Oracle Retail Knowledge Base

How to set up Obsidian

3 min read

Context

How to get Obsidian configured so you work the same way as everyone else on this vault. Most of the setup ships committed in .obsidian/, so cloning gets you almost all the way — this note covers the install, the few manual steps, and a checklist to confirm your Obsidian matches. For writing conventions see Start Here; for syntax and shortcuts see How to format in Obsidian.

Quick access

1 - Install and open the vault

  1. Install Obsidian (free).
  2. Clone the repository (the vault is kept in step through git — commit and pull like code).
  3. In Obsidian: Open folder as vault → select the Documentation/ folder (the one containing Start Here.md and the numbered folders). Do not open the repo root.
  4. If Obsidian asks to trust the author, say yes — that lets the committed configuration load.
  5. Open Start Here.md and read it before writing anything.

2 - What ships automatically

The committed .obsidian/ config sets these for you. You don’t need to configure them by hand — but the next section shows how to confirm them.

Setting (Settings → …)Value
Files and links → Default location for new notesIn the folder specified below → 02 - In progress
Files and links → Default location for new attachmentsIn the folder specified below → 99 - Attachments
Files and links → Automatically update internal linksOn
Files and links → Deleted filesMove to Obsidian trash (the vault’s .trash)
Templates (core plugin) → Template folder locationTemplates
Templates → Date formatYYYY-MM-DD

The relevant core plugins are enabled too — Templates, File recovery, Backlinks, Outline, Tag pane, Properties, Graph, and Command palette. No community plugins are required.

File recovery is your safety net

The File recovery core plugin keeps automatic local snapshots of every note. If you overwrite or lose work, open Cmd/Ctrl + P → File recovery: Open saved snapshots to restore an earlier version.

The Sync core plugin is also enabled in the config. It is optional — this vault is shared through git, so you only need Obsidian Sync if your team has a shared remote vault set up.

3 - Verify your setup

Run through this once after opening the vault. If anything is off, fix it under the matching Settings row in the table above.

  • A new note (Cmd/Ctrl + N) is created inside 02 - In progress.
  • Pasting an image into a note drops the file in 99 - Attachments and embeds it as ![[name.png]].
  • Cmd/Ctrl + P → Insert template inserts the note template, and {{date}} fills in today’s date as YYYY-MM-DD.
  • Deleting a note sends it to the vault’s .trash, not your operating system trash.
  • Renaming or moving a note keeps its [[wikilinks]] working (internal links auto-update).

4 - Daily workflow

  1. Create a note with Cmd/Ctrl + N — it lands in 02 - In progress.
  2. Insert the template first (Cmd/Ctrl + P → Insert template), then fill the frontmatter.
  3. Write the note following Start Here — Context, Quick access box if it has more than one subtopic, numbered steps, --- then the Related/Reference footer.
  4. Paste images straight into the note; they file themselves into 99 - Attachments.
  5. When it’s ready, drag it to 01 - Waiting review. You do not review your own note.
  6. A reviewer fills in Reviewed by / Reviewed on and moves it to 00 - Knowledge Base (reviewed).

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