Migrating knowledge from Google, Confluence etc to Obsidian
Why?
Obsidian is an incredibly powerful tool for organising your thoughts, projects, and daily notes. However, because Obsidian stores files directly on your computer rather than in the cloud, getting your notes to sync to your Android phone can feel a bit tricky at first.
While Obsidian offers a premium paid sync service (or pay for the recurring Obsidian Sync - Standard service 1GB = US$28.80 for 1 year with education discount), you can easily set up a completely free, automated sync using Google Drive. Here is the exact, step-by-step method to get your desktop and mobile notes talking to each other.
Step 1: Create a new dedicated "Notes" Google Account
To keep your vault secure and prevent your personal or work files from getting mixed up, we highly recommend creating a brand-new, free Google account dedicated solely to your Obsidian notes. Google provides 15 GB free.
Pro-Tip: Make it easy to remember by mirroring your current email address and adding ".notes" to it.
Example: If your normal email is
john.doe@gmail.com, create your new account asjohn.doe.notes@gmail.com.
Step 2: Install the DriveSync App on your phone
Since the official Google Drive app on Android doesn't let Obsidian read your files directly, we need a "bridge" app to do the heavy lifting in the background.
On your Android phone, download the free DriveSync app (also known as AutoSync for Google Drive) from the Google Play Store.
Open the app and Allow it the storage permissions it asks for.
Tap Connect to Google Drive and log in using the new
john.doe.notes@gmail.comaccount you just created.
Step 3: Configure Your Sync Settings
Now we need to tell DriveSync exactly which folders to connect.
In the app, choose to set up a Synced Folder (also called a Folderpair).
For the Sync Method, strictly select Two-way. This ensures that notes you write on your phone go to your PC, and notes you write on your PC go to your phone.
Filter out the junk: To keep your sync lightning-fast, you want to ignore background system files. Check the box for "Select files by name".
You will be asked to configure inclusion/exclusion patterns. You can find the exact text you need to copy and paste on this DriveSync Ultimate – Obsidian Inclusion/Exclusion Name Patterns GitHub page.
Step 4: The Home Screen Shortcut
Once your setup is complete, DriveSync will quietly work in the background. However, if you want total control to force a sync before you open Obsidian on your phone, there is a great shortcut!
Go to your Android phone's home screen.
Long-press on an empty space and open your Widgets menu.
Find the DriveSync widget and drag it to your home screen. Now, you can trigger a manual sync with a single tap, without ever having to open the app itself. Its a green icon with a circular white arrow.
How to bring your existing knowledge into Obsdian
Go to Google Takeout https://takeout.google.com/
click "Create Export"
Use a Python script to convert the JSON and HTML files to .md format for Obsidian.