Obsidian Power Setup: Git & AI

During my time at D2SI/Revolve, Obsidian was frequently mentioned in our tech watch channels as one of the best note-taking solutions due to its versatility, extensibility, and simplicity.

The main advantages of Obsidian are data security and pricing. The local, non-cloud version is completely free. It also benefits from an active developer community that provides stable, secure plugins to enhance your note-taking experience.

While the core usage is straightforward, organizing your notes can sometimes get messy. However, this is common with any "second brain" tool; the structure ultimately depends on how you choose to organize it.

I use Obsidian daily for both personal and professional note-taking. I can securely store documents, graphs, tasks, and AI prompts, keeping them accessible from any device.

In this article, I will cover my two favorite Obsidian community plugins and how to set them up, specifically focusing on adding AI capabilities and remote sync.

Enabling Community Plugins

Step 1: Disable Restricted Mode

By default, Obsidian runs in "Restricted Mode" to prevent unauthorized third-party code from executing. You must turn this off to use community plugins.

  1. Open Obsidian.
  2. Go to Settings by clicking the gear icon in the bottom-left corner (or use the shortcut Cmd/Ctrl + ,).
  3. In the left sidebar, select Community plugins.
  4. Click the Turn on community plugins button.
  5. A security warning will appear explaining the risks of third-party plugins. Click Turn on to confirm and disable Restricted Mode.

Step 2: Browse and Install Plugins

With community plugins enabled, you can now access the plugin repository directly within the app.

  1. Still in the Community plugins settings tab, click the Browse button.
  2. The Community Plugins store will open. You can:
    • Search: Use the search bar at the top to find specific plugins by name or keywords.
    • Sort: Sort the list by downloads, recently updated, or release date to discover popular or new tools.
  3. Click on any plugin card to read its documentation, see its GitHub repository, and learn how it works.
  4. To add it to your vault, click the Install button.

Step 3: Enable and Manage Plugins

Installing a plugin simply downloads it; you still need to activate it.

  1. After clicking "Install," the button will change. Click Enable to activate the plugin immediately.
  2. Alternative Method: You can manage all your installed plugins by going back to Settings > Community plugins.
  3. Scroll down to the Installed plugins section:
    • Toggle Switch: Turn plugins on or off without uninstalling them.
    • Gear Icon: Access a specific plugin's custom settings and options.
    • Trash Can Icon: Completely uninstall and remove the plugin from your vault.

Obsidian Copilot

Obsidian Copilot is highly rated for a good reason: it gives Obsidian superpowers.

It is compatible with both local and remote AI models via API keys. Using a local AI offers a completely secure, free, and easily configurable work environment.

Out of the box, it comes packed with custom prompts that make note-taking highly efficient. It also allows you to easily add your own custom AI prompts, meaning the only limit to data manipulation is your imagination.

Copilot can format and correct text tailored specifically to Obsidian's markdown features. Through its Vault QA mode, it acts as an agent that indexes your data, allowing you to fetch, edit, and query notes based on keywords and semantic meaning.

Setup Obsidian Copilot + Workflow Tips

Step 1: Configure Your API Key

The Copilot plugin requires an API key from an LLM provider to function.

  1. Obtain an API key from your preferred provider (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic, Google AI Studio, or an aggregator like OpenRouter).
  2. Open Obsidian Settings (Cmd/Ctrl + ,).
  3. Scroll down the left sidebar and select Copilot under Community Plugins.
  4. In the Basic tab, click Set Keys.
  5. Paste your API key into the corresponding provider's field.
  6. Scroll down to the Default Chat Model dropdown and select the specific model you want to default to (e.g., gpt-4o, claude-3-5-sonnet, or gemini-2.0-flash).
  7. Click Save and Reload to apply the configuration. (Note: If you run local GenAI models via Ollama or use custom endpoints, you can configure these by clicking "Add Custom Model" in the same settings menu and providing your local host or custom Base URL).

Step 2: Quick Start & Workflow Tips

Once enabled, you can interact with the AI directly within your note-taking environment. Here are the most effective ways to use it:

  • The Sidebar Chat: Click the Copilot robot icon in the right sidebar (or run Copilot: Open Chat from the command palette) to open a persistent conversational interface.
  • Add Context with @: Inside the chat window, type @ followed by a file name to instantly load a specific note into the LLM's context window before asking a question about it.
  • Inline Text Manipulation: Highlight any text block in your active note, right-click, and select a Copilot action. You can instantly summarize, rewrite, or expand the text without copying and pasting.
  • Quick Commands: Highlight text and press Cmd/Ctrl + P to open the Obsidian command palette. Search "Copilot" to see quick-action commands you can map to hotkeys for faster drafting.
  • Vault QA (RAG Mode): To chat with your entire knowledge base, switch the chat mode from "Chat" to "Vault QA". Click the prompt to Index Vault. Copilot will generate local embeddings of your markdown files, allowing you to ask semantic questions across all your notes.

Obsidian Git

The Git plugin empowers Obsidian with remote access to your vault. By hosting your Git repository privately (like on GitHub or GitLab) or on your own server, your data remains securely stored for free.

It provides a complete Git interface directly inside Obsidian. You get dedicated buttons and command palette shortcuts (Cmd/Ctrl + P) to fetch, pull, commit, and push changes. It includes built-in protection against merge conflicts and the ability to automatically sync and pull updates periodically.

With this plugin, you can access your data on any device. Setup requires only basic Git skills. Since Obsidian is available on iOS and Android, you can securely access and update your remote vault directly from your mobile device.

Setup Remote Vault

Prerequisites

  1. Git Installed: Ensure Git is installed on your computer.
  2. Remote Account: Have an account on a Git hosting service (like GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket).

Step 1: Initialize Git in Your Local Vault

Open your computer's terminal (or command prompt) and navigate to your Obsidian vault's folder.

  1. Navigate to your vault: cd /path/to/your/obsidian/vault
  2. Initialize the Git repository: git init
  3. Add all your existing files to staging: git add .
  4. Create your first commit: git commit -m "Initial vault commit"
  5. Rename the default branch to main (standard practice): git branch -M main

Step 2: Create a Remote Repository

  1. Go to your Git provider (e.g., GitHub) and create a New Repository.
  2. Name it (e.g., my-obsidian-vault).
  3. Keep it Private (recommended, since it contains your personal notes).
  4. Important: Do not initialize it with a README, .gitignore, or license. You want an empty repository.
  5. Copy the remote repository URL (e.g., https://github.com/username/my-obsidian-vault.git).

Go back to your terminal, still in your vault's directory.

  1. Link your local vault to the remote repository: git remote add origin <paste-your-repo-URL-here>
  2. Push your local files to the remote server: git push -u origin main (Note: You may be prompted to log in to GitHub/GitLab to authorize the push.)

Step 4: Set Up the Obsidian Git Plugin

Now that your vault is synced with the remote server, you can manage it directly from Obsidian.

  1. Open Obsidian and go to Settings (gear icon).
  2. Navigate to Community plugins and turn off "Safe mode" if it's on.
  3. Click Browse and search for Obsidian Git.
  4. Click Install, then click Enable.
  5. Scroll down in the Settings menu to the new Obsidian Git tab under Community Plugins.
  6. Configure Auto-Backup (Optional but recommended):
    • Set Vault backup interval (minutes) to your preferred frequency (e.g., 30 or 60).
    • Turn on Auto pull on start so you always have the latest notes if you use multiple devices.

Your vault is now fully backed up to Git, and the plugin will handle commits and pushes automatically based on your settings!

Setup Mobile Access

Note: This guide covers both Android and iOS, though only the Android method has been verified. The built-in clone feature in the mobile Obsidian Git plugin is notoriously buggy. To bypass this, we will transfer an already-cloned repository from your computer directly to your phone.

Step 1: Prepare the Local Vault on Your PC

The mobile plugin uses a javascript-based Git library that only supports HTTPS, not SSH.

  1. Open your terminal and navigate to your PC's vault.
  2. Check your remote URL: git remote -v
  3. If your remote URL starts with git@ (SSH), change it to HTTPS: git remote set-url origin https://github.com/USERNAME/REPOSITORY.git
  4. Zip your entire vault folder. Ensure hidden folders (specifically .git and .obsidian) are included in the archive.

Step 2: Transfer the Vault to Your Phone

  1. Android (Verified): Connect your phone to your PC via USB cable (or use a wireless transfer app like LocalSend). Copy the ZIP file to your phone's internal storage (e.g., into the Documents folder).
  2. iOS (Unverified): Transfer the ZIP file via iCloud Drive, AirDrop, or a wired connection. Move it into the On My iPhone -> Obsidian folder.
  3. Use your phone's file manager to unzip/extract the folder.

Step 3: Generate a Personal Access Token (PAT)

Mobile keyboards and password managers struggle with standard Git authentication. You need a token instead of your password.

  1. Go to your Git provider (e.g., GitHub) in a web browser.
  2. Navigate to Settings > Developer Settings > Personal Access Tokens.
  3. Generate a new token and ensure it has Read and Write permissions for your repositories (specifically the repo scope on GitHub).
  4. Copy this token to your clipboard. You will not be able to see it again.

Step 4: Open the Vault in Obsidian Mobile

  1. Open the Obsidian app on your phone.
  2. Tap Open folder as vault.
  3. Navigate to the unzipped folder and select it.
  4. Because you transferred the .obsidian folder, your plugins (including Obsidian Git) and settings are already installed. If Obsidian asks, choose to trust the author and enable plugins.

Step 5: Authenticate and Sync

  1. Inside your vault, pull down from the top of the screen (or use the mobile menu) to open the Command Palette.
  2. Type and select Obsidian Git: Pull.
  3. The plugin will prompt you for your credentials:
    • Username: Enter your GitHub/GitLab username.
    • Password: Paste the Personal Access Token you generated in Step 3.
  4. Once authenticated, run Obsidian Git: Commit all changes and push from the command palette to verify that two-way syncing is working flawlessly.

Other Notable Plugins

  • Kanban: An excellent addition to Obsidian, offering the capacity to create custom kanban boards to track and plan your tasks.
  • Excalidraw: Create Excalidraw figures locally with seamless integration into notes and Obsidian's node graph. With a remote Git setup, graphs would be versioned.
  • Outliner: A powerful tool that brings a Workflowy or Roam-style outlining experience to Obsidian. It allows you to create deeply structured lists, smoothly drag and drop bullet points, and use advanced hotkeys to indent, outdent, and move items back and forth without breaking the list structure.
  • LanguageTool: Integrates the LanguageTool engine to provide advanced, real-time grammar, syntax, and spell-checking directly in your editor. Unlike standard spellcheckers, it can detect contextual errors and supports checking multiple languages simultaneously within the same document.
  • Dataview: A live query engine that turns your vault into a dynamic database. By adding simple metadata (YAML or inline fields) to your notes, you can write queries to automatically generate updating tables, lists, and task boards—perfect for tracking habits, project deadlines, or book summaries.

Most plugins are completely compatible with the mobile user experience.

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