AI Plugin Index
Obsidian Semantic Search
CommunityMCP server by DalecB · updated · ★ 1
Read-only semantic search MCP server for Obsidian vaults using local Ollama embeddings. Obsidian Semantic Search is a community project by DalecB, not verified by a company domain.
Last commit 77 days ago
MIT: permissive, fine for commercial use
Clear description, published package or server URL, original repository
Not checked yet. What we check
What you need
| Setting | Needed | What it is |
|---|---|---|
OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOTEnvironment variable | Required | Absolute path to the local Obsidian vault. |
OBSIDIAN_SEMANTIC_MCP_HOMEEnvironment variable | Optional | Directory for the external SQLite index, logs, and cache. |
OBSIDIAN_EMBED_MODELEnvironment variable | Optional | Ollama embedding model name. Defaults to bge-m3. |
OLLAMA_BASE_URLEnvironment variable | Optional | Ollama API base URL. Defaults to http://localhost:11434. |
OBSIDIAN_SEMANTIC_STARTUP_INDEXEnvironment variable | Optional | Set to true to run incremental indexing when the server starts. |
OBSIDIAN_SEMANTIC_ALLOW_SENSITIVEEnvironment variable | Optional | Set to true to allow include_sensitive tool calls. |
OBSIDIAN_SEMANTIC_EXCLUDEEnvironment variable | Optional | Comma- or newline-separated folders to always exclude from indexing, search, and read. |
OBSIDIAN_SEMANTIC_SENSITIVE_PATHSEnvironment variable | Optional | Comma- or newline-separated folders treated as sensitive (blocked unless unlocked). Defaults to 08_PersonalInfo/. |
From the publisher's entry in the official MCP Registry. Required settings are already in the install config below as placeholders.
Install Obsidian Semantic Search
Built from the published package, never by AIclaude mcp add obsidian-semantic-search -e OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT=YOUR_OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT -- npx -y @dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcpRun in your terminal. Add --scope user to use it in every project.
Step-by-step: install Obsidian Semantic Search in Claude Code
{
"mcpServers": {
"obsidian-semantic-search": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcp"
],
"env": {
"OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "YOUR_OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT"
}
}
}
}Settings, Developer, Edit config. Paste into claude_desktop_config.json and restart.
Step-by-step: install Obsidian Semantic Search in Claude Desktop
{
"mcpServers": {
"obsidian-semantic-search": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcp"
],
"env": {
"OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "YOUR_OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT"
}
}
}
}Add to ~/.cursor/mcp.json (all projects) or .cursor/mcp.json (this project).
{
"servers": {
"obsidian-semantic-search": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcp"
],
"env": {
"OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "YOUR_OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT"
}
}
}
}Add to .vscode/mcp.json. VS Code uses "servers", not "mcpServers".
codex mcp add obsidian-semantic-search --env OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT=YOUR_OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT -- npx -y @dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcp{
"mcpServers": {
"obsidian-semantic-search": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcp"
],
"env": {
"OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT": "YOUR_OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT"
}
}
}
}Add to ~/.gemini/config/mcp_config.json (all projects) or .agents/mcp_config.json (this project).
Step-by-step: install Obsidian Semantic Search in Antigravity CLI
gemini mcp add obsidian-semantic-search npx -y @dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcpGemini CLI was replaced by Antigravity CLI in June 2026 and remains only for enterprise licences and paid API keys.
Step-by-step: install Obsidian Semantic Search in Gemini CLI
MCP servers run with your permissions and can read what you give them access to. Some need an API key: check the README and add it under env in the obsidian-semantic-search block.
Alternatives to Obsidian Semantic Search
All alternatives →
Connect AI agents to Exa for web search, content fetching, and multi-step research.
Search and discover Agent Skills from the skills.sh registry. Powered by HAPI MCP server.
Visit https://brave.com/search/api/ for a free API key. Search the web, local businesses, images,…
Connect to Atlassian Jira, Confluence, Loom, and more to search, create, and manage your work.
Search, read, annotate, and add to your Zotero research library, local or web.
Digital asset manager - upload, organize, search, and generate on-brand images and videos
Obsidian Semantic Search: common questions
How do I install Obsidian Semantic Search?
In Claude Code run claude mcp add obsidian-semantic-search -e OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT=YOUR_OBSIDIAN_VAULT_ROOT -- npx -y @dalecb/obsidian-semantic-mcp. For Claude Desktop, Cursor and VS Code, paste the config shown above and restart. See the install guides.
Is Obsidian Semantic Search the official server?
Obsidian Semantic Search is a community project by DalecB, not verified by a company domain.
Is Obsidian Semantic Search free?
The code is published under the MIT licence. The service it connects to may have its own pricing.
Is Obsidian Semantic Search safe to use?
It scores 36 of 100. Grades: maintenance B, licence A, quality C. The security check has not run for it yet. Review the code before you install. How grades work.
What are alternatives to Obsidian Semantic Search?
Similar MCP servers: exa, Agent Skills Search Server, brave, Atlassian Rovo MCP Server.
Does Obsidian Semantic Search work with ChatGPT?
Not directly. It runs locally, and ChatGPT only connects to remote servers with a URL. Use it in Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code or Codex.