Notes & knowledge · checked 2026-10-14Can I vibecode Obsidian Sync?
KINDA· weekend project
A vault is a folder of plain files, so syncing it is mostly a server, a manifest and encryption, and an agent can write all three over a weekend. The slow part is trust: conflicts, renames and deletions have to be right before you point it at notes you care about, and the plugin needs a real phone to test on. Free routes such as iCloud, Syncthing or Git already exist, so a build makes sense only if you want your own end-to-end encrypted server.
$5/moprice per seat
$60you'd save a year
weekendbuild time
—people replaced it
What you need on hand.
DifficultyAdvanced · Real infrastructure or OAuth work.
TimeA weekend; testing on a real phone takes the longest
- Claude Code, Codex or CursorAny of them can run the prompt.
- Node.js 22better-sqlite3 compiles a native module, so build tools must be installed.
- A server reachable over HTTPSA tunnel or a $5 VPS; the phone must be able to reach it.
- A backup of your vaultZip the folder first, and keep doing it; sync is not a backup.
Before you buildObsidian is free without Sync. If your devices are all Apple, iCloud Drive may be enough; if they are mostly desktops, Syncthing is free.
- 1. Install one agent: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor.
- 2. Make an empty folder and open it in the agent.
- 3. Paste the prompt below, press enter, and answer its questions as it builds.
The prompt
Build me a self-hosted sync service for an Obsidian vault to replace Obsidian Sync. Requirements:
- One TypeScript monorepo on Node.js 22 with npm workspaces: `core/` (the sync engine, no Obsidian
imports), `server/` and `plugin/` (an Obsidian community plugin built with esbuild that runs on
mobile: no Node APIs, HTTP through Obsidian's requestUrl).
- Server: Fastify + better-sqlite3 in ./data/sync.db, file bodies in ./data/blobs/<sha256>.
POST /v1/changes takes the client's manifest and returns what changed; PUT and GET /v1/blob/:hash move
bodies. One bearer token (SYNC_TOKEN in .env); refuse everything without it; listen on 127.0.0.1
unless HOST is set.
- Encryption: the plugin encrypts file contents and paths with AES-256-GCM through WebCrypto, using a
key derived from a passphrase with scrypt (`@noble/hashes`). The server only sees ciphertext and
opaque ids. The passphrase never leaves the device, so losing it loses the vault; say so in the README.
- Engine: keep a local manifest {path, hash, mtime, deleted} from the last sync and compare it with the
device and the server. If both sides changed a file, keep both: the second copy becomes
"<name> (conflict <device> <date>).md". Deletions are tombstones kept for 30 days.
- Plugin: sync at startup, 5 seconds after a file is saved, and from a "Sync now" command; a status bar
item with the last sync time and error count; a settings tab for server URL, token, passphrase, device
name and ignore globs (default `.obsidian/workspace*.json`).
- Version history: the server keeps the last 20 versions of each file for 30 days; a command lists a
file's versions and restores one.
- Tests with vitest on the engine: two devices doing edit, rename, delete-versus-edit, conflict and
offline catch-up, plus a test that the server never receives a plaintext path or body.
- Single user. No accounts, no telemetry, local-first. Sync only runs while Obsidian is open, as in the
official service.
- Out of scope: shared vaults, live cursors, selective sync, a headless mode.
- README: copying main.js and manifest.json into .obsidian/plugins/, running the server behind a tunnel
or a VPS with HTTPS, and a plain warning to keep a separate backup, because sync is not a backup.Opens your agent with the prompt filled in, you press enter. Or copy it and paste it into an empty folder.
Then keep going
Next prompts, same folder.
The first prompt builds the core. Run these one at a time in the same folder to grow it into your own Obsidian Sync.
Add backups to the sync server in this folder. Requirements: - A command `npm run backup` that writes ./backups/YYYY-MM-DD.zip with the SQLite file (using the online backup API, not a plain copy) and every referenced blob. - Schedule it nightly with node-cron at a time set in .env and keep the newest 14 archives. - A `restore` command that unpacks an archive into an empty data folder and verifies every blob's sha256. - Update the README.
Add selective sync to the Obsidian plugin in this folder. Requirements: - Per device settings: skip files larger than N MB, skip folders by glob, and skip file types (images, audio, video, PDF). - Skipped remote files appear in the status bar count and are downloaded only when requested from a command palette entry "Fetch skipped file". - Never delete a skipped remote file because it is missing locally; add a test for that. - Update the README.
Add a headless client to the sync project in this folder. Requirements: - A Node CLI `vault-mirror --server URL --dir ./vault` using the core engine, with the token and passphrase from .env, that syncs once or watches the folder with chokidar. - It must use the same encryption, manifest and conflict naming as the plugin, so both can sync with one server. - Exit non-zero on any error and log one line per file changed. - Add an integration test running the CLI against the test server. - Update the README with a systemd unit example.
What you lose
- Shared vaults for working with other people
- A version-history viewer and file recovery tied to the app
- Selective sync and per-device settings sync done for you
- Headless Sync and regional servers
- Priority support and a service whose uptime someone else watches
Why people still pay
Forum threads and guides describe Sync as the low-maintenance choice when devices are mixed, with end-to-end encryption and no setup, and the revenue keeps a user-supported project going. Obsidian's own docs point Apple-only users to iCloud and list Syncthing as unsupported on iOS, which is where Sync earns its price.
Obsidian Sync or your own copy?
Seats
Over
Your usage
12h ×$/h
Obsidian Sync, 1 yr$60
Your own copy, 1 yr$46running + build session
You keep$14pays for itself in 5 months
Estimate · A tunnel is free and a small VPS costs about what Sync Standard does ($5 a month, or $4 billed yearly), so the gain is control, not money. The build is token usage on your agent plan.
Take your data, then cancel.
1 · Take your data out of Obsidian Sync
- 1There is nothing to export from the service: a vault is a folder of plain files on every synced device, so copy that folder.
- 2Version history lives only on Obsidian's servers, not in the local folder; restore anything you need from it first.
- 3Obsidian's own pages list free ways to sync instead: iCloud Drive on Apple devices, Syncthing (with Syncthing-Fork on Android), Git, OneDrive or Google Drive; the vault must be placed where each tool expects.
2 · Cancel Obsidian Sync
- 1Sign in to your Obsidian account and open the Sync section; the help pages we read don't name the cancel button, so look for it there or email support@obsidian.md.
- 2Within 7 days of buying, request a refund from Billing > Invoices and refunds: View, then Get refund next to the payment, then Request refund.
- 3A refund removes the service and cancels auto-renewal, and it deletes your remote vaults at once.
- If a subscription expires, remote vault data, including version history, is kept for one month; then the vaults are removed and your local vaults remain.
- Never run Obsidian Sync alongside another sync service on the same vault: the FAQ warns of duplicated or corrupted files.
- A refund deletes remote data immediately and can't be undone, even if you subscribe again; check the local copy first.
- Sync only runs while Obsidian is open, so mobile changes may not arrive until you open the app.
Checked 2026-10-14 against Obsidian Sync's docs: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
The escape hatch
Don't feel like building it? These are already free.
SyncthingOpen sourceMPL-2.0 peer-to-peer file sync with no server; devices must be online at the same time, and Obsidian's docs list it as unsupported on iOS.★ 89k · active Oct 2026 · one-click install
Windows, macOS, LinuxVisit ↗Syncthing-ForkOpen sourceCommunity-maintained Android wrapper for Syncthing; Obsidian's docs say the official Android app is no longer maintained.★ 3.1k · active Oct 2026 · one-click install
AndroidVisit ↗Self-hosted LiveSyncOpen sourceMIT plugin that syncs through your own CouchDB or S3-compatible storage, with end-to-end encryption and automatic merging of simple conflicts.★ 13k · active Oct 2026 · docker to self-host
Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, AndroidVisit ↗
Windows, macOS, LinuxVisit ↗Syncthing-ForkOpen sourceCommunity-maintained Android wrapper for Syncthing; Obsidian's docs say the official Android app is no longer maintained.★ 3.1k · active Oct 2026 · one-click install
AndroidVisit ↗Self-hosted LiveSyncOpen sourceMIT plugin that syncs through your own CouchDB or S3-compatible storage, with end-to-end encryption and automatic merging of simple conflicts.★ 13k · active Oct 2026 · docker to self-host
Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, AndroidVisit ↗
The numbers
Obsidian Sync pricing
| Plan | Monthly | Annual, per month | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sync Standard | $5/user | $4/user | 1 synced vault, 1 GB total storage, 5 MB maximum file size, 1 month of version history, unlimited devices. |
| Sync Plus | $10/user | $8/user | 10 synced vaults, 10 GB total storage (upgradable to 100 GB), 200 MB maximum file size, 12 months of version history. |
- Free tier
- No free Sync plan; the app, local vaults and community plugins cost nothing.
- Billing
- Monthly or yearly per user, in dollars. Full refund within 7 days of purchase; students, faculty and nonprofit staff get 40% off Sync and Publish.
- Hidden costs
- Storage is one limit per account, and version history and attachments count towards it; when it is full, syncing stops until you prune. Publish ($10 a month, or $8 yearly, per site) is a separate product.
- Source
- obsidian.md
Also on the list
Related apps
Obsidian itself is free with no sign-up; Sync and Publish are the paid add-ons, and there is no free Sync plan.
Kinda. The core is a weekend build with the prompt on this page, but real gaps remain: Shared vaults for working with other people, A version-history viewer and file recovery tied to the app.
About $5 a month on the Sync Standard plan per seat, $60 a year (checked 2026-10-14).
Shared vaults for working with other people; A version-history viewer and file recovery tied to the app; Selective sync and per-device settings sync done for you; Headless Sync and regional servers; Priority support and a service whose uptime someone else watches. If any of those matter to you, keep paying.
Yes: Syncthing (open source), Syncthing-Fork (open source), Self-hosted LiveSync (open source).