Obsidian Second Brain (Claude Skill) — Install & Live Demo

Why use it

Key features

Vault-first research — search internal notes before reaching for web/AI
31 commands across capture, refactor, review
Atomic note creation from templates (Zettelkasten-flavored)
Backlink + MOC maintenance (suggest links, build hub pages)
Periodic review queue (spaced repetition for thinking)
Scheduled agents — daily/weekly maintenance runs
Markdown-native; no plugins required

Live Demo

What it looks like in practice

ready

Install

Pick your client

~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json · Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-second-brain-skill": {
      "command": "git",
      "args": [
        "clone",
        "https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain",
        "~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config. Restart after saving.

~/.cursor/mcp.json · .cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-second-brain-skill": {
      "command": "git",
      "args": [
        "clone",
        "https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain",
        "~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Cursor uses the same mcpServers schema as Claude Desktop. Project config wins over global.

VS Code → Cline → MCP Servers → Edit

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-second-brain-skill": {
      "command": "git",
      "args": [
        "clone",
        "https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain",
        "~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Click the MCP Servers icon in the Cline sidebar, then "Edit Configuration".

~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-second-brain-skill": {
      "command": "git",
      "args": [
        "clone",
        "https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain",
        "~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Same shape as Claude Desktop. Restart Windsurf to pick up changes.

~/.continue/config.json

{
  "mcpServers": [
    {
      "name": "obsidian-second-brain-skill",
      "command": "git",
      "args": [
        "clone",
        "https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain",
        "~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Continue uses an array of server objects rather than a map.

~/.config/zed/settings.json

{
  "context_servers": {
    "obsidian-second-brain-skill": {
      "command": {
        "path": "git",
        "args": [
          "clone",
          "https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain",
          "~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}

Add to context_servers. Zed hot-reloads on save.

claude mcp add obsidian-second-brain-skill -- git clone https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain ~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain

One-liner. Verify with claude mcp list. Remove with claude mcp remove.

Use Cases

Real-world ways to use Obsidian Second Brain

Research a topic vault-first, web-second

👤 Researchers, writers, knowledge workers ⏱ ~45 min intermediate

When to use: You're investigating something you've thought about before; want to surface your own prior thinking first.

Prerequisites

Skill installed — git clone https://github.com/eugeniughelbur/obsidian-second-brain ~/.claude/skills/obsidian-second-brain
Vault path — Set in skill config: path to .obsidian vault

Flow

Internal-first

Obsidian-2brain: research 'attention vs intention'. Pass 1: search my vault. List relevant notes with dates and key claims.✓ Copied

→ Concrete note list with quoted claims, not 'no relevant notes'
Synthesize my thinking

Synthesize: what's my evolving view based on these notes? Note any contradictions over time.✓ Copied

→ Honest summary of your thinking, contradictions called out
External fill-in

Pass 2: what's missing from my view? Now bring in external sources to fill the gap.✓ Copied

→ Targeted external research that complements internal
Capture

Create a new atomic note synthesizing this. Link to all source notes. Add to the 'attention' MOC.✓ Copied

→ Note created in inbox with proper backlinks

Outcome: Research that builds on your own thinking instead of starting from scratch.

Pitfalls

Vault is messy → useless internal pass — Run a backlink hygiene pass first; don't research a chaotic vault

Combine with: filesystem

Build a Map of Content for a topic cluster

👤 Vault maintainers ⏱ ~30 min intermediate

When to use: You have 50+ notes on a topic and they're disorganized.

Flow

Cluster

Obsidian-2brain: cluster all notes tagged #productivity. Show me 3–5 sub-themes.✓ Copied

→ Clean cluster proposal
Build MOC

Create 'Productivity MOC.md' with sections per cluster, linking to the relevant notes. Add a brief framing for each cluster.✓ Copied

→ Hub page created; backlinks established

Outcome: Topic now navigable from a single hub page.

Pitfalls

MOC becomes a dumping ground — Cap at 30 links; the rest go in sub-MOCs

Schedule a weekly review agent

👤 PKM enthusiasts ⏱ ~20 min beginner

When to use: Sunday morning ritual — orphaned notes, stale items, daily-note rollup.

Flow

Configure

Obsidian-2brain: configure a weekly review. Tasks: list orphan notes, list notes not opened in 90d, generate a daily-note rollup for the week.✓ Copied

→ Schedule registered; first run dry
Review output

Run the weekly review now. Show me the report.✓ Copied

→ Report with concrete action items

Outcome: Vault stays healthy without you babysitting it.

Pitfalls

Auto-archive deletes real notes — Skill suggests but never deletes; review before acting

Combinations

Pair with other MCPs for X10 leverage

obsidian-second-brain-skill + filesystem

Read/write notes in the vault path

Read everything in vault/Areas/. Cluster into topics.✓ Copied

obsidian-second-brain-skill + personal-os-skills

Combine vault-first research with the broader Obsidian skill suite

Run weekly review (2brain). Then run capture-rollup (personal-os) for the week.✓ Copied

Tools

What this MCP exposes

Tool	Inputs	When to call
vault_search	query, max_results?	Always before going to web
create_note	template, title, body, links[]	Capture a new atom
build_moc	topic, source_notes	Hub-build a topic
backlink_hygiene	scope?	Periodic maintenance
orphan_notes	(none)	Weekly review
review_queue	(none)	Spaced review session
schedule_agent	cadence, tasks[]	Set up automation

Cost & Limits

What this costs to run

API quota: N/A
Tokens per call: Vault searches stay tight; full-vault clusters can run 5k–30k
Monetary: Free
Tip: Use vault_search aggressively — it's a fast filter before you bring big context

Security

Permissions, secrets, blast radius

Minimum scopes: filesystem-read filesystem-write

Credential storage: None

Data egress: None — vault stays local

Vault may contain sensitive notes; review before pairing with web/sharing MCPs
Always back up the vault (git, iCloud, etc.) before mass-edits

Troubleshooting

Common errors and fixes

vault_search returns nothing despite obvious matches

Vault path may be wrong; verify in skill config

MOC overlaps with existing hub

Detect existing first; merge rather than duplicate

Scheduled agent doesn't run

Skills run when invoked by Claude; 'scheduling' here means a documented routine to run, not a system cron

Alternatives

Obsidian Second Brain vs others

Alternative	When to use it instead	Tradeoff
personal-os-skills (ArtemXTech)	You want a broader Claude × Obsidian lab	Different focus; less vault-first research emphasis
Obsidian Smart Connections plugin	You want IDE-style suggestions inside Obsidian	Plugin-based; not Claude Code
Roam Research / Logseq	You're on a different PKM	Different tool; skill is Obsidian-shaped

More

Resources

📖 Read the official README on GitHub

🐙 Browse open issues

🔍 Browse all 400+ MCP servers and Skills