Drag Out

Drag files from Obsidian's file explorer to other apps using native OS drag-and-drop instead of dropping an obsidian:// URL.

This is useful for browser upload fields, email attachments, chat apps, file managers, and other places that expect an actual file from your filesystem.

Status: experimental, desktop only. Tested primarily on Windows so far; macOS and Linux feedback is welcome.

What It Does

Obsidian's file tree is a virtual UI. By default, dragging a note out of the file tree gives other apps a link like obsidian://open?vault=Vault&file=Note.md instead of the file itself.

Drag Out intercepts file-tree drags when your configured modifier key is held and uses Electron's webContents.startDrag API to expose the real on-disk file path. Normal Obsidian drag behavior is left alone when the modifier is not held.

Installation

Drag Out is not in the Obsidian community plugin marketplace yet. To install it manually:

1. Download the release assets: main.js and manifest.json. If the release includes icon.png, download that too.
2. Open your vault folder.
3. Create this folder if it does not already exist:

.obsidian/plugins/drag-out/

4. Put the downloaded files in that folder.
5. In Obsidian, go to Settings > Community plugins > Installed plugins, refresh the plugin list, and enable Drag Out.

If Restricted Mode is on, Obsidian will ask you to turn it off before enabling community plugins.

Usage

Hold the modifier key while dragging a file or folder from Obsidian's left sidebar file explorer to another app.

The default modifier is:

• Ctrl on Windows and Linux
• Option / Alt on macOS

You can change the modifier in Settings > Drag Out. Available options are Ctrl/Cmd, Alt/Option, Shift, or None.

Multi-select is supported: select multiple files in Obsidian's file explorer, then modifier-drag one of the selected files. If you drag an unselected file while other files are selected, only the file you dragged is sent.

Why A Modifier Key?

Electron's external drag API takes over the current drag operation. That means Obsidian's own file-tree drag behavior, such as moving notes between folders, cannot run during the same drag.

Using a modifier keeps normal Obsidian drags unchanged. If you always want file drags to go to external apps, set the modifier to None in the plugin settings.

Platform Notes

• Windows: tested most heavily. Holding the modifier while dragging starts an external file drag, so Obsidian's internal drop targets will not respond during that drag. This is related to Electron's external drag behavior (Electron #7118).
• macOS: expected to work, but needs more real-world testing. The default modifier is Option/Alt to avoid conflicting with common Cmd interactions.
• Linux: expected to work where Obsidian's Electron drag API is available, but currently less tested than Windows.
• Mobile: not supported. The plugin is marked isDesktopOnly.
• Cloud placeholders: files that are not hydrated locally yet, such as OneDrive placeholders, may need to download before the target app can use them.

Building From Source

This repo uses Bun for its scripts.

bun install
bun run build

For development watch mode:

bun run dev

The build reads main.ts and writes the bundled plugin entrypoint to main.js. manifest.json is maintained separately.

Debugging

Enable Debug logging in the plugin settings, then open Obsidian's developer console with Ctrl+Shift+I and try a drag. A successful external drag logs the resolved filesystem paths.

If you see Drag Out: could not access Electron's webContents, please report your Obsidian version, operating system, and whether you installed from a release or built from source.

License

MIT