Intensive Tutorial: Installing Obsidian (AppImage) System-Wide on Debian

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Overview

This tutorial will guide you through installing Obsidian (AppImage) system-wide in /opt, making it executable, and creating .desktop files for both existing users and any future users on a Debian system.

Prerequisites

  • Debian-based system
  • sudo/root privileges
  • Basic terminal knowledge

Step 1: Download Obsidian AppImage

First, download the latest Obsidian AppImage from the official website:

# Create temporary directory for download
mkdir -p /tmp/obsidian_install
cd /tmp/obsidian_install

# Download Obsidian AppImage (replace URL with latest version)
wget https://github.com/obsidianmd/obsidian-releases/releases/download/v1.5.8/Obsidian-1.5.8.AppImage

# Alternatively, use the official download page if version changes:
# wget https://obsidian.md/download -O Obsidian.AppImage

Step 2: Install Obsidian to /opt

# Create obsidian directory in /opt
sudo mkdir -p /opt/obsidian

# Move AppImage to /opt/obsidian
sudo mv Obsidian-*.AppImage /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage

# Make the AppImage executable
sudo chmod +x /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage

# Set appropriate ownership
sudo chown root:root /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage

Step 3: Create System-Wide Desktop File

Create a system-wide .desktop file that will be available to all users:

# Create the desktop file
sudo nano /usr/share/applications/obsidian.desktop

Add the following content:

[Desktop Entry]
Version=1.0
Type=Application
Name=Obsidian
Comment=Obsidian - A knowledge base that works on local Markdown files
Exec=/opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage --no-sandbox
Icon=obsidian
Categories=Office;TextEditor;
Keywords=note-taking;markdown;knowledge base;
StartupWMClass=obsidian
MimeType=text/markdown;text/x-markdown;
Terminal=false
StartupNotify=true

Save and exit (Ctrl+X, then Y, then Enter).

Step 4: Download and Install Icon

# Download Obsidian icon
sudo wget -O /usr/share/icons/hicolor/256x256/apps/obsidian.png https://obsidian.md/images/obsidian-logo-gradient.svg

# Alternatively, if the direct download doesn't work, create a simple icon:
# sudo convert -size 256x256 xc:black -fill purple -pointsize 72 -gravity center -annotate +0+0 "O" /usr/share/icons/hicolor/256x256/apps/obsidian.png

# Update icon cache
sudo gtk-update-icon-cache -f -t /usr/share/icons/hicolor

Step 5: Create Helper Script for AppImage Integration (Optional but Recommended)

Some AppImages work better with additional integration. Create a wrapper script:

sudo nano /opt/obsidian/obsidian-wrapper.sh

Add this content:

#!/bin/bash
# Wrapper script for Obsidian AppImage

# Export necessary environment variables
export DISPLAY=:0
export XDG_CURRENT_DESKTOP=GNOME

# Run Obsidian with appropriate flags
/opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage --no-sandbox "$@"

Make it executable:

sudo chmod +x /opt/obsidian/obsidian-wrapper.sh

Update the desktop file to use the wrapper:

sudo sed -i 's|Exec=/opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage|Exec=/opt/obsidian/obsidian-wrapper.sh|' /usr/share/applications/obsidian.desktop

Step 6: Set Up for Future Users

Create a script that will automatically set up Obsidian for new users:

sudo nano /etc/skel/.local/share/applications/obsidian.desktop

Add the same desktop entry content as before, but use the system-wide path:

[Desktop Entry]
Version=1.0
Type=Application
Name=Obsidian
Comment=Obsidian - A knowledge base that works on local Markdown files
Exec=/opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage --no-sandbox
Icon=obsidian
Categories=Office;TextEditor;
Keywords=note-taking;markdown;knowledge base;
StartupWMClass=obsidian
MimeType=text/markdown;text/x-markdown;
Terminal=false
StartupNotify=true

Step 7: Update for Existing Users

For existing users, you can either:

Option A: Manual per user

Each user can create their own desktop file:

mkdir -p ~/.local/share/applications/
cp /usr/share/applications/obsidian.desktop ~/.local/share/applications/

Option B: Automated script for all existing users

# Create update script
sudo nano /usr/local/bin/update-obsidian-desktop.sh

Add this content:

#!/bin/bash
# Update Obsidian desktop file for all existing users

for USER_HOME in /home/*; do
    USER=$(basename "$USER_HOME")
    if id "$USER" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
        USER_DESKTOP="$USER_HOME/.local/share/applications/obsidian.desktop"
        if [ ! -f "$USER_DESKTOP" ]; then
            sudo -u "$USER" mkdir -p "$(dirname "$USER_DESKTOP")"
            cp /usr/share/applications/obsidian.desktop "$USER_DESKTOP"
            chown "$USER:$USER" "$USER_DESKTOP"
        fi
    fi
done

Make it executable:

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/update-obsidian-desktop.sh

Run it to update all existing users:

sudo /usr/local/bin/update-obsidian-desktop.sh

Step 8: Verify Installation

# Test if Obsidian runs
/opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage --version

# Check desktop file validation
desktop-file-validate /usr/share/applications/obsidian.desktop

# Update desktop database
sudo update-desktop-database /usr/share/applications/

Step 9: Create Maintenance Script

Create a script to update Obsidian when new versions are released:

sudo nano /usr/local/bin/update-obsidian

Add this content:

#!/bin/bash
# Obsidian updater script

TMP_DIR=$(mktemp -d)
cd "$TMP_DIR"

echo "Downloading latest Obsidian AppImage..."
wget https://github.com/obsidianmd/obsidian-releases/releases/latest/download/Obsidian.AppImage

if [ -f "Obsidian.AppImage" ]; then
    echo "Stopping Obsidian if running..."
    pkill -f obsidian.AppImage
    
    echo "Installing new version..."
    sudo mv Obsidian.AppImage /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage
    sudo chmod +x /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage
    sudo chown root:root /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage
    
    echo "Obsidian updated successfully!"
else
    echo "Download failed!"
    exit 1
fi

rm -rf "$TMP_DIR"

Make it executable:

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/update-obsidian

Step 10: Test the Installation

  1. Log out and log back in (or restart your desktop environment)
  2. Check that Obsidian appears in your application menu
  3. Launch Obsidian from the menu or run: /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage
  4. Verify it works correctly

Troubleshooting

If Obsidian doesn’t appear in the menu:

# Update desktop database
update-desktop-database ~/.local/share/applications/
sudo update-desktop-database /usr/share/applications/

If AppImage won’t run:

# Check if it's executable
ls -la /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage

# Make executable if needed
sudo chmod +x /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage

# Try running with debug
/opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage --help

Permission issues:

// Paste or type your code here# Reset permissions
sudo chown root:root /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage
sudo chmod 755 /opt/obsidian/obsidian.AppImage

Uninstallation

To completely remove Obsidian:

# Remove Obsidian files
sudo rm -rf /opt/obsidian

# Remove desktop files
sudo rm /usr/share/applications/obsidian.desktop
sudo rm /etc/skel/.local/share/applications/obsidian.desktop

# Remove icon
sudo rm /usr/share/icons/hicolor/256x256/apps/obsidian.png

# Update databases
sudo update-desktop-database /usr/share/applications/
sudo gtk-update-icon-cache /usr/share/icons/hicolor/

# Remove from existing users (run as each user or use script)
rm ~/.local/share/applications/obsidian.desktop

This comprehensive setup ensures Obsidian is available system-wide, automatically available to new users, and easily maintainable for future updates.

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