obsidian

obsidian

Operate on the user's Obsidian vault as plain Markdown files. Obsidian itself does not need to be running — the vault is just a directory tree of .md files.

Setup check (lazy — resolve path once, don't re-probe)

The vault path resolves as $OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH env var → fallback ~/Documents/Obsidian Vault. Resolve it once when you first need it this conversation; do not re-probe printenv on every turn. Operate on the resolved path directly and map failures:

• os.fs.list / read errors with ENOENT / "no such file or directory" → Setup playbook → "Vault path does not exist".
• the path exists but holds no .md files → Setup playbook → "Resolved path is not a real vault".

Vault paths often contain spaces — pass them through os.fs.* tools verbatim, no quoting needed.

Setup playbook (when prerequisites are missing)

When a check fails, the agent's job is to OFFER concrete help and EXECUTE the fix itself — not to dump setup instructions on the user. Use this dialogue shape:

1. State plainly what is missing.
2. Offer the most direct remediation the agent can perform via tools.
3. Wait for the user's reply.
4. Execute the fix via tools.
5. Retry the original command; only then proceed.

Vault path does not exist

Reply:

"I couldn't find an Obsidian vault in either $OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH or ~/Documents/Obsidian Vault. Send me the absolute path to your vault — I'll verify it and save it to ~/.atomic-agent/.env so I can find it automatically in the future."

When the user replies with a path, verify it exists:

[{ "tool": "os.fs.list", "args": { "path": "<user-supplied-path>" } }]

If it lists .md files, persist the choice:

[{ "tool": "os.fs.write", "args": {
   "path": "~/.atomic-agent/.env",
   "mode": "append",
   "content": "\nOBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH=<user-supplied-path>\n"
} }]

Then reply: "Vault found and saved. Restart the agent so the env variable is picked up — I'll continue after the restart. (I'm already using the path for the current session.)" Continue using the path in-memory for the current session — no need to wait for restart to serve the user's request.