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How to use Obsidian with AI plugins for client notes

3 min read

Set up an Obsidian vault for client work and add Smart Connections so related notes surface while you write.

Short answer: create a vault with a folder per client and a consistent meeting-note template, turn on community plugins, install Smart Connections, and open its Connections view beside the note you are working on. It shows related notes and passages without a search or existing links, and it runs locally by default.

Steps are checked against the Obsidian Help and the Smart Connections site as of October 2026.

What you need

  • Obsidian on desktop. It is free; Obsidian says your data is stored locally on your device.
  • About 30 minutes to set up folders and a template.

Step 1: Lay out the vault by client

Clients/
  Harbor Dental Group/
    _About.md        # who is who, goals, brand rules
    Meetings/        # one note per call
    Decisions.md     # dated list, newest first
  Fieldstone Software/
    ...
Templates/
  Meeting.md

Keep one _About.md per client. It is the page you will paste into an AI chat when you need context fast.

Step 2: Make a meeting template

In Settings → Core plugins, turn on Templates and point it at Templates/. A template that works well with AI:

---
client:
date: {{date}}
attendees:
---
## Decisions
## Commitments (who, what, by when)
## Open questions
## Notes

The fixed headings matter: they make your notes easy for any AI to read and for Smart Connections to match.

Step 3: Turn on community plugins and install Smart Connections

Per the Obsidian Help:

  1. Open Settings and select Community plugins.
  2. Select Turn on community plugins. This turns off Restricted Mode.
  3. Select Browse, search for "Smart Connections", select it, then select Install.
  4. Select Enable, or enable it later under Settings → Community plugins → Installed plugins.

Obsidian warns that community plugins can access files on your computer and connect to the internet, and recommends a review before using plugins with sensitive data. With client notes, read the plugin's privacy notes first.

Step 4: Let it index, then work with the Connections view

On first run Smart Connections builds local embeddings of your vault. Open the Connections view from the plugin's ribbon icon or the command palette, and keep it beside your note. As you write in a client's meeting note, earlier notes and passages that match appear in the sidebar. Smart Connections says its suggestions do not edit your notes.

Step 5: Use it with an AI chat

  1. Open the client's _About.md and latest meeting note.
  2. Check the Connections view for older notes that matter, such as a past decision on the same topic.
  3. Paste those notes into your AI chat with your request.

Smart Plugins also offers Smart Context, for choosing and reviewing which notes go into an AI request.

Habits that keep it useful

  • Write the Decisions and Commitments sections right after each call, while you remember.
  • Keep Decisions.md dated, so the newest decision wins when notes disagree.
  • Exclude other clients' folders from what you paste, every time.

Sources

Checked October 9, 2026.

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