MCP Tool: Searches for folders whose names contain the query string.
AI agents call search_folders to retrieve information from Obsidian MCP Tool Server without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This tool retrieves information about folder names matching a search pattern. It performs a passive search/query operation without creating, modifying, deleting, or executing anything. The blast radius of misuse is minimal—an agent could only discover folder structure information, which poses no security or data integrity risk.
From the tool's definition Tool name 'search_folders' and description states it 'Searches for folders whose names contain the query string.' This is a read-only query operation with no side effects.
Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access search_folders gives an agent:
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and Obsidian MCP Tool Server, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for search_folders:
{
"version": "1",
"default": "deny",
"tools": {
"search_folders": {}
}
}search_folders is read-only, so it stays allowed — but everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
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MCP Tool: Searches for folders whose names contain the query string. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Obsidian MCP Tool Server MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Obsidian MCP Tool Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for search_folders: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Obsidian MCP Tool Server. Nothing to install.
search_folders is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the search_folders rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for search_folders. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
search_folders is provided by the Obsidian MCP Tool Server MCP server (rwb3n/obsidian-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Deterministic rules across all 18 Obsidian MCP Tool Server tools. Per-identity grants. Full audit log. Live in minutes. Nothing to install.
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18 Obsidian MCP Tool Server tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 42,500+ MCP servers.