Apply and restore translations non-destructively

Write active translations into plugin files, keep backups, and roll back immediately when something goes wrong.

Obsidian i18n keeps translations separate from the plugins and themes they target. When you click Apply, the plugin creates backups first and then writes the active translation into the target files. When you click Restore, it writes those backups back.

Apply a translation

1. Open the Manager

   Click the globe icon to open the Obsidian i18n Manager.

2. Choose the target plugin

   In 插件, find the installed plugin whose active translation you want to apply.

3. Click Apply

   Click Apply. For plugins, the current implementation writes the translated content and then performs a disable / enable reload cycle.

After a successful apply, state tracking stores the target plugin version and translation version as applied.

Restore the original state

Click Restore to recover the original files from .obsidian/plugins/i18n/backups/.

If plugin reload fails after Apply, the current implementation immediately restores the backup and tries to re-enable the original plugin. Start troubleshooting from the edited translation rows before attempting another apply.

Automatic re-apply after target updates

When Smart Update (automaticUpdate) is enabled, startup checks compare applied target versions and re-run apply for active translations whose target version changed.

Where translation data lives

Obsidian i18n stores its own data outside the target plugin folder:

• .obsidian/plugins/i18n/translations/
• .obsidian/plugins/i18n/metadata.json
• .obsidian/plugins/i18n/backups/