Remote Fetch Plugin for Obsidian

A powerful Obsidian plugin that allows you to download files from URLs directly into your vault with CORS proxy support.

Features

• Direct URL Downloads: Download files from any URL directly into your Obsidian vault
• CORS Proxy Support: Bypass cross-origin restrictions using a configurable CORS proxy
• Smart File Naming: Automatically extracts filenames from URLs or allows custom naming
• Folder Selection: Choose any folder in your vault as the download destination
• File Type Detection: Automatically detects file types and adds appropriate extensions
• Error Handling: Comprehensive error handling with informative messages
• Caching Support: Handles HTTP 304 responses and cache-busting for fresh downloads

Installation

From Community Plugins (Recommended)

1. Open Obsidian Settings
2. Go to Community Plugins
3. Search for "Remote Fetch"
4. Install and enable the plugin

Manual Installation

1. Download the latest release from GitHub
2. Extract the files to your vault's .obsidian/plugins/remote-fetch/ folder
3. Enable the plugin in Obsidian's Community Plugins settings

Usage

Basic Usage

1. Use the command palette (Ctrl/Cmd + P) and search for "Download file from URL"
2. Or use the ribbon icon (if enabled)
3. Enter the URL of the file you want to download
4. Choose a filename (auto-filled from URL)
5. Select a destination folder
6. Click "Download"

Command

• Download file from URL: Opens the download modal

Settings

The plugin offers several configuration options:

• Default Download Folder: Set a default folder for all downloads (leave empty for root folder)
• Enable CORS Proxy: Toggle CORS proxy usage to bypass cross-origin restrictions
• CORS Proxy URL: Configure your custom CORS proxy URL

CORS Proxy Setup

Many websites block direct file downloads due to CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing) restrictions. This plugin includes support for CORS proxies to bypass these limitations.

Default Proxy

The plugin comes with a default CORS proxy: https://remote-fetch.shaharyar.dev/?url=

Custom Proxy

You can set up your own CORS proxy using Cloudflare Workers or similar services. The proxy should:

1. Accept a URL parameter
2. Fetch the content from that URL
3. Return it with appropriate CORS headers

Example Cloudflare Worker:

export default {
  async fetch(request, env, ctx) {
    const url = new URL(request.url);
    const targetUrl = url.searchParams.get('url');
    
    if (!targetUrl) {
      return new Response('Missing URL parameter', { status: 400 });
    }
    
    const response = await fetch(targetUrl);
    const newResponse = new Response(response.body, response);
    
    newResponse.headers.set('Access-Control-Allow-Origin', '*');
    newResponse.headers.set('Access-Control-Allow-Methods', 'GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, OPTIONS');
    newResponse.headers.set('Access-Control-Allow-Headers', 'Content-Type, Authorization');
    
    return newResponse;
  },
};

Supported File Types

The plugin automatically detects and handles various file types:

• Documents: PDF, DOC, DOCX, XLS, XLSX
• Images: JPG, PNG, GIF, SVG
• Text: TXT, MD, JSON
• Archives: ZIP
• Media: MP4, MP3, WAV
• And many more...

Error Handling

The plugin provides detailed error messages for common issues:

• Network connectivity problems
• CORS-related errors
• Invalid URLs
• File already exists
• Empty or invalid downloads

Development

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v16 or higher)
• npm or yarn

Setup

1. Clone the repository
2. Install dependencies: npm install
3. Build the plugin: npm run build
4. For development: npm run dev

Building

npm run build

Development Mode

npm run dev

This will start the compiler in watch mode, automatically rebuilding when files change.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Support

If you find this plugin useful, consider supporting its development:

• ⭐ Star the repository on GitHub
• 🐛 Report bugs or suggest features
• 💝 Sponsor the project

Changelog

1.0.0

• Initial release
• Basic URL download functionality
• CORS proxy support
• Folder selection
• File type detection
• Error handling