Option for pop-out windows to have sidebar (tabs) as main window like file explorer and outline

Feature requests
62

ditto

63

+1, this limitation is very annoying for me.

WhiteNoise on the obsidian team linked this feature request in ā€œsidebars-cant-be-accessed-on-additional-windows/95204/1ā€, pointing out that itā€™s a missing feature not a bug. But is there any description of the design rationale for the ā€œone-primary-window-per-vaultā€? If not, it really does seem like a bug. Imagine if web browsers made additional windows second class citizens!

64

+1
Outline is vital for me. Outline is not there for me in pup-up window. Me is sad.

65

+1 very useful for my workflow as well. Need to work on separate projects on different workspaces (macos desktops)

66

+1. Couldnā€™t agree more. I use the Smart Composer plugin to chat with Gemini regularly. Itā€™d be great if I have access to both left and right sidebar on pop-out windows.

67

On Desktop, click the ā€¦ menu in the upper-right corner of your noteā€™s pane. Open linked view | Open outline.

This gives a TOC. You could also choose a local graph, backlinks, outgoing links, and file properties. This doesnā€™t negate this feature request (notably missing are file explorer and search), but helps your specific use case.

68

++++++ 1

My use case

I use macOS Spaces as a context-switching system: each Space is dedicated to a different task or project, with its own Obsidian window open to the relevant notes and materials.

The idea is that switching Spaces = switching mental context to work on different tasks or projects, with everything already in place, literally a perfect setup for me!

Problem

The missing sidebar in new windows other than the main window breaks this completely.

Every new window is navigation-blind ā€” no way to see the folder hierarchy, meaning, no way to see what materials Iā€™m working within that context.

I always end up getting pulled back to the main window, which defeats the whole point of having separate windows per Space.

I think this isnā€™t a niche workflow. Anyone using macOS Spaces seriously for task separation will run into exactly this wall. The one-primary-window limitation makes Obsidian a first-class app only on one Desktop, and a crippled viewer on every other.

69

Too bad. I feel that.

I just open separate Finder windows (macOS) and put them in different desktop workspaces.

Finder allows this at least. BUT the sad part is that I canā€™t open the files directly in that workspaceā€™s Obsidian windows just from the dedicated Finder window.

Driving me crazy as well, LoL.

70

+1 +1, exactly same use case

71

+1 on the original FR. Very surprised that this still isnā€™t possible. This is not at all a fringe use case. The lack of side-panels makes having additional windows useless.