Synch

Synch

Synch is an Obsidian Sync alternative for end-to-end encrypted vault synchronization. It is currently in beta.

Synch is an independent community plugin and service. It is not affiliated with Obsidian.

Website: https://synch.run

Translations: 한국어 · 日本語 · 简体中文 · 繁體中文

Install with BRAT

Synch is not yet available through the Obsidian Community Plugins directory. To install the Obsidian plugin with BRAT:

1. Search for BRAT in Obsidian Community Plugins, then install and enable it.
2. Open the command palette and run BRAT: Add a beta plugin for testing.
3. Paste https://github.com/hjinco/synch.
4. Add the plugin, then refresh the Community Plugins list.
5. Enable Synch.

BRAT installs beta plugins from GitHub releases and can update them from its own settings or commands.

How to use Synch

1. Install and enable the plugin.
2. Open Synch's settings in Obsidian.
3. Sign in to a Synch account from the plugin.
4. Create or connect a remote vault.
5. Keep Obsidian open while Synch uploads local changes and downloads remote changes.

Synch syncs Markdown files by default. Images, audio, videos, and PDFs are also enabled by default. Other file types are disabled by default and can be enabled from the plugin settings. Hidden folders and hidden files are skipped, and you can exclude additional folders in settings.

When the same path is changed in incompatible ways on different devices, Synch keeps the conflicting content by writing a conflict copy in the vault instead of silently discarding it.

The plugin can use the hosted Synch Cloud API or a custom API base URL for a self-hosted deployment.

Self-hosting

You can run your own Synch server on a free Cloudflare account and connect the Obsidian plugin to it with a custom server URL.

See the self-hosting guide: https://synch.run/self-hosting

Disclosures

This section is provided for Obsidian developer policy review and for users who want to understand what the plugin does before installing it.

Account requirements

Synch requires a Synch account to use the hosted sync service. The account is used to authenticate devices, create and connect remote vaults, issue sync tokens, enforce storage limits, and manage service access.

Network use

Synch connects to the configured Synch API base URL over HTTPS and WebSocket connections. For the hosted service, this is Synch-operated infrastructure. The default hosted API endpoint is https://api.synch.run, and realtime sync uses wss://api.synch.run WebSocket connections. The plugin uses network requests to:

• Sign in and maintain an authenticated device session.
• Create, list, and connect remote vaults.
• Upload encrypted file blobs and encrypted sync metadata.
• Download encrypted file blobs and encrypted sync metadata.
• Exchange realtime sync messages over WebSocket connections.
• Read account, billing, quota, storage, and sync status.

Synch-hosted infrastructure uses third-party providers, including Cloudflare for hosting, storage, networking, databases, queues, and related infrastructure. Billing is handled by Polar.

Data sent to Synch

Vault file contents and file path metadata are encrypted on your device before they are uploaded. Synch stores encrypted blobs and encrypted sync metadata and is designed so that the hosted service cannot read your plaintext notes, plaintext file paths, or plaintext vault keys.

End-to-end encryption does not hide all operational metadata. Synch may process account information, vault identifiers and names, organization and membership records, local vault identifiers, blob identifiers, file sizes, storage usage, timestamps, sync cursors, session information, IP addresses, User-Agent strings, billing identifiers for hosted subscriptions, and similar operational metadata.

Local vault access

Synch reads and writes files inside the current Obsidian vault so it can sync selected vault files. It stores plugin settings with Obsidian's plugin data API, stores the device session token with Obsidian's secret storage API, and stores local sync state in browser IndexedDB.

Synch does not intentionally read or write files outside the current Obsidian vault.

Payments

Synch is currently in beta. The hosted service offers free and paid subscription plans. The current paid hosted plan is Sync Starter, available with monthly or annual billing. Payment processing and subscription management are handled by Polar.

Telemetry, ads, and privacy

The Synch Obsidian plugin does not include client-side telemetry and does not show ads. The hosted service may process operational logs and service metadata needed to run, secure, troubleshoot, and improve the service.

For details, read the hosted service legal documents:

• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Service

Source code

Synch is open source under the MIT License. The source code for the plugin, hosted API, and website is published in this repository.