OWD Sync

Keep your Obsidian vault the source. Connect only the workspace you approve.

OWD Sync is the deliberately narrow Obsidian companion for OWD Platform. It connects only the vault you explicitly open and approve to one owner-controlled OWD workspace. Your canonical Markdown remains ordinary Obsidian files while OWD receives the durable sync state it needs for searchable context, cited agent work, and encrypted recovery.

Request private alpha access · See OWD Platform · Download OWD Sync 0.1.7

The connection boundary

flowchart LR
    V["The vault you open"] --> C["Explicit pairing consent"]
    C --> S["OWD Sync"]
    S <--> O["Your OWD workspace"]
    O --> L["Current searchable library"]
    O --> R["Encrypted recovery"]
    O --> A["Separately authorized agents"]

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OWD Sync does	OWD Sync never does
Pairs the exact open vault after explicit approval	Silently chooses another vault
Synchronizes eligible vault state with its OWD destination	Grants an AI agent access
Reports the version and safe runtime profile	Creates, joins, or approves an OWD Project
Keeps its credential inside that vault's plugin settings	Reads unrelated plugin credentials
Supports current-library and recovery workflows	Turns synchronization into an unreviewed agent write path

Important

OWD Sync 0.1.7 is an alpha release. It is not yet listed in Obsidian Community Plugins. OWD Platform provides a temporary one-click desktop installer for invited testers; BRAT is the fallback. Use synthetic test vaults until the Community Plugin publication and personal-vault gates pass.

Install from OWD

The normal alpha path starts in the authenticated OWD Vaults folder:

1. In Obsidian, open Settings → Community plugins and choose Turn on community plugins. OWD cannot bypass this Obsidian security consent.
2. Fully quit Obsidian with Obsidian → Quit Obsidian or ⌘Q. Closing the macOS window is not enough.
3. In OWD, choose Choose vault and install OWD Sync 0.1.7.
4. In current Chrome or Edge, select the exact vault root containing your notes and hidden .obsidian folder—not .obsidian itself—and choose Allow if Chrome requests local write access.
5. Reopen Obsidian and confirm OWD Sync is enabled in that vault.
6. Return to OWD and create the private pairing request.

The temporary installer writes the three version-matched OWD Sync files and queues the plugin as enabled for the selected vault. It reads only existing OWD Sync files and .obsidian/community-plugins.json so it can restore them if installation fails.

It does not enumerate notes, upload vault data, retain the selected folder, change general Obsidian settings, or install an updater.

Safari, Firefox, or blocked folder picker

Use BRAT as the disclosed fallback:

1. Reopen the exact vault where you want OWD Sync installed.
2. Install and enable BRAT from Obsidian Community Plugins, then wait until BRAT appears in the Command Palette.
3. Open the version-pinned OWD Sync BRAT form. This link opens BRAT's form; it does not finish the installation. Verify the repository and version, choose Add Plugin, and wait for BRAT to finish.
4. Enable OWD Sync 0.1.7 under Settings → Community plugins.

If the prefilled link does nothing, run BRAT: Plugins: Add a beta plugin for testing (with or without version) from the Command Palette, paste https://github.com/msinclair25/owd-sync, select 0.1.7, and choose Add Plugin.

Use either the direct installer or BRAT, not both. BRAT is a testing bridge, not the permanent install experience. OWD Sync will move to Obsidian Community Plugins after its compatibility, security, mobile, update, and clean-install gates pass.

Pair one vault

1. Open the exact vault you intend to connect and confirm OWD Sync 0.1.7 is enabled.
2. In OWD, choose I see OWD Sync 0.1.7 — create request.
3. Choose Open Obsidian and pair.
4. In Obsidian, verify the current vault name and OWD workspace.
5. Choose Pair and start sync.

OWD refreshes automatically after the one-time exchange. The pairing request expires after ten minutes, can be used only once, and never chooses a vault silently.

If the direct handoff is blocked, open Manual fallback in OWD, copy the request, run OWD Sync: Pair this vault with OWD from Obsidian's command palette, and paste it.

What OWD Sync does

• Syncs the explicitly paired Obsidian vault with its approved OWD workspace
• Preserves the vault's Markdown/Yjs state across paired devices
• Reports a bounded runtime profile so OWD can avoid exposing private or infrastructure files
• Provides pairing, reconcile, snapshot, and diagnostics commands
• Keeps pairing credentials inside that vault's plugin settings

What OWD Sync does not do

• It does not connect AI agents or grant MCP access.
• It does not create, authorize, or approve OWD Projects.
• It does not select a vault based on its name or reuse another vault's grant.
• It does not give an agent Obsidian CLI, shell, or filesystem authority.
• It does not silently write arbitrary .obsidian settings.
• It does not replace OWD's encrypted snapshot and restore layer.

Agent connections, Project consent, owner Decisions, and recovery controls live in OWD Platform. Keeping those responsibilities separate prevents a local sync plugin from silently expanding an agent's authority.

Compatibility

Component	Required version
OWD Sync	0.1.7
OWD Platform	1.0.0-alpha.7
Obsidian desktop	Current alpha-tested desktop release
Direct installer	Current Chrome or Edge over HTTPS

Do not mix main.js, manifest.json, or styles.css from different releases. The complete versioned package and SHA-256 checksums are available on the OWD Sync 0.1.7 release page. The ZIP is a maintainer diagnostic artifact, not the normal tester installation path.

Troubleshooting

Obsidian reports unrecognized URI action

OWD Sync is not loaded at version 0.1.7 in the vault Obsidian opened. Confirm the plugin version and enabled state in that exact vault, then reopen the pairing request. Use OWD's manual fallback if the direct handoff remains blocked.

The installer opens a folder picker

That is expected. Select the vault root—the folder containing .obsidian. OWD cannot choose or inspect a local vault until you explicitly grant the browser access to that folder.

The wrong vault is open

Cancel the pairing modal without approving it. Open the intended vault and use the same unexpired request, or create a fresh request in OWD.

Development

OWD Sync is developed in the OWD Platform monorepo and promoted into this sanitized distribution repository. This repository contains the reviewable adapter, pinned upstream source and notices, tests, build configuration, and release artifacts.

pnpm install
pnpm check

Individual gates are also available:

pnpm format:check
pnpm lint
pnpm typecheck
pnpm test
pnpm build

See UPSTREAM.md for pinned YAOS provenance and SECURITY.md for vulnerability reporting and the complete pairing trust boundary.

License

The OWD adapter is licensed under the Apache License 2.0. Vendored YAOS components retain their 0BSD notice and provenance.