Miyo: Local-First Search and AI Ownership

Copilot V4 uses ordinary file tools for exact text and file lookup. For meaning-based search across a large vault, connect Miyo.

Miyo is a local-first knowledge service built for more than one plugin. It can search notes by meaning, process supported documents, search selected chat histories, and make the same knowledge available to the AI tools you choose. Your knowledge stays in a system you control instead of being locked inside one chat feature.

What moved from Copilot V3

Semantic search from Copilot V3 has moved to Miyo. Connect Miyo and enable its semantic-search Skill for a more powerful local-first path. Copilot no longer exposes controls for its old in-plugin index.

When you upgrade, Copilot removes its retired index settings and recognized index files. It deletes only files that match Copilot’s exact legacy index naming scheme. Other files in your vault and Obsidian configuration folder are left alone. If cleanup fails, Copilot names the folder so you can remove the old index files manually.

How Agent Chat searches

Agent Chat can combine three kinds of search:

File search finds exact words, phrases, filenames, and paths with the active agent’s normal tools. It needs no index.
Obsidian-aware search uses the Obsidian CLI skill when a question depends on Obsidian’s index, such as links, backlinks, properties, tags, tasks, Bases, or the currently open note.
Miyo semantic search finds related ideas even when the notes use different words. It is useful for fuzzy recall, research across many notes, and large collections.

You can ask naturally, such as “Find everything I have written about memory consolidation,” or say “Use Miyo” when you want semantic search explicitly. Search results become context for the model you selected, so the model still receives the excerpts Agent Chat uses in its answer.

Connect Miyo

Download and open Miyo from miyo.md.
Open Settings → Copilot → Miyo.
Select Connect. Copilot discovers a local Miyo automatically.
If prompted, register the current vault with Miyo.
Turn on Semantic search under Powered by Miyo.

A healthy local connection shows Connected · local. If you run Miyo on another computer or server, expand the advanced connection row and enter its address. The status then shows Connected · remote.

The remote option changes the privacy boundary: indexing and search requests go to the Miyo server you entered instead of staying on the current computer.

What Miyo availability means

Copilot checks Miyo when a feature needs it and when you open the Miyo settings tab. It does not poll in the background or show an availability notice at startup. If a check is running, Settings shows Checking… instead of reusing an older Connected result.

This table is the shared availability contract for the Miyo-only migration across Copilot. Free Chat never searches the vault automatically. “Quick Chat” below refers to Copilot Plus retrieval and its Miyo document processor.

Runtime state	Settings → Miyo	Relevant Notes	Quick Chat retrieval	Agent Chat `miyo-search`	PDF and EPUB processing	Miyo refresh command	Startup notice	Recovery
Miyo was never enabled	Shows Connect; Miyo-only rows are unavailable.	Shows Miyo setup guidance.	Copilot Plus uses keyword search. Free Chat uses no automatic vault retrieval.	The Miyo Skill is not installed through Copilot; the agent’s exact file tools still work.	Use Plus processing.	Not shown.	None.	Connect Miyo if you want semantic search.
Miyo is healthy	Shows Connected · local or Connected · remote.	Shows Miyo results, then links and backlinks.	Copilot Plus uses Miyo for local search.	Returns semantic results when the Skill is enabled.	Agent Chat uses the local Miyo CLI. Quick Chat uses the connected Miyo service.	Starts a Miyo folder scan.	None.	No action needed.
Miyo quit after a successful check	Shows Checking…, then Unavailable, with Retry and Disconnect.	Shows that Miyo is unavailable; no graph-only fallback appears.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable instead of silently switching to keyword search.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable; the agent can continue with exact file tools.	Agent Chat can still use the installed local parser. Quick Chat Miyo processing is unavailable.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable.	None.	Open Miyo, then retry the action.
Obsidian opened before Miyo started	Shows Checking…, then Unavailable, with Retry and Disconnect.	Shows that Miyo is unavailable.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable.	Reports that Miyo is not running.	Agent Chat can use the installed local parser. Quick Chat Miyo processing is unavailable.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable.	None.	Start Miyo, then select Retry.
The vault was removed from Miyo	The service can remain Connected, but vault features report that registration is missing.	Opens the existing Miyo setup path instead of showing links or backlinks.	Reports that the vault is not registered.	Reports that the vault is unavailable to Miyo.	Agent Chat local processing still works. Quick Chat Miyo processing requires access to the registered vault.	Reports that the vault is not registered.	None.	Register the vault in Miyo, then retry.
The vault or active note is not indexed yet	Remains Connected. Indexing progress stays in Miyo.	Distinguishes an empty, pending, failed, excluded, or older-Miyo unknown state when Miyo can report it.	May return no Miyo context; an empty search cannot identify the cause.	May return no semantic results; an empty search cannot identify the cause.	Processing does not depend on the semantic index.	Starts a folder scan.	None.	Check indexing in Miyo, then refresh the feature.
A configured remote URL is unreachable	Shows Checking…, then Unavailable, with Retry and Disconnect.	Shows that the remote Miyo is unavailable.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable without a keyword fallback.	Reports that the configured Miyo service is unavailable.	Agent Chat still uses the local parser. Quick Chat Miyo processing is unavailable.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable.	None.	Fix or start the remote server, then select Retry.
Mobile has no remote URL	Shows Unavailable because local discovery is desktop-only.	Opens Miyo connection setup.	Reports that Miyo is unavailable.	Agent Chat and its Skills are unavailable on mobile.	Use Plus processing, or configure a remote Miyo for Quick Chat.	Reports that a remote Miyo connection is required.	None.	Enter a reachable remote Miyo URL.
Miyo returns after an unreachable state	Retry changes the existing status to Connected without disconnecting or enabling Miyo again.	Refresh resumes Miyo results.	Retrying the message resumes Miyo retrieval.	Running the Skill again resumes semantic search.	Retry the failed document action.	Run the command again.	None.	Retry the feature you were using.

Choose what Miyo can search

Use Search scope in the Miyo settings tab:

Current vault keeps Copilot’s integrated Miyo searches within this vault. This is the safer default when Miyo manages several folders.
Unrestricted allows searches across everything registered with that Miyo instance.

The scope is a retrieval preference, not a security boundary. Keep Miyo’s registered folders intentional, especially when you use an unrestricted scope or connect to a shared remote server.

Relevant Notes

Miyo is the source of Relevant Notes results and similarity percentages; Copilot’s legacy local embedding index no longer scores this pane. Copilot keeps Miyo’s result order. Direct links and backlinks annotate notes returned by Miyo but never add their own rows. Relevant Notes does not apply Copilot’s inclusion or exclusion patterns; the registered folder’s Miyo scope determines which notes can appear.

If Miyo is disabled, unavailable, or its vault registration cannot be confirmed, the pane does not fall back to link and backlink rows. Instead, it offers Miyo download or setup actions. Open Miyo settings returns directly to the existing connection flow under Settings → Copilot → Miyo, including when you use a remote endpoint or mobile device.

A successful search with zero results shows No semantic matches yet without treating the empty result as a setup failure. If the active note has no indexed chunks, Copilot asks Miyo for that file’s current state:

Miyo found no text in this note means Miyo processed the file but found no searchable text.
Miyo is still indexing this note covers files that are pending, not scanned yet, or not yet visible to Miyo. Select Refresh to check again.
Miyo couldn’t index this note includes Miyo’s error message. On a local desktop connection, Open Miyo opens this vault’s folder under Sources.
This note is excluded in Miyo names the matching filter when Miyo provides it. On a local desktop connection, Open folder settings in Miyo opens this vault’s folder under Sources.

For a remote Miyo or mobile device, error and exclusion cards tell you to review the folder on the host machine. Copilot cannot open or change that machine’s Miyo settings. Older Miyo builds show This note isn’t indexed in Miyo and Update Miyo to the latest version to see why because they cannot report the more specific reason. Their local desktop action still opens the vault’s folder under Sources; remote and mobile connections offer Review Miyo connection in Copilot.

Links and backlinks do not create rows in any of these empty states. Copilot’s own inclusion and exclusion patterns do not filter Relevant Notes; Miyo’s folder filters are the only scope there.

Live update

The Live switch at the top right of the pane keeps Relevant Notes in step with the note you are writing. While it is on, the list re-ranks itself a few seconds after each change lands: notes that become more relevant rise and their relevance bar grows, newly relevant notes fade in, and notes that no longer relate fade out. Turning it off freezes the pane until you open another note or reconnect Miyo, and turning it back on catches it up on whatever you wrote while it was off. The switch is on by default and your choice is remembered.

Updates follow what Miyo has indexed rather than the text on screen, so they arrive a few seconds behind your typing. A note you are not editing costs nothing, and a change that does not move the ranking leaves the list alone. If your system is set to reduce motion, the list still updates but nothing animates.

Search conversations and process documents

Miyo can also index supported ChatGPT and Claude chat histories. Configure those sources in Miyo, then use the Search chat row in Copilot to see their status and open Miyo’s management screen. Chat-history search is separate from vault search.

The Document Processor setting affects more than one chat surface, so check the route you use:

In Agent Chat, Miyo runs the local miyo-parse CLI for PDF and EPUB files. This stays on the current computer even when semantic search uses a remote Miyo server. If the local CLI is unavailable, Agent Chat stops instead of falling back to a cloud parser.
In Quick Chat, Miyo asks the connected Miyo service to parse PDF and EPUB files. A local connection stays local; a configured remote connection processes them on that server and requires the server to have access to the registered vault files.
Plus can use Copilot-hosted PDF processing and may consume paid usage.

Outside the Miyo route, EPUB and ordinary non-PDF formats such as DOCX are not processed by this selector in regular chat context. Projects have a separate context-conversion route that can use hosted processing. See Copilot Paid Plans and Data Routes before using sensitive documents.

Let other AI tools use your knowledge

Miyo’s Connector can let supported ChatGPT and Claude clients work with files you registered in Miyo. Set it up from the Connector row in Copilot’s Miyo settings or from Miyo itself. Local desktop and command-line use is free. Remote Connector access requires Miyo Relay or Lifetime access after its trial; Supporter and eligible legacy Copilot licenses can include that access.

Connector access is separate from Agent Chat search. Review the folders, remote access, and write permissions in Miyo before enabling it. This is the ownership advantage of Miyo: one local-first knowledge layer can serve several AI tools without turning Copilot’s private plugin data into the permanent home of your knowledge.

Troubleshooting

Unavailable: open Miyo, return to Settings → Copilot → Miyo, and retry. Check the remote server address if you configured one.
Register this vault: register the folder in Miyo, then connect again.
Semantic search is missing: confirm the connection is healthy and turn on Semantic search. Copilot installs the shared Miyo skill for opencode, Claude, and Codex.
New notes are missing: run Refresh Miyo index from the command palette. Indexing progress is shown in Miyo.
Relevant Notes has no semantic results: Read the card for the active note’s Miyo state. No semantic matches yet means Miyo found no related notes. The other cards distinguish an empty note, indexing work, an indexing error, and a Miyo folder filter. Older Miyo builds use the less specific This note isn’t indexed in Miyo card. None of these states shows link-only or backlink-only rows.
Agent Chat Miyo document processing fails: install Miyo on this computer so its local CLI is available, or switch Document Processor to Plus. A remote Miyo search connection does not provide the local CLI Agent Chat needs.
Quick Chat Miyo document processing fails: confirm that the connected Miyo service can access the registered vault and document. When a remote server is configured, troubleshoot the document on that server.
Miyo indexes folders you wanted skipped: When Copilot first registers a vault, it supplies the current working-folder history and Obsidian ignored paths as initial Miyo exclusions. It does not overwrite an existing registration or later folder edits. Copilot still filters its integrated search results locally; edit the registered folder’s server-side include and exclude rules in Miyo.
Mobile: a remote Miyo server can be configured on mobile, but Agent Chat and its Skills are desktop features. Use Quick Chat on mobile.