Obsidian basics — terms

What is an Obsidian vault?

Q: Does making an existing folder a vault add anything?

In our Linux 1.13.7 test, opening an empty folder created .obsidian and initial settings, with zero Markdown files. "Create new vault" instead drops in a starter note (screenshots). If your folder already holds files, always take the "open folder" path.

The word "vault" suggests a proprietary container. It is an ordinary folder you picked, holding your notes, attachments and Obsidian settings. For this page we opened an empty folder as a vault and counted, byte for byte, what appeared on disk.

By SimpleMemo Developer · Published August 20, 2026 · Measured August 20, 2026 (Obsidian 1.13.7) · Guidance updated September 30, 2026

What is an Obsidian vault?

It is an ordinary folder you chose. Notes are Markdown text files alongside attachments and, by default, the .obsidian configuration folder. You do not need to decode a proprietary database to read your notes.

Our August 20, 2026 test of an empty folder with Linux version 1.13.7 produced four JSON files totalling 5,543 bytes under .obsidian/, and zero Markdown files.

The shortest path from a spoken note on iPhone into your vault is in the four-route comparison (no plugin needed).

Where is a vault, and can I rename it?

A vault lives where you created it, and its name is the folder name. A folder called “Obsidian” is not necessarily the vault itself.

Desktop: if you forgot the location, search for the vault name in Finder or File Explorer and open an existing .md file to check that it contains your notes. The .obsidian directory inside it is configuration, not the parent vault.
iPhone with iCloud: in Files, open Browse → iCloud Drive → the folder with the Obsidian icon → your vault name. Local storage and Obsidian Sync use different arrangements.

On desktop, use “Rename vault” in the vault manager. This changes the folder name too, so check any connected app's target. Sources: vault management and iCloud storage.

How do I open an existing folder as a vault?

In desktop Obsidian, open the vault manager from the bottom left, choose Open beside “Open folder as vault”, and select the folder containing your notes. Choose the parent folder, not .obsidian or one note. See our setup walkthrough for examples.

Measured: what appears when an empty folder becomes a vault

We created one empty directory, had Obsidian 1.13.7 (Linux build) open it as a vault, and listed the result with find. This is all of it.

vault-demo/
└── .obsidian/
    ├── app.json
    ├── appearance.json
    ├── core-plugins.json
    └── workspace.json

File	Size	What it holds
`app.json`	2	Literally `{}` — only settings you changed get written
`appearance.json`	2	Also `{}` — grows once you change theme or font
`core-plugins.json`	696	On/off for 31 core features (21 on, 10 off by default)
`workspace.json`	4,843	Pane layout. The only large one of the four
Total	5,543	Bytes. Not one byte of it is your notes

The 5,543 bytes describe this empty test vault, not the size of a working vault. Obsidian also uses IndexedDB and a metadata cache. Storing notes as Markdown does not mean the application never uses a database.

What follows: deleting, moving, syncing

Distinguish configuration from note storage

Regular Markdown notes live outside the configuration folder, but .obsidian also holds themes, hotkeys and community plugins. Do not use deletion as routine cleanup; keep a copy of the vault, including its settings, before changing it. The four-file result describes only our empty test vault.

Check notes and settings after copying

On desktop, keep a copy of the vault including settings and attachments, open the copied folder in Obsidian, and check the note body. Copying does not configure device syncing. For iCloud on iPhone, also check the Obsidian storage location.

workspace.json is the odd one out across devices

The measured 4,843 bytes included the test workspace layout. Official guidance suggests excluding workspace.json and workspaces.json from Git tracking when appropriate. Check your sync method and the settings retained in a manual copy separately.

"Create new" and "Open folder" differ

Opening an existing empty folder produced zero Markdown files. "Create new vault" instead drops in a starter note (screenshots). If the folder already has files, do not use the latter.

Inside `core-plugins.json`: the 10 that ship off

Those 696 bytes are an on/off table for the features Obsidian ships with. Our August 20, 2026 Linux 1.13.7 test counted 31 of them — 21 on, 10 off by default. They need no install, so it is worth checking here before hunting for a community plugin. These ten start off:

footnotes          slash-command      markdown-importer
zk-prefixer        random-note        slides
audio-recorder     workspaces         publish
webviewer

These are separate from community plugins (6,812 of them as of August 21, 2026). The registry-count trend and a measured top-10-by-downloads list live on our plugins page.

Once it is just a folder: how fast can you get into it?

Choose an input route and destination before adding short notes on iPhone. In Simple Memo, enable the integration, grant access to a vault folder available in Files, and choose a daily note or fixed Inbox. Run the write test, which does not send email. Test Siri and Apple Watch input on your own devices and check the intended note body. Confirm email arrival, vault storage and syncing to another device separately. App history alone does not confirm arrival in the vault.

If you chose Obsidian, shorten the way in

Enable the integration, grant folder access and choose the destination. Check that a short note reaches the selected file. Free to download.