# [[How many obsidian vaults should you have]] <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IV3PHeyCHvc" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe> ## Pre-production ### Thumbnail ![[one obsidian vault or many.png]] ### Title 1. multiple vaults in obsidian (42) 2. multiple obsidian vaults (52) 3. should i use multiple obsidian vaults (57) 4. separate obsidian vaults (46) 5. how many obsidian vaults should you have (80) 6. one obsidian vault or many (61) 7. ### Hook As you start to write more and more notes, the urge to compartmentalize may set in. First you compartmentalize notes by folders. Then sub-folders. Then, at some point, you think: What if you create different vaults, one for every aspect of your life? Like Personal and Work? Project A and Project B? Should you have multiple Obsidian vaults? As someone who has had this impulse to compartmentalize, I think that for most people, the answer is no. In this video, I'm talking about why you *shouldn't* have multiple vaults-- and also, why you *should*. ### Structure - A vault in Obsidian is the folder where you create all your notes. But you can create multiple vaults, just like you can multiple folders on your computer. - Start with one vault unless you have a very good reason to have more than one. Here's why you should have as few as possible: - You have more options for linking between notes that are in the same vault. - Linking within a vault - Obsidian URL - You can't search in multiple vaults. Dataview won't work across vaults either. - The more knowledge in the same vault, the more serendipity. - You might be tempted to have separate vaults based on topic, but connecting seemingly disparate ideas is one of the coolest *aha* moments when taking notes and building your own knowledge base. - Reasons to have multiple vaults - You want to share the vault with others - Obsidian Publish - Sharing via Dropbox + Obsidian - High security vault and low security vault - Development and testing vault - Keeping vault assets minimal (for example, because you have one on GitHub) - Reference vaults (full of stuff you didn't write)-- like my D&D one. - How to have multiple vaults? - Create a new vault - Open folder as vault (including, for example, GitHub repos of mainly Markdown) - Use Obsidian URL - Put all vaults in one folder so you don't lose track of them. ### Outro While I *do* have many vaults that I use on a regular basis, I have a very good reason for keeping those vaults separate. I still keep 90% of my notes in my "main" vault, and doing so has let me surprise myself by seeing parallels in different topics, or contradictions that helped me improve my knowledge. I think having notes sit all together in the same vault, jostling for dominance, is one of the best ways to spark creativity. If you'd like to see one use case where I *have* chosen to create and maintain a separate vault, check out this video where I go through my special TTRPG vault and show how differently that's set up. Thanks for watching! *La revedere*! ### Related videos and resources ### Pinned comment ``` THEMES: At 2:58, the one on the left is Things (light) and the one on the right is Obsidian Nord (Legacy, dark). PLUGINS mentioned: Dataview (community), Publish (core) ``` ### Timestamps 00:00 Intro 00:39 Why keep just one vault 01:23 1. Linking across vaults 03:06 2. Searching across vaults 03:25 3. Serendipity from one vault 04:22 Why have multiple vaults 04:54 1. Distinguishing between private and public 06:06 2. Security and plugins 07:02 3. Development and testing 07:36 4. Keeping assets minimal 08:14 5. Reference vaults 09:17 How to create multiple vaults ## Post-production - [x] Create captions using Rev, then edit them. - [x] Take a thumbnail photo and create one for YouTube (1280 x 720). - [x] Add description. - [x] Include the title and any keywords in the first few sentences, but in a natural way. - [x] Add related videos and resources as links. - [x] Add end screen. - [ ] Add cards if necessary. - [x] Add chapters/timestamps for YouTube if longer than 5 minutes. - [x] Add mid-roll ads/check monetization settings. - [x] Post video preview on Patreon. - [ ] Post video preview for YouTube channel members. - [ ] Schedule on YouTube. - [ ] Add video to relevant playlist(s), or create a playlist if necessary. - [ ] Promote on Twitter/LinkedIn as appropriate. - [ ] Create a blog post on [site](https://nicolevanderhoeven.com). - [ ] Add to weekly newsletter. - [ ] Add to video-database. - [ ] Add to other notes in my vault as appropriate.