Installation¶

ope is a Python package with two native dependencies: the Pango text stack that WeasyPrint uses, and pandoc. The installer below puts the CLI in place, and ope setup installs the native parts.

Install the CLI¶

Linux / macOSWindowsuvpip

curl -LsSf uvx.sh/obsidian-pdf-exporter/install.sh | sh && ope setup --yes

powershell -ExecutionPolicy ByPass -c "irm https://uvx.sh/obsidian-pdf-exporter/install.ps1 | iex; ope setup --yes"

uv tool install obsidian-pdf-exporter
ope setup --yes

# or run it once without installing
uvx obsidian-pdf-exporter --help

pip install obsidian-pdf-exporter
ope setup --yes

The installer script installs uv if needed and runs uv tool install obsidian-pdf-exporter, so the CLI lives in its own environment. A pinned version uses the version in the URL:

curl -LsSf uvx.sh/obsidian-pdf-exporter/0.5.1/install.sh | sh

ope and obsidian-pdf-exporter are the same command.

Native dependencies¶

WeasyPrint needs Pango, GLib, HarfBuzz (with harfbuzz-subset) and Fontconfig. Cairo is not needed. The package lists follow WeasyPrint's first steps.
Pandoc converts Markdown to HTML. If it is missing, ope setup downloads it from the official pandoc release with pypandoc.

ope setup           # install what is missing, asks first
ope setup --yes     # same, without asking (for CI)
ope setup --check   # report only, exit 1 if something is missing

setup only runs the package manager of your platform:

OS	What `setup` runs when libraries are missing	Notes
Debian / Ubuntu	`sudo apt-get install -y libpango-1.0-0 libpangoft2-1.0-0 libharfbuzz0b libharfbuzz-subset0 ...`	Same list as the WeasyPrint docs.
Fedora	`sudo dnf install -y pango`	Pulls GLib, HarfBuzz and Fontconfig.
Arch	`sudo pacman -S --needed --noconfirm pango`
openSUSE	`sudo zypper install -y pango`
Alpine	`sudo apk add pango fontconfig`
macOS	`brew install pango`	Needs Homebrew. Without it, `setup` prints the install link and exits with 1.
Windows	`winget install --id tschoonj.GTKForWindows --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements`	The GTK3 runtime. An Inkscape install also brings GTK.

When WeasyPrint still cannot find the libraries, set OBSIDIAN_PDF_GTK_PATH to the folders that hold them, separated by os.pathsep.

Optional tools¶

Tool	Needed for
git	Redline, the version label from the commit hash, and the vault root for Dataview.

In CI¶

A GitHub Actions job that exports a folder and keeps the PDF:

jobs:
  pdf:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0   # full history for redline and the version label
      - uses: astral-sh/setup-uv@v6
      - run: uv tool install obsidian-pdf-exporter
      - run: ope setup --yes
      - run: ope export ./Handbook --title "Team handbook" --version "${{ github.ref_name }}" -o handbook.pdf
      - uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: handbook
          path: handbook.pdf

Mermaid diagrams are drawn inside ope, so the runner needs no Node.js or browser.

Check the install¶

ope --version
ope setup --check
ope list-templates
ope list-plugins