bischoff99/obsidian-rest-api-mcp

Obsidian REST API MCP Server

MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that integrates with Obsidian via its REST API plugin.

Setup

Prerequisites

• Node.js 16+
• Obsidian with Local REST API plugin installed and running
• API key from Obsidian Local REST API

Installation

1. Install dependencies:

npm install

2. Build TypeScript:

npm run build

3. Set environment variables (or use .env):

export OBSIDIAN_API_KEY="your-api-key"
export OBSIDIAN_BASE_URL="https://localhost:27124"
export OBSIDIAN_INSECURE="true"  # For self-signed certs

Usage

Start server:

node dist/index.js

Using with Claude Desktop (Cursor/Claude):

Add to your MCP configuration file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-rest-api": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/Users/andrejs/obsidian-rest-api-mcp/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "OBSIDIAN_API_KEY": "e29e5b1e31e900c737a04f9c079b4f95ff282c23a64e2aa46b13d251e42088e0",
        "OBSIDIAN_BASE_URL": "https://localhost:27124",
        "OBSIDIAN_INSECURE": "true"
      }
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

• read_file: Read a file from the vault
• write_file: Create or write a file to the vault
• list_files: List files in vault directory
• search: Search vault content
• delete_file: Delete a file from the vault

Configuration

• OBSIDIAN_API_KEY: Bearer token for Obsidian API authentication
• OBSIDIAN_BASE_URL: Base URL of Obsidian REST API (default: https://localhost:27124)
• OBSIDIAN_INSECURE: Allow self-signed certificates (default: false)

Testing

Test with curl:

export API_KEY="your-api-key"

# List vault files
curl -s -k -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" https://localhost:27124/vault/ | jq .

# Read a file
curl -s -k -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" https://localhost:27124/vault/Dashboard.md

# Create a file
curl -X POST -k -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: text/markdown" \
  -d "# Test\nContent" \
  https://localhost:27124/vault/test.md

Architecture

Claude/Cursor
    ↓
MCP Protocol (stdio)
    ↓
obsidian-rest-api-mcp (Node.js)
    ↓
HTTPS (TLS 1.3)
    ↓
Obsidian Local REST API
    ↓
Obsidian Vault

Troubleshooting

SSL Certificate Errors

The Obsidian REST API uses self-signed certificates. Use OBSIDIAN_INSECURE=true in development.

Connection Refused

• Verify Obsidian is running: lsof -i :27124
• Check API key is correct
• Ensure REST API plugin is enabled in Obsidian

No Files Returned

• Make sure vault has files
• Check that Local REST API plugin is active
• Verify read permissions on vault directory

Development

# Development mode with ts-node
npm run dev

# Watch mode
npm run build && npm run start

License

MIT