A memory for your AI that you actually own.
Every AI chat eventually forgets. The Desk Vault Template is a ready-made Obsidian vault that works as long-term memory for your assistants: plain Markdown files on your own computer that Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, or a local model can read and write. No account, no subscription, no lock-in.
Zip, 13 KB · version 1.0.0-beta.1 · free to copy and share · nothing to sign up for
- Price
- Free
- Format
- Obsidian vault (plain Markdown)
- Works with
- Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, local models
- Runs on
- Windows, Mac, Linux (anywhere Obsidian runs)
The problem it solves
You explain your project to an AI, it helps, and a week later it remembers none of it. So you explain again, in a different tool, with slightly different details. The work is getting done, but none of it is being kept.
The fix isn't a smarter chatbot. It's a place for the decisions, status, and setup notes to live, that every assistant can read, and that belongs to you rather than to any one app. If it should still be true tomorrow, it goes in a note, not a chat.
What's inside
Open it in Obsidian (free) and start with the note called Start Here. Everything is plain text you can edit, move, or delete.
A folder layout that stays sorted
Inbox, Projects, Areas, Resources and Archives, each with a short note explaining what belongs there. You and your AI both know where things go.
Start Here and a Dashboard
A ten-minute orientation and a home page that links your active work, parked items, and AI setup in one place.
Rules your AI can follow
A write-back rule, a guide to which model to use for which job, and a copy-paste instruction block that teaches any assistant how to use the vault.
"Wrap up" session recaps
Say "wrap up" at the end of a work session and your AI files a short recap (what got done, what was decided, what's still open) to today's session note.
Four note templates
Project overview, decision record, meeting or call, and session recap. Insert them with one command.
A worked example
One sample project showing how status, decisions, and next steps look when they're kept well. Delete it when you've seen the pattern.
Get started in three steps
- Install Obsidian (free) from obsidian.md.
- Unzip the template into your Documents folder and rename it if you like.
- Open folder as vault in Obsidian, then open
Start Here. Paste the block fromAI → Instructions for AI Assistantsinto the AI you use.
That's it. There's nothing to install beyond Obsidian, and the template uses only Obsidian's built-in features, no plugins.
The full Desk Kit
The template is the memory. The Desk Kit is the next step: a private AI assistant that runs on the Windows PC you already own and uses this vault as its memory, for about $0 a month in AI fees.
- A local AI model (Ollama and Hermes Agent). Your notes stay on your PC.
- Phone access over Telegram, locked down so the phone can talk to the assistant but can't run commands on your PC.
- A daily briefing and weekly vault check written into the vault automatically, by scripts that use no AI tokens at all.
- A watchdog that brings everything back after crashes and reboots, and a system check that tells you up front whether your PC can run it.
Minimum equipment
| Part | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| Windows | 64-bit Windows 10 (22H2) or 11 | Windows 11 |
| Memory | 16 GB | 32 GB |
| Processor | 4 cores / 8 threads, 2019 or newer | 8 cores / 16 threads |
| Free disk | 25 GB | 40 GB+ on an SSD |
| Graphics card | Not required | NVIDIA RTX 8 GB+, or AMD Radeon 680M/780M |
| Other | A phone with Telegram (free). No AI subscription and no credit card. | |
The kit is being installed on test machines now. It isn't sold on this site yet, and there's no price or checkout here. If you'd like to be considered as a tester, say so in the project form.
Questions
Is the template really free?
Yes. Download it, use it, copy it, share it. There's no email capture and nothing to sign up for.
Does it send my notes anywhere?
No. It's a folder of plain Markdown files on your computer. Nothing in it connects to the internet. What an AI sees is whatever you choose to show it.
Do I need the full Desk Kit to use it?
No. The template works on its own with any AI you already use, on Windows, Mac, or Linux. The Desk Kit is only needed if you want a local assistant and automatic daily notes on a Windows PC.
I already use Obsidian. Will this mess up my vault?
Open it as a separate vault first and borrow what you like. The folders, rules, and templates are ordinary notes you can copy into your own vault.
Keep what your AI helps you figure out.
A free vault, plain files, and a rule that works with every assistant. Need something built around it for your business? That's what Merism does.