Data Lost: Saved "Workspace Layouts" (Trigger Unknown (yet))

Bug reports
1

Steps to reproduce

normal use (mostly in Canvas) under current environment

Did you follow the troubleshooting guide? [Y/N]

no, i don’t know what is the trigger; i’ll update here when i find out by keeping using the app, and in the meantime if anyone else gets this they can report too

Expected result

saved “Workspace Layouts” stay permanently unchanged until being edited or deleted

Actual result

this has happened multiple times: after normal use of the app (mostly in Canvas) for some time, i run the command “Workspaces: Manage workspace layouts”, the modal was empty - previously saved layouts seem to have been lost

image
image701×169 9.21 KB

i checked “workspaces.json” under /.obsidian too, it was emptied

Screenshot 2025-03-06 at 07.52.16
Screenshot 2025-03-06 at 07.52.161078×1140 84.2 KB

Environment

SYSTEM INFO:
Obsidian version: v1.8.7
Installer version: v1.6.7
Operating system: Darwin Kernel Version 24.3.0: Thu Jan 2 20:24:16 PST 2025; root:xnu-11215.81.4~3/RELEASE_ARM64_T6000 24.3.0
Login status: logged in
Language: en
Catalyst license: none
Insider build toggle: off
Live preview: on
Base theme: adapt to system
Community theme: Minimal v7.7.19
Snippets enabled: 3
Restricted mode: off
Plugins installed: 22
Plugins enabled: 15
1: Link Favicons v1.8.4
2: Copy Block Link v1.0.4
3: Smart Typography v1.0.18
4: Style Settings v1.0.9
5: Auto Link Title v1.5.5
6: Simple CanvaSearch v1.0.0
7: Canvas Card Background Remover v0.1.4
8: Settings Search v1.3.10
9: Optimize Canvas Connections v1.0.0
10: Creases v0.7.0
11: Canvas Performance Patch v1.0.0
12: Minimal Theme Settings v8.1.1
13: Mousewheel Image zoom v1.0.22
14: Canvas minimap v1.0.15
15: Canvas Send to Back v0.0.4

RECOMMENDATIONS:
Custom theme and snippets: for cosmetic issues, please first try updating your theme and disabling your snippets. If still not fixed, please try to make the issue happen in the Sandbox Vault or disable community theme and snippets.
Community plugins: for bugs, please first try updating all your plugins to latest. If still not fixed, please try to make the issue happen in the Sandbox Vault or disable community plugins.

Additional information

2

Small note: you shouldn’t be using this plugin anymore, the improvements made in this plugin were reported to Obsidian and we have since made those performance improvements to the app.

Do you use any Sync service, Obsidian Sync or maybe iCloud Drive?

1 Like
3

hi liam,

love the plugins you make

yes i am aware, thanks. i had the conversation on GitHub Issue with the lovely person who made this plugin initially, after they made it, it worked before it was patched, and when it was, i just didn’t delete it.

i don’t, at the moment. it’s all on my laptop local drive.

for me this is not a big deal for the moment, because i usually only have 1~3 saved layouts for the default and temporary sessions, but i’m curious to find out what could’ve caused this

4

just happened again in the same environment

but this time not with saved layouts, it happened to the active layout

  1. working on Canvas
  2. CMD+Q to quit Obsidian for relaunch (because it was getting laggy on the large Canvas i have; relaunching sometimes helps
  3. relaunched Obsidian
  4. active workspace was the app default (the latest state of the active layout before quitting was expected)
5

enable restricted mode and try to run obsidian like that for a while. See if it still happens.