Your vault is just a folder.
Unlock → work in Finder, Explorer, or any file app → lock. Files stay encrypted at rest, visible only during the session.
Back to main siteUnlock, mount, work, unmount. Four states.
An encrypted vault that acts like a normal folder while unlocked.
Locked
Files encrypted at rest. No OS-level app sees the content.
encryptedUnlock
ChromVoid starts a mounted session and picks the backend automatically.
session_activeMounted
A folder appears in Finder / Explorer. Any file app can see it.
visibleUnmount
The decrypted view disappears. Files are encrypted at rest again.
removedAny folder-based app sees a normal folder
Point Obsidian, a Markdown editor, Finder, Explorer, or another file app at the mounted folder and keep working with familiar file paths.
Edit in place, without export or re-import
Notes, PDFs, scans, and working files stay inside the vault while desktop apps edit them directly, instead of creating a separate archive-handling loop.
Locking removes the visible files again
Mounted access is temporary and explicit, so the decrypted view does not linger as an invisible background sync layer after you finish working.
How it looks in practice
Mounted Vault is not background sync. It is an explicit session with a deterministic start and end.
Unlock the vault in ChromVoid
Open the app and start a mounted session. ChromVoid picks the best backend (FUSE or WebDAV) automatically.
A folder appears in Finder or Explorer
Your notes and files show up through a normal mount point, so folder-based apps can open them without a separate export step.
Lock or unmount when you are done
The decrypted view is session-bound, so it disappears again when you lock the vault or unmount the volume. That keeps it from behaving like invisible background sync.
Security boundaries
Explicit mount by default
Mounted access is user-initiated. Auto-mount after unlock exists as an option, but the default stays off.
Decrypted view while mounted
While mounted, OS-level apps can read your files. This is the tradeoff — convenience in exchange for broader access during the session.
Backend fallback is deterministic
FUSE is preferred on Linux and macOS when available. WebDAV is the fallback path and the main production path on Windows.
Limits and prerequisites
Real constraints worth knowing before you start.
- macOS FUSE mode depends on a compatible macFUSE stack; if the driver is missing, ChromVoid must fall back to WebDAV.
- Obsidian is one example. Any app that reads a folder will work.
- Mobile volume-mount equivalents stay future scope; the current page is about desktop workflows.
Need encrypted notes and files without a sync silo?
Start with the local-first vault, then decide whether your workflow needs mounted storage, Mobile host, or both.