obsidian-claude-pkm/docs/SETUP_GUIDE.md

Complete Setup Guide

This guide will walk you through setting up your Obsidian + Claude Code PKM system step by step. Total time: ~15 minutes if prerequisites are installed.

Prerequisites Checklist

Before starting, ensure you have:

• Obsidian installed (Download here)
• Git installed (Download here)
• Claude Code CLI installed (Instructions)
• GitHub account (optional, for sync) (Sign up)
• Text editor (for configuration files)

Verify Prerequisites

Open terminal/command prompt and run:

# Check Git
git --version

# Check Claude Code
claude --version

Phase 1: Initial Setup (5 minutes)

Step 1: Clone the Repository

# Option A: If you have git
git clone https://github.com/ballred/obsidian-claude-pkm.git
cd obsidian-claude-pkm

# Option B: Download ZIP
# 1. Download from GitHub
# 2. Extract to your desired location

Step 2: Run Setup Script

# Make script executable (Mac/Linux)
chmod +x scripts/setup.sh

# Run setup
./scripts/setup.sh

# For Windows, use:
# scripts\setup.bat

The setup script will:

1. Ask for your vault location preference
2. Copy the vault template
3. Set up Claude commands
4. Initialize git (if desired)

Step 3: Manual Setup (if script fails)

# Copy vault template to your preferred location
cp -r vault-template ~/Documents/ObsidianPKM

# The .claude/commands directory is already included in the template
# Verify commands are present
ls ~/Documents/ObsidianPKM/.claude/commands/

# Initialize git
cd ~/Documents/ObsidianPKM
git init

Phase 2: Open in Obsidian (5 minutes)

Step 1: Open Obsidian

1. Launch Obsidian
2. Click "Open folder as vault"
3. Navigate to your vault folder
4. Click "Select"

Step 2: Trust and Enable

When prompted:

• Click "Trust author and enable plugins" (if you added community plugins)
• This is safe for the template vault

Step 3: Initial Exploration

1. Open CLAUDE.md in the root
2. Read through the structure
3. Explore the Goals folder
4. Check out the example daily note

Step 4: Basic Settings (Optional)

1. Settings → Appearance → Choose theme
2. Settings → Editor → Set your preferences
3. Settings → Files & Links → Confirm settings:
   • Default location for new notes: "Daily Notes"
   • New link format: "Relative path to file"

Phase 3: Claude Code Integration (10 minutes)

Step 1: Configure Claude Code

# Navigate to your vault
cd ~/Documents/ObsidianPKM

# Initialize Claude Code
claude init

# Test the connection
claude "Hello, I'm setting up my PKM system"

Step 2: Set Up Commands

# The commands should already be in .claude/commands/
# Verify they exist:
ls .claude/commands/

# You should see:
# daily.md  weekly.md  push.md  onboard.md

Step 3: Test Commands

# Load your context
claude code /onboard

# Create your first daily note
claude code /daily

# You should see a new file in Daily Notes/

Step 4: Configure Output Styles

The vault includes a Productivity Coach output style that makes Claude more accountability-focused:

# Start Claude Code
claude

# Then use the output style commands:
/output-style              # Opens interactive menu to choose a style
/output-style coach        # Directly activates the coach style

# The coach will challenge you with questions like:
# - "What's the ONE thing that would make everything else easier?"
# - "What are you avoiding by reorganizing instead of doing?"

Your style preference is automatically saved in .claude/settings.local.json. The output style file is located at .claude/output-styles/coach.md if you want to customize it.

Step 5: Customize Context

Edit CLAUDE.md in your vault root:

1. Add your personal mission statement
2. Define your working preferences
3. Set your current focus areas
4. Add any specific instructions for Claude

Phase 4: Git Setup (5 minutes)

Step 1: Initialize Repository

# If not already initialized
git init

# Configure git
git config user.name "Your Name"
git config user.email "your.email@example.com"

# Add all files
git add .

# First commit
git commit -m "Initial PKM setup"

Step 2: Create GitHub Repository

# Using GitHub CLI (if installed)
gh repo create my-pkm --private

# Or create manually on GitHub.com
# Then add remote:
git remote add origin https://github.com/ballred/my-pkm.git

# Push to GitHub
git push -u origin main

Step 3: Set Up GitHub Action (Optional)

1. Copy the workflow file:

mkdir -p .github/workflows
cp github-actions/claude.yml .github/workflows/

2. Get Claude Code OAuth token:

   • Visit: https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/claude-code/github-actions
   • Follow instructions to get token

3. Add token to GitHub:

   • Go to your repository on GitHub
   • Settings → Secrets and variables → Actions
   • New repository secret
   • Name: CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN
   • Value: [Your token]

Phase 5: Personalization (10 minutes)

Step 1: Customize Your Mission

Edit vault-template/CLAUDE.md:

## 🎯 System Purpose
[Replace with your personal mission]

Step 2: Set Your Goals

1. Open Goals/0. Three Year Goals.md
2. Replace placeholder goals with your actual 3-year vision
3. Open Goals/1. Yearly Goals.md
4. Set your annual objectives
5. Open Goals/2. Monthly Goals.md
6. Define this month's priorities

Step 3: Customize Daily Template

Edit Templates/Daily Template.md:

1. Add your personal mission statement at the top
2. Adjust time blocks to match your schedule
3. Modify task categories to fit your life
4. Add/remove sections as needed

Step 4: Create Your First Project

# Using Claude
claude code "Create a new project folder for [Your Project Name]"

# Or manually
1. Create folder in Projects/
2. Copy CLAUDE.md template
3. Define project goals

Verification Checklist

Run through this checklist to ensure everything is working:

• Obsidian opens your vault without errors
• CLAUDE.md has your personalized content
• /daily command creates today's note
• /onboard command loads your context
• Git commits work locally
• GitHub remote is connected (if using)
• Goals files have your objectives
• Daily template has your customizations

Daily Workflow

Morning Routine (5 minutes)

# Start your day
claude code /onboard
claude code /daily

# Claude will:
# - Create today's note
# - Review yesterday's tasks
# - Help plan your day

Evening Routine (5 minutes)

# End of day
# Complete reflection in daily note
claude code /push

# This saves everything to git

Weekly Review (30 minutes)

# Sunday evening or Monday morning
claude code /weekly

# Follow the guided review process

Troubleshooting

Obsidian Won't Open Vault

• Check folder permissions
• Ensure path has no special characters
• Try creating fresh vault and copying files

Claude Commands Not Working

# Verify Claude Code installation
claude --version

# Check command files exist
ls -la .claude/commands/

# Try running directly
claude code < .claude/commands/daily.md

Git Issues

# If push fails
git pull --rebase origin main
git push

# If large files cause issues
git lfs track "*.pdf"
git lfs track "*.png"

Daily Note Not Created

• Check date format in template
• Verify Templates folder exists
• Ensure template file is named correctly

Next Steps

1. Read CUSTOMIZATION.md for advanced configuration
2. Explore WORKFLOW_EXAMPLES.md for usage patterns
3. Join the community (if available) for tips and support
4. Iterate on your system - it should evolve with you

Getting Help

• Documentation: Check the docs/ folder
• Claude Code Help: claude --help
• Obsidian Help: Obsidian Forum
• Git Help: Git Documentation

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Congratulations! Your PKM system is now ready. Remember: the best system is the one you actually use. Start simple, be consistent, and evolve as needed.

Pro Tip: Spend the first week just using daily notes. Add complexity gradually as habits form.