According to AlphaMoat, as of 2026-09, Backup of conversations to Obsidian has 4,065 downloads and 5 stars — ranked #2,497 of 5,078 AI skills overall, and #230 of 442 in Knowledge.
| Platform | Installs | Downloads | Stars | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ClawHub ↗ | 126 | 3.9K | 5 | - |
| SkillHub ↗ | 125 | 4.1K | 5 | — |
Platforms count differently and update at different times.
It supports incremental snapshots, hourly organization, on-demand full snapshots, and scheduled backups, while filtering empty messages and system notifications. Conversations may contain sensitive information, so use a low-privilege account and protect the vault. The installer handles user-supplied paths; inspect generated paths and scripts before enabling scheduled jobs. If Telegram alerts are configured, also check whether token-status metadata will be sent. Use trusted local paths only and test scripts manually before enabling cron.
Profile published 2026-10-29
Generated from the skill’s documentation as examples; not results of actual runs.
The counting method changed in 2026-09: skills with the same name are now counted separately by author, and the full catalog is covered. Dashed lines show months before the change; they are not compared with later months, and no growth is computed across the change.
| Month | Downloads | MoM | Stars |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09 | 4.1K | — | 5 |
| 2026-08 | 3.8K | +4.3% | 5 |
| 2026-07 | 3.6K | — | 5 |
| 2026-05 | 3.2K | — | 5 |
The author’s original file, shown as plain text without edits or review by AlphaMoat. Links are not clickable; check commands before running them. Fetched 2026-10-23.
--- name: obsidian-conversation-backup description: Automatic conversation backup system for Obsidian with incremental snapshots, hourly breakdowns, and formatted chat-style markdown. Use when setting up conversation archival, preventing data loss from /new resets, or organizing chat history in Obsidian vault with proper formatting (colored callouts, timestamps, multi-paragraph support). --- # Obsidian Conversation Backup Automatically backs up Clawdbot conversations to Obsidian with beautiful chat-style formatting. Prevents data loss from `/new` resets with hourly incremental snapshots. ## Features
- **Incremental backups**: Hourly snapshots of new messages only (no duplication)
- **Chat formatting**: Obsidian callouts with emojis, timestamps, proper multi-paragraph support
- **Hourly breakdowns**: Organize conversations by clock hour for easy reference
- **Zero token cost**: Pure shell scripting, no LLM calls
- **Smart filtering**: Skips empty messages and system notifications
## Quick Setup
### Installation
```bash
# Extract the skill (if downloaded as .skill file)
unzip obsidian-conversation-backup.skill
cd obsidian-conversation-backup
# Run installer (interactive)
chmod +x install.sh
./install.sh
```
The installer will ask for:
- Obsidian vault path
- Session directory location
- Tracking files location
**Or manual setup:**
1. Copy `config.example` to `config`
2. Edit `config` with your paths
3. Make scripts executable: `chmod +x scripts/*.sh`
### Enable Automatic Backups
Add to crontab for hourly backups:
```bash
crontab -e
# Add this line (runs every hour at :00)
0 * * * * /path/to/obsidian-conversation-backup/scripts/monitor_and_save.sh
```
### Customize Chat Appearance (Optional)
Edit `scripts/format_message_v2.jq` to change:
- User emoji (default: 🐉)
- Assistant emoji (default: 🦞)
- Callout types (default: `[!quote]` for user, `[!check]` for assistant)
## Usage
### Automatic Incremental Backups
Once configured in cron, the system runs automatically:
**Every hour:**
- Checks for new messages (≥10 lines)
- Creates incremental snapshot if found
- Saves to: `YYYY-MM-DD-HHmm-incremental.md`
- Skips if no new conversation
**Example output:**
```
2026-01-20-1500-incremental.md (messages from last save to now)
2026-01-20-1600-incremental.md (new messages since 15:00)
2026-01-20-1700-incremental.md (new messages since 16:00)
```
**Protection:** Max conversation loss = 1 hour
### On-Demand Full Snapshot
Save complete conversation anytime:
```bash
scripts/save_full_snapshot.sh [topic-name]
```
**Examples:**
```bash
scripts/save_full_snapshot.sh important-decisions
scripts/save_full_snapshot.sh bug-fix-discussion
scripts/save_full_snapshot.sh # uses "full-conversation" as default
```
### Hourly Breakdown (Organization)
Create organized breakdown by clock hour:
```bash
scripts/create_hourly_snapshots.sh YYYY-MM-DD
```
**Example:**
```bash
scripts/create_hourly_snapshots.sh 2026-01-20
```
**Output:**
```
2026-01-20-1500-hourly.md (15:00-15:59 messages)
2026-01-20-1600-hourly.md (16:00-16:59 messages)
2026-01-20-1700-hourly.md (17:00-17:59 messages)
```
**Use case:** End-of-day organization for easy reference
## Chat Format
Messages appear as colored Obsidian callouts:
**User messages** (blue `[!quote]` callout):
```
> [!quote] 🐉 User · 15:30
> This is my message
```
**Assistant messages** (green `[!check]` callout):
```
> [!check] 🦞 Zoidbot · 15:31
> This is the response
```
**Features:**
- Timestamps (HH:MM format)
- Multi-paragraph support (uses `<br><br>` for paragraph breaks)
- Proper line wrapping (all lines prefixed with `> `)
- Empty messages filtered out
- System notifications excluded
## Token Monitoring
The `monitor_and_save.sh` script also tracks token usage:
**Warnings via Telegram:**
- **800k tokens (80%)**: "Consider /new soon"
- **900k tokens (90%)**: "Run /new NOW"
**Implementation:**
```bash
# Sends warning only when crossing threshold (one-time)
# No repeated warnings
# Resets when back under 800k
```
## File Structure
```
scripts/
├── monitor_and_save.sh # Hourly incremental backup + token monitoring
├── save_full_snapshot.sh # On-demand full conversation save
├── create_hourly_snapshots.sh # Organize by clock hour
└── format_message_v2.jq # Chat formatting logic
```
## Configuration
### Tracking Files
The system uses hidden files to track state:
```bash
/root/clawd/.last_save_line_count # For token monitoring
/root/clawd/.last_snapshot_timestamp # For incremental saves
/root/clawd/.token_warning_sent # For warning deduplication
```
**Note:** Do not delete these files or incremental backups may duplicate content
### Session File Location
Default: `/root/.clawdbot/agents/main/sessions/*.jsonl`
If your session files are elsewhere, update the `SESSION_FILE` path in each script.
## Troubleshooting
### No snapshots being created
1. Check cron is running: `crontab -l`
2. Verify script has execute permission: `chmod +x scripts/*.sh`
3. Check logs: Run manually to see errors
### Messages breaking out of callouts
- Ensure `format_message_v2.jq` has the `gsub("\n\n"; "<br><br>")` line
- Check that all lines have `> ` prefix
- Verify jq is installed: `jq --version`
### Duplicated content in snapshots
- Delete tracking files and let system reset:
```bash
rm /root/clawd/.last_snapshot_timestamp
```
### Empty callout boxes appearing
- Update `format_message_v2.jq` to filter empty messages
- Check for the `if ($text_content | length) > 0` condition
## Requirements
- **jq**: JSON parsing (`apt-get install jq`)
- **cron**: For automatic backups
- **Obsidian vault**: Target directory for markdown files
## Advanced Customization
### Change Backup Frequency
Edit crontab:
```bash
# Every 2 hours
0 */2 * * * /path/to/monitor_and_save.sh
# Every 30 minutes
*/30 * * * * /path/to/monitor_and_save.sh
# Specific times only (9am, 12pm, 6pm, 9pm)
0 9,12,18,21 * * * /path/to/monitor_and_save.sh
```
### Change Minimum Message Threshold
Edit `monitor_and_save.sh`:
```bash
# Change from 10 to 5 messages minimum
if [[ $new_lines -lt 5 ]]; then
```
### Add More Callout Styles
Obsidian callout types:
- `[!quote]` - Blue
- `[!check]` - Green
- `[!note]` - Cyan
- `[!tip]` - Purple
- `[!warning]` - Orange
- `[!danger]` - Red
### Customize Telegram Notifications
Edit `monitor_and_save.sh` to change warning text or add custom notifications.
## Best Practices
1. **Run hourly breakdown at end of day** - Use as organizational tool, not backup
2. **Keep incremental backups running** - This is your safety net
3. **Test scripts after setup** - Run manually first to verify output
4. **Backup tracking files** - Include `.last_snapshot_timestamp` in vault backups
5. **Use descriptive topic names** - For full snapshots, use meaningful names
## Example Workflow
**Daily routine:**
1. Automatic incremental backups run hourly (no action needed)
2. At end of day: `scripts/create_hourly_snapshots.sh 2026-01-20`
3. Review organized hourly files in Obsidian
4. Delete old incrementals if desired (hourly breakdown covers them)
**Before /new reset:**
1. Optional: `scripts/save_full_snapshot.sh before-reset`
2. Run `/new` safely - conversation is backed up
3. Continue chatting - incrementals resume automatically
## Integration with Clawdbot
This skill works with:
- **HEARTBEAT.md**: Automatic token monitoring
- **MEMORY.md**: Conversation archival system
- **Telegram integration**: Warning notifications
- **Any Obsidian vault**: Works with existing vaults
## Credits
Created by the Clawdbot community for reliable conversation backup and beautiful Obsidian formatting.
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Data month: 2026-09 · Downloads, stars and installs are aggregated monthly from public skill registries (ClawHub, SkillHub). See methodology.