A Laravel-based REST API to interact with your local Obsidian vault. Provides endpoints to list, create, edit, and delete files and notes, as well as access and manage front matter metadata.
If you plan to integrate this API in an n8n workflow, install the community node n8n-nodes-obsidian-vault-rest-api in your n8n instance. Ensure this API is running (e.g. at http://localhost:8000) before using that node.
This project provides a REST API for managing your Obsidian vault using Laravel. It enables programmatic access to files and notes, supporting automation and integration scenarios.
https://{host}/api
Replace {host} with your environment or hostname. Do not call /api directly; always use a resource endpoint such as /api/files or /api/notes.
All endpoints require a Bearer token in the Authorization header:
Authorization: Bearer <JWT_TOKEN>
- If you get a 404 error with the message
The route api could not be found., make sure you are not requesting/apior/api/api. Only resource endpoints like/api/filesor/api/notesare valid. - If your vault appears empty or the API returns null, ensure
OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATHin your.envis an absolute path (not using~).
-
GET
/files- List vault files (returns an array of objects:[ { "path": "filename.md" }, ... ]) -
POST
/files- Create a file or directory -
GET
/files/{path}- Download file content -
PUT
/files/{path}- Update file -
DELETE
/files/{path}- Delete file -
GET
/notes- List notes with front matter -
POST
/notes- Create a new note -
GET
/notes/{path}- Get a note -
PUT
/notes/{path}- Replace a note -
PATCH
/notes/{path}- Partially update a note -
DELETE
/notes/{path}- Delete a note -
DELETE
/bulk/notes/delete- Bulk delete notes -
PATCH
/bulk/notes/update- Bulk update notes -
GET
/metadata/keys- List all front matter keys -
GET
/metadata/values/{key}- List unique values for a key
Refer to the OpenAPI spec for full details.
git clone https://github.com/j-shelfwood/obsidian-local-rest-api.git
cd obsidian-local-rest-api
composer install
cp .env.example .env
php artisan key:generateImportant: In your .env, set OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH to the full absolute path to your vault directory. Do not use ~ for your home directory, as PHP does not expand it. For example:
OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH=/Users/your-username/Obsidian/TestVault
Then start the API server (or use Laravel Valet):
php artisan serve # starts API server on http://localhost:8000To automate and integrate this API within n8n, install the community node:
npm install n8n-nodes-obsidian-vault-rest-apiThat node will send requests to your running API instance; follow its README for credential setup, resource/operation usage, and workflow examples.
Contributions welcome. Open issues or PRs as needed.
MIT