    "obsidian-cli": {
      "command": {
        "path": "npx",
        "args": ["-y", "@joemugen/obsidian-cli-mcp"],
        "env": {
          "MCP_PROFILE": "governed-readonly",
          "OBSIDIAN_BIN": "/opt/homebrew/bin/obsidian",
          "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "MyVault",
          "OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "/path/to/MyVault",
          "OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE": "/path/to/governed-vault-policy.json"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

HTTP transport (network / multi-client)

MCP_PROFILE=governed-readonly MCP_TRANSPORT=http MCP_PORT=3000 \
MCP_HTTP_HOST=127.0.0.1 \
MCP_HTTP_AUTH_TOKEN=change-me \
OBSIDIAN_BIN=/opt/homebrew/bin/obsidian \
OBSIDIAN_VAULT=MyVault \
OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT=/path/to/MyVault \
OBSIDIAN_POLICY_FILE=/path/to/governed-vault-policy.json \
node dist/index.js

The server exposes a Streamable HTTP endpoint at http://localhost:3000/mcp.

HTTP transport remains opt-in and is not the default deployment path. Phase 2 hardening is deliberately limited:

loopback (127.0.0.1) remains the default bind
governed HTTP requires MCP_HTTP_AUTH_TOKEN
non-loopback bind requires MCP_HTTP_ALLOW_REMOTE_BIND=true
remote bind without explicit opt-in fails closed
this is controlled governed use, not an internet-safe deployment model

Tools

The default governed-readonly profile registers only the bounded governed read and discovery surface. governed-mutation adds the exact-path note/property mutation tools plus the governed workflow tools listed below. The full legacy tool catalog remains available only when MCP_PROFILE=personal-unrestricted is set explicitly.

Governed workflow tools

Tool	Description
`obsidian_search`	Search only within policy-approved discovery roots with server-side result filtering
`obsidian_search_context`	Search with bounded context inside policy-approved discovery roots
`obsidian_list_links`	List outgoing links from an allowed note, filtering blocked targets server-side
`obsidian_list_backlinks`	List backlinks to an allowed note, filtering blocked sources server-side
`obsidian_create_note_from_template`	Create a note from an approved governed template type into an approved destination
`obsidian_create_review_note`	Create a provenance-preserving review note for an approved source note
`obsidian_create_promotion_candidate`	Create a provenance-preserving promotion-candidate note for an approved source note
`obsidian_create_curated_note`	Create a curated note from an approved template type into an approved curated zone
`obsidian_log_promotion`	Create a promotion log note linking the source and curated notes

Notes

Tool	Description
`obsidian_read_note`	Read a note by name or path
`obsidian_create_note`	Create a new note
`obsidian_delete_note`	Delete a note
`obsidian_move_note`	Move a note to another folder
`obsidian_rename_note`	Rename a note (updates all backlinks)
`obsidian_append_note`	Append content to a note
`obsidian_prepend_note`	Prepend content to a note
`obsidian_outline`	Get the heading outline of a note
`obsidian_wordcount`	Get word and character count
`obsidian_file_info`	Get file metadata (path, size, dates…)
`obsidian_diff`	Compare two versions of a note
`obsidian_eval`	Execute JavaScript in the Obsidian context

Vault

Tool	Description
`obsidian_vault_info`	Show vault name, path and file count
`obsidian_list_files`	List files, optionally filtered by folder or extension
`obsidian_list_folders`	List all folders
`obsidian_list_vaults`	List all Obsidian vaults
`obsidian_version`	Get Obsidian and CLI version
`obsidian_list_recents`	List recently opened files
`obsidian_random_read`	Read a random note from the vault or a folder
`obsidian_list_aliases`	List all note aliases defined in frontmatter

Search

Tool	Description
`obsidian_search`	Full-text search across all notes
`obsidian_search_context`	Search with surrounding context

Frontmatter

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_properties`	List all frontmatter properties in a note
`obsidian_get_property`	Get a specific property value
`obsidian_set_property`	Set a property value
`obsidian_remove_property`	Remove a property

Links

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_links`	List outgoing links from a note
`obsidian_list_backlinks`	List incoming links to a note
`obsidian_list_orphans`	List notes with no incoming links
`obsidian_list_deadends`	List notes with outgoing links only
`obsidian_list_unresolved`	List broken wikilinks

Daily Notes

Tool	Description
`obsidian_read_daily`	Read today's daily note
`obsidian_append_daily`	Append content to today's daily note
`obsidian_prepend_daily`	Prepend content to today's daily note

Tasks

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_tasks`	List tasks in a note or vault-wide
`obsidian_toggle_task`	Toggle a task checkbox

Templates

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_templates`	List available templates
`obsidian_read_template`	Read a template, optionally resolving variables
`obsidian_insert_template`	Insert a template into the active note

Bookmarks

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_bookmarks`	List all bookmarks (notes, folders, searches, URLs)
`obsidian_add_bookmark`	Add a bookmark

Plugins

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_plugins`	List all installed plugins
`obsidian_list_plugins_enabled`	List only enabled plugins
`obsidian_get_plugin`	Get info about a plugin
`obsidian_enable_plugin`	Enable a plugin
`obsidian_disable_plugin`	Disable a plugin
`obsidian_install_plugin`	Install a community plugin
`obsidian_uninstall_plugin`	Uninstall a plugin

History (requires File Recovery plugin)

Tool	Description
`obsidian_history_list`	List all tracked versions
`obsidian_history_read`	Read a specific version of a note
`obsidian_history_restore`	Restore a note to a previous version

Sync (requires Obsidian Sync)

Tool	Description
`obsidian_sync_status`	Get current sync status
`obsidian_sync_history`	List sync versions for a file
`obsidian_sync_read`	Read a specific sync version
`obsidian_sync_restore`	Restore a file to a sync version
`obsidian_sync_deleted`	List files deleted from sync history

Workspace

Tool	Description
`obsidian_workspace`	Get the current workspace layout and open panes
`obsidian_list_tabs`	List all currently open tabs
`obsidian_daily_path`	Get the file path for today's daily note

Commands & Hotkeys

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_commands`	List all available commands (command palette)
`obsidian_execute_command`	Execute an Obsidian command by ID
`obsidian_list_hotkeys`	List all configured keyboard shortcuts
`obsidian_get_hotkey`	Get the hotkey for a specific command

Themes

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_themes`	List all installed themes
`obsidian_get_theme`	Get information about a specific theme
`obsidian_set_theme`	Activate a theme (or reset to default)
`obsidian_install_theme`	Install a community theme
`obsidian_uninstall_theme`	Uninstall a theme

Snippets

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_snippets`	List all installed CSS snippets
`obsidian_list_snippets_enabled`	List only enabled CSS snippets
`obsidian_enable_snippet`	Enable a CSS snippet
`obsidian_disable_snippet`	Disable a CSS snippet

Bases (requires Obsidian Bases plugin)

Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_bases`	List all Base files
`obsidian_query_base`	Query items from a Base
`obsidian_list_base_views`	List views in a Base
`obsidian_create_base_item`	Create an item in a Base

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md for architecture overview, design decisions, and how to add new tools.

License

See LICENSE.

This server cannot be installed

license - permissive license

quality - not tested

maintenance

How are these scores calculated?

Maintenance

–Maintainers

–Response time

–Release cycle

–Releases (12mo)

Commit activity

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Tool	Description
`obsidian_list_tags`	List all tags in the vault or in a note
`obsidian_get_tag`	Get notes that use a specific tag

obsidian-cli-mcp

Requirements

Installation

Configuration

Profiles

Governed vault policy

Client Setup

Claude Desktop

Claude Code

Cursor

Zed

HTTP transport (network / multi-client)

Tools

Governed workflow tools

Notes

Vault

Search

Frontmatter

Tags

Links

Daily Notes

Tasks

Templates

Bookmarks

Plugins

History (requires File Recovery plugin)

Sync (requires Obsidian Sync)

Workspace

Commands & Hotkeys

Themes

Snippets

Bases (requires Obsidian Bases plugin)

Contributing

License

Maintenance

Resources

Looking for Admin?

Latest Blog Posts

MCP directory API