How to Make a Note Read-Only in Obsidian

Use Read Only View with an Include rule for the note's vault path. The plugin keeps matching Markdown notes in Reading view to help prevent accidental edits.

Reading view and protection

Obsidian already provides Reading view and lets you switch between reading and editing. Live Preview is still an editing mode. See Obsidian's guide to views and editing modes.

Read Only View adds automatic enforcement for selected paths: it returns matching notes to Reading view and blocks editor input in supported Markdown editors. The underlying file does not become read-only at the operating-system level.

Protect a reference note

1. Open Settings → Community plugins → Browse, find Read Only View, then Install and Enable it.
2. Open Settings → Read Only View and keep Enabled on.
3. Select Only matched paths. A new installation defaults to All Markdown files, which protects all Markdown notes instead.
4. Under Path rules, select Add rule. Keep the row enabled, select Include, and enter Reference/Travel checklist.md in Value.
5. Under Advanced → Matching, keep Use glob patterns off for this example. Keep the path's spelling and capitalization consistent with the vault.
6. Wait for Saved., then open the note.

Paste Reference/Travel checklist.md into Path tester. It should report Read-only unless an enabled exclude rule matches.

Ordinary paths use prefix matching. To target exactly one existing note, you can also paste its obsidian://open URL into the rule. See Path rules for the distinction.

Can I temporarily edit this note without deleting its rule?

Yes. In Only matched paths, uncheck Enabled on the note's Include row and wait for Saved. The path stays saved. Edit the note, then check the row again to restore protection. This works only if no other enabled include also protects the note.

If a folder rule or ** also matches, use a saved Exclude for the note: enable the exclude to allow editing, then disable it to restore protection. See how to pause individual rules.

Pause protection for all notes

Run Disable read-only mode from the Command Palette, then switch the note into editing. This disables enforcement across the vault. When finished, run Enable read-only mode.

For an exception limited to this note, add an Exclude rule instead. Excludes always take precedence. Remove or disable the exception to protect the note again.

Limitations

Only Markdown notes are affected. Other applications and plugins can still modify files, and imported note rules do not follow later renames automatically. Some preview and embedded contexts depend on Obsidian's internal view behavior; this is accidental-edit prevention, not an access-control mechanism.

To cover several notes together, follow Make a folder read-only.