Obsidian File Manager
Vault file management via the official Obsidian CLI with direct-file fallback.
Vault
Path: /Users/arlenagreer/Library/Mobile Documents/iCloud~md~obsidian/Documents/Obsidian Vault
Name: Obsidian VaultQuick Reference: CLI Commands
For vault operations, prefer the obsidian CLI directly when no script workflow is needed:
# Search
obsidian search query="my topic"
obsidian search query="my topic" format=json
# Read/write
obsidian read path="folder/note.md"
obsidian create path="folder/note.md" content="# Title"
obsidian append path="folder/note.md" content="New content"
obsidian prepend path="folder/note.md" content="Top content"
# Move (link-safe — preserves all internal links)
obsidian move path="old/note.md" to="new/folder"
# Properties
obsidian property:set name="lifecycle" value="processed" path="folder/note.md"
obsidian property:read name="lifecycle" path="folder/note.md"
# Tags and structure
obsidian tags counts
obsidian files folder="sessions" ext=md
obsidian backlinks file="My Note"
obsidian orphans
# Daily notes
obsidian daily:read
obsidian daily:append content="- Meeting notes here"Script Operations
Use scripts for workflows requiring naming conventions, frontmatter generation, and lifecycle management.
create — Create new document with proper naming and tags
ruby ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/create_in_vault.rb \
--type session --project myproject \
--subject "feature work" \
--content "# Session Notes\n\n..."move — Move external file into vault (link-safe via CLI)
ruby ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/move_to_vault.rb \
--source /path/to/doc.md --type plan --project myprojectupdate-lifecycle — Transition document lifecycle state
ruby ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/update_lifecycle.rb \
--path sessions/myproject/session_myproject_20260310.md \
--lifecycle processedsearch — Search vault with structured filters
ruby ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/search_vault.rb \
--query "project:myproject lifecycle:active type:session"archive — Auto-archive old documents by retention policy
ruby ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/auto_archive.rb --dry-runFile Organization
Files follow {type}/{project}/filename.md partitioning:
| Type | Directory | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| session | sessions/{project}/ | Development session artifacts |
| plan | planning/{project}/ | Implementation plans |
| prd | projects/{project}/ | Product requirements |
| adr, decision | decisions/{project}/ | Architecture decisions |
| investigation | investigations/{project}/ | Research and analysis |
| resource | resources/{project}/ | Reference materials |
Filenames use snake_case: {type}_{subject}_{project}[_{date}][_{counter}].md
Lifecycle States
| State | Auto-Archive | Description |
|---|---|---|
| master | Never | Reference docs |
| active | Never | Currently in use |
| processed | After 30 days | Work complete |
| trash | After 7 days | Abandoned |
| archived | N/A | Long-term storage |
Fallback Behavior
All scripts try the CLI first. When Obsidian is not running, they fall back to direct file operations against the vault path. The CLI is preferred because obsidian move preserves internal links, and obsidian search uses the full index.
Additional References
- For full parameter docs for each script, see references/operations.md
- For vault config and tag system details, see references/configuration.md
- For workflow integration patterns, see references/integration.md