second-brain/SYSTEMD-SETUP.md

Auto-Start Obsidian with Systemd

Ensures Obsidian starts automatically on boot and stays running.

Installation

1. Install Required Packages

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y xvfb xvfb-run

2. Copy Service Files

sudo cp /workspace/second-brain/obsidian.service /etc/systemd/system/
sudo cp /workspace/second-brain/obsidian-mcp.service /etc/systemd/system/

3. Reload Systemd

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

4. Enable Services

# Enable Obsidian to start on boot
sudo systemctl enable obsidian.service

# Enable MCP server (optional, but recommended)
sudo systemctl enable obsidian-mcp.service

5. Start Services

# Start both services
sudo systemctl start obsidian.service
sudo systemctl start obsidian-mcp.service

# Check status
sudo systemctl status obsidian.service
sudo systemctl status obsidian-mcp.service

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Managing Services

View Logs

# Real-time Obsidian logs
sudo journalctl -fu obsidian.service

# Real-time MCP server logs
sudo journalctl -fu obsidian-mcp.service

# Last 50 lines
sudo journalctl -n 50 -u obsidian.service

Stop/Restart

sudo systemctl stop obsidian.service
sudo systemctl restart obsidian.service
sudo systemctl restart obsidian-mcp.service

Check Auto-Start

# List enabled services
systemctl list-unit-files | grep obsidian

# Should show "enabled" for both

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Service Configuration

obsidian.service

• Type: simple
• User: intense
• Display: Virtual Xvfb (:99)
• Restart: Always (if crashes, restarts in 15s)
• Memory Limit: 2GB
• CPU Quota: 80%

obsidian-mcp.service

• Depends on: obsidian.service
• Type: simple
• Restart: Always
• Memory Limit: 512MB
• Health Check: Verifies API is reachable on startup

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Troubleshooting

Obsidian won't start

sudo journalctl -u obsidian.service -n 50 --no-pager

MCP server failing

# Make sure .env has valid API key
cat /workspace/second-brain/.env | grep OBSIDIAN_API_KEY

Can't connect to Obsidian

# Check if Obsidian is running
ps aux | grep obsidian

# Check virtual display
ps aux | grep Xvfb

# Manual test
DISPLAY=:99 xdpyinfo

Port already in use

# Check who's using port 27123
sudo lsof -i :27123

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Alternative: Supervisor

If systemd doesn't work, use supervisord:

sudo apt install supervisor

cat > /etc/supervisor/conf.d/obsidian.conf << 'EOF'
[program:obsidian]
command=/home/intense/.local/bin/obsidian --no-sandbox
user=intense
autostart=true
autorestart=true
redirect_stderr=true
stdout_logfile=/var/log/obsidian.log
environment=DISPLAY=:99
EOF

sudo supervisorctl reread
sudo supervisorctl update
sudo supervisorctl start obsidian

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Created: 2026-04-26