#22

This was the problem. This wasn’t happening.

But I was able to get it working. I figured out that the folder was there, but it was invisible. So I syncing of Desktop and Documents folders, then I went into iCloud Drive, did Cmd-shift-. to make invisible folders visible and when the test vault I’d created on the iOS app appeared, I did Cmd-shift-. again to toggle visibility and the Obsidian folder remained visible.

I’m not certain all those steps are required, but I just know it was working after I did them.

2 Likes
#23

How does Obsidian for web work? You can share notes online ?

#24

I accidentally deleted my reply so here it is again!

I’m finding Obsidian a great Devonthink replacement.

I have the ‘all file type’ sync option enabled, on desktop and mobile, and use attachments in Obsidian and files in assets folders. I’ve mainly used PDFs and images so far.

It took a while to create notes for some of the files, but i did this in a few days. I can access them on mobile and desktop and all my attachments are in folders on my iCloud, which I much prefer to proprietary databases.

I had attachments in both Devonthink (imported) and Craft before and finding attachments became a chore. I’d often forget which app I’d put them in and had to deal with the apps to search and then export the attachments.

Now, I can use Alfred to search for and in files, and I find this much quicker. Having the notes as plain text files means I can also use apps and scripts to do quick batch processing, for example find and replace and renaming. I’ve used this a lot to prune and rename my notes and attachments.

The biggest benefit is the linking of all my notes and ideas in one place. I can see links between my notes, journal, daily notes, meetings and projects and it helps a lot. I’m finding this really helps in generating ideas and local graphs are really helping me with research and brainstorming.

4 Likes
#25

Obsidian is not a web-based service. Your data are in files in your Mac’s file system and/or in the iPhone or iPad’s local files. Obsidian can sync between the two. If you want to share information in Obsidian on the web, there is an optional, fee-based, add-on service Obsidian Publish. But, that is view-only.

2 Likes
#26

I was referring to the folder showing up in iCloud on the web, not Obsidian for the web. I don’t know how that works as I don’t use it.

#27

Thanks, now got it going. As you say - not that obvious

1 Like
#28

I have Obsidian desktop running fine with the O folder and vaults in iCloud. Now I just want to access that with my iPad.

I assume steps 1-3 are done with the iPad app.

How do I know when step 3 is finished? Is it syncing to my actual Desktop folder, or does this mean to somewhere on my desktop computer (iMac)?

Step 4: On the MAC with Finder? Or the iPad with the Files app? Copy and paste, not drag and drop?

By this point I’m so lost I don’t know what questions to ask next…

Thanks,
Russell

#29

At this point (v1.0.3), the set up should be:

  • Install Obsidian on iOS/iPadOS from the App Store.
  • On your Mac, look for Obsidian’s iCloud Drive app container (an app-specific folder created in your iCloud Drive directory). It will have the Obsidian logo.
  • Drag and drop your Vault folder into the aforementioned iCloud Drive/Obsidian folder.
  • On iPhone/iCloud, wait for it to sync. This part can be a little tricky. Obsidian needs your entire folder structure available to work: it uses the contents of every file inside to drive its functions. Unfortunately, Apple’s a bit paternalistic about whether or not iCloud Drive files should be downloaded. So, you need to trigger the download by launching Obsidian and opening the vault. That might take a little while, especially if the vault is big, because Obsidian is forcing iCloud Drive to download all of the files inside it. While this is happening, you can actually check progress by going to the Files app and looking at the vault in iCloud Drive/Obsidian. If it seems to get stuck, you can relaunch Obsidian to give iCloud Drive some encouragement.

Aside: The most frustrating thing about this process is that it’s really a bunch of workarounds that address Apple’s insistence that iOS/iPadOS not be a real operating system. Far as I can tell, users on Android had a much easier time because the file system is designed to be a lot easier to work with in these kinds of situations…

Cross-posting this to your thread on the Obsidian forum.

3 Likes
#30

It looks like @ryanjamurphy posted before I did. He is far more expert than I so follow his advice if anything I have below contradicts his. @ryanjamurphy if I have a mistake please correct it. I don’t want to steer @rbanks88 in the wrong direction.

You are not alone in being confused. The explanation of how to setup sync is, to be kind, less than clear. In fact, there are several threads on the Obsidian forum asking the same questions. So, you are in good company. You may want to check those out.

First, you may find these two YouTube videos helpful. I encourage you to take the time to watch them carefully.

Second,

Follow the above posted directions given exactly. It is a strange way to setup sync but it does work.

Here are a couple of tips based on how I set my sync up, which is working perfectly.

  • Make sure your Obsidian vaults/folders are backed up
  • Create a NEW Folder on your Mac desktop with all of your Obsidian folders/files copied (not moved) to it. You will now have two identical Obsidian folders: your original and this new one.
  • On your Mac, delete the original folder to the trash, BUT JUST IN CASE, DON’T DELETE THE TRASH BIN, that way you can recover it if needed.
  • Now, go to your iPad and follow the directions. Once the new Obsidian vault in created on the iPad (I presume in iCloud—which is where I have mine), go to your Mac, copy all of the Obsidian folders/files you created new on your desktop and paste them into the NEW OBSIDIAN FOLDER you created on the iPad. Once this is done, you should have the Obsidian vaults/folders you want to use from this point forward.
  • Open Obsidian on the IPad and open the folder you created as a vault.
  • Create a test document on both the iPad and the Mac to make sure they sync.
  • If they sync, do a another backup then delete the folder on your desktop and feel free to empty your trash.
    Here is how this looks in iCloud and on both my IPad and MBP

ON THE IPAD as seen in iCloud:

Obsidian Vaults in iCloud from iPad
Obsidian Vaults in iCloud from iPad2490×1583 291 KB

ON THE MBP as seen in Obsidian:

Obsidian Vaults in iCloud from MBP
Obsidian Vaults in iCloud from MBP1636×1168 176 KB

3 Likes
#32

Thanks for the quick response. That got it working for me!

Best,
Russell

1 Like
#33

Thanks for taking the time to respond. You helped me get it working now.

Best,
Russell

2 Likes
#34

To create an iCloud vault, I:

  1. started Obsidian on my mac (Catalina, 10.15)
  2. clicked “create new vault”
  3. specified a name
  4. clicked “Browse”, which
  5. opened Finder, which showed me the “App Store” icon next to the new “Obsidian” folder. This is correct, although disconcerting.
  6. clicked on that new Obsidian folder
  7. and it’s all done.

Picture of my screen, showing the odd icon.

Obsidian macOS Catalina Screen Shot 2021-11-20 at 15.57.33
Obsidian macOS Catalina Screen Shot 2021-11-20 at 15.57.331044×780 85.6 KB

3 Likes
#35

Talk to me like I’m 5. I did a quick scan of Obsidian. If I’m using iCloud to house my Obsidian vault, does it cost the monthly fee to sync between my laptop and iOS devices?

#36

No

20 Characters, Blah, Blah, Blah

1 Like
#37

Can’t get any clearer than that. Thank you.

Not sure I need an answer but when I look at the website, I’m unclear what the sync gets one. Obviously, not all users are iCloud users.

1 Like
#38

The paid Sync is to use their own sync service.

1 Like
#39

I am using Obsidian’s sync service across about 5 devices. Does anyone else ever notice it won’t sync the last few words of a document, especially if that device was mobile? Like if I type “The fox jumped over the fence.” on my iPhone and move to my Mac, I will see “The fox jum”. I can go back to my phone and then it will sync the full sentence.

It doesn’t happen every time, but enough that it is annoying. Does anyone else see that?

#40

I just tested this, and it’s not a problem for me. I created the note on iPhone and then checked it on my Mac, using Obsidian Sync also:

image
image1062×236 9.39 KB

Do you have the files in iCloud? I heard this causes problem with Sync as the two interfere.

#41

It doesn’t do it every time, just enough to be annoying. I think you would have noticed it if it was a problem for you.

Not using anything on iCloud. Must be something unique to my set up somewhere. Thanks for checking.

#42

full true end to end encrypted sync not using iCloud.

But I still won’t use it for real stuff.

1 Like