Recent Notes
vault_recent_notesRetrieve recently modified or created notes from your Obsidian vault, sorted by timestamp. Use it to catch up on changes or find recent work without searching by content.
Instructions
List recently modified or created notes, sorted by timestamp — a time-ordered window into the vault, not a date-range filter.
Example: vault_recent_notes({ sort_by: "modified", limit: 10 }) Example: vault_recent_notes({ sort_by: "created", limit: 5 })
When to use: Catching up on vault changes, finding recent work, or orienting after a break. Prefer vault_search for content-based discovery. Prefer vault_search_by_folder for browsing a specific folder.
Parameters:
sort_by + limit interact: "modified" (default) uses filesystem mtime, so every note has a value and limit works predictably. "created" uses the frontmatter created property — notes without it sort last (not excluded), so a small limit may return only notes that have the property; increase limit or use "modified" for broader coverage.
"modified" includes any file write (content edits, property changes, sync touches), so recently-synced notes appear recent even without user edits.
Errors:
An empty vault returns an empty array, not an error.
Returns: JSON array of note metadata (path, title, tags, related, folder, type, created, modified, bytes, leading_callout?, additional_properties), sorted descending by chosen timestamp. created is null when the property is missing; bytes is on-disk file size.
Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| limit | No | Max results (default 20, no upper cap) | |
| sort_by | No | Sort order (default "modified") |