Global Event Search
Search across all events in your calendar with powerful filtering and quick navigation.
Overview
The Global Event Search modal provides a fast way to find and navigate to any event in your current calendar. Unlike the toolbar search which filters the visible calendar, this modal shows all matching events in a searchable list.
Opening Global Search
Command Palette
- Open command palette (
Ctrl/Cmd + P) - Search for "Open global event search"
- Press Enter
Hotkey (Recommended)
- Assign a custom hotkey in Obsidian Settings → Hotkeys
- Search for "Open global event search"
- Bind to your preferred key combination (e.g.,
Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + F)
Basic Usage
Search Events
- Open the global search modal
- The search input is automatically focused
- Type to filter events by title
- Results update in real-time as you type
Event Information
Each event in the results shows:
- Title: The event's name
- Type: Visual indicator (🔴 Timed, ⚪ All-day, 🔁 Recurring)
- Date/Time:
- Timed events show start and end date/times
- All-day events show just the date
- Recurring Indicator: Shows if the event repeats
Quick Actions
Two buttons appear for each event:
Open
- Opens the event's note file in the editor
- Use this to edit event details or content
Navigate to
- Switches calendar to week view
- Navigates to the event's date
- Opens the event's note file
- Use this to see the event in context with surrounding events
Filtering
Three cycle-filter buttons let you narrow results by event type.
Filter Buttons
Each filter button cycles through three states when clicked:
- Normal (default) - Shows all events
- Only - Shows only events of this type
- Skip - Hides events of this type
The cycle order: Normal → Only → Skip → Normal
Available Filters
Recurring
- Normal: Show both recurring and non-recurring events
- Only: Show only recurring events (have RRule property)
- Skip: Hide recurring events
All-day
- Normal: Show both all-day and timed events
- Only: Show only all-day events
- Skip: Hide all-day events
Skipped
- Normal: Show both skipped and normal events
- Only: Show only skipped events
- Skip: Hide skipped events
Combining Filters
Filters work together. For example:
- Only Recurring + Skip All-day = Shows only recurring timed events
- Only All-day + Skip Skipped = Shows only all-day events that aren't skipped
Use Cases
Find Specific Events
Search for events by name across your entire calendar:
Search: "dentist"
Instantly see all dental appointments regardless of date.
Review Recurring Events
Filter: Only Recurring
Search: (leave empty)
See all recurring event series in one list.
Check All-Day Events
Filter: Only All-day
View all full-day events like holidays, deadlines, and birthdays.
Find Skipped Events
Filter: Only Skipped
Review events you've skipped to decide if you want to restore them.
Navigate to Old Events
Search: "project kickoff"
Action: Navigate to
Jump to an event from months ago to see what else was scheduled that week.
Tips
- Auto-focus: Search input is focused automatically when modal opens, start typing immediately
- Event Count: Bottom of modal shows total matching events
- Color Rules: Events display with your configured color rules
- Global Filters: Respects calendar-level filter rules from settings
- Physical Events Only: Only shows actual event files, not virtual recurring previews
Keyboard Navigation
Enter- Opens first event in resultsEscape- Closes modalCtrl/Cmd + F- Re-focuses search input (if focus moved)
Related Features
- Filtering - Calendar toolbar search and expression filters
- Event Skipping - Managing skipped events
- Recurring Events - Understanding recurring event patterns