# What is VaultLink?

Self-hosted sync for Obsidian vaults with automatic conflict-free merging. Edit with any tool, collaborate in real-time, no conflict markers.

## The Problem

Syncing Obsidian vaults across devices or sharing with teammates sucks:

- **Commercial services**: Lock-in, subscriptions, third-party access to your data
- **Git**: Manual conflict resolution with `<<<<<<<` markers interrupting your workflow
- **Cloud storage**: Last-write-wins data loss or manual conflict resolution
- **CRDT solutions**: Only work if you edit inside Obsidian (break if you use Vim, VS Code, etc.)

## VaultLink's Solution

Differential synchronisation with operational transformation for Markdown and text files.

Edit `.md` and `.txt` files with Obsidian, Vim, VS Code, or any editor. VaultLink compares versions and automatically merges all changes. No operation tracking required, no conflict markers.

**Note**: Binary files (images, PDFs, etc.) use last-write-wins. [See limitations →](/guide/limitations)

## How It Works

1. **Server**: Rust WebSocket server with SQLite stores document versions
2. **Clients**: Obsidian plugin or CLI client watches filesystem changes
3. **Sync**: Changes upload to server, server broadcasts to other clients
4. **Merge**: [reconcile-text](https://schmelczer.dev/reconcile) automatically merges concurrent edits

No CRDT infrastructure. No operation logs. Just file comparison and smart merging.

## Key Advantages

**Editor agnostic**: Edit files with any tool. Other solutions break when you edit outside their ecosystem.

**Self-hosted**: Your data, your server. No third parties, no subscriptions, no surprises.

**Automatic merging**: Operational transformation handles conflicts without interrupting your workflow.

**Production-ready**: Comprehensive tests, E2E tests, battle-tested. Many alternatives have zero tests.

**Collaborative**: Real-time sync with cursor tracking. See where teammates are editing.

## Not Tied to Obsidian

VaultLink syncs Markdown files. Use it for:

- Obsidian vaults (Obsidian desktop + mobile + CLI)
- Technical documentation (VS Code, your-editor, CLI)
- Academic writing (multiple Markdown editors)
- Automated workflows (CLI client for backups/CI/CD)

The Obsidian plugin is just a convenience wrapper around the sync client.

## Quick Comparison

| Feature             | VaultLink | Git | Cloud Sync | CRDT Solutions |
| ------------------- | --------- | --- | ---------- | -------------- |
| Self-hosted         | ✅        | ✅  | ❌         | Varies         |
| Any editor          | ✅        | ✅  | ✅         | ❌             |
| No conflict markers | ✅        | ❌  | ❌         | ✅             |
| Real-time           | ✅        | ❌  | ❌         | ✅             |
| No subscriptions    | ✅        | ✅  | ❌         | Varies         |
| Comprehensive tests | ✅        | N/A | N/A        | ❌             |

[Detailed comparison with alternatives →](/guide/alternatives)

## Next Steps

- [Get started →](/guide/getting-started) (5 minute setup)
- [See the architecture →](/architecture/) (understand how it works)
- [Compare alternatives →](/guide/alternatives) (why VaultLink vs others)