apple-notes-migration-deep-dive

# Apple Notes Migration Deep Dive ## Overview Migrating to or from Apple Notes requires understanding that Notes stores content as proprietary HTML with no REST API for bulk operations. All automation goes through JXA/osascript on a local Mac. This guide covers the four most common migration paths with production-tested scripts. Key challenges include: HTML-to-Markdown conversion fidelity, attachment extraction limitations (JXA cannot export binary attachment data directly), and iCloud sync delays that affect timing of bulk imports. ## Migration Paths | From | To | Method | Attachments | |------|----|--------|-------------| | Apple Notes | Obsidian | JXA export HTML → convert to Markdown → vault | Manual via Shortcuts | | Apple Notes | Notion | JXA export JSON → Notion API import | Re-upload required | | Obsidian | Apple Notes | Read .md → convert to HTML → JXA create | Not supported via JXA | | Evernote | Apple Notes | File > Import from Evernote (built-in) | Preserved automatically | | OneNote | Apple Notes | Export to .enex → Import from Evernote | Partial preservation | ## Step 1: Pre-Migration Backup ```bash #!/bin/bash # Always back up before migration BACKUP_DIR="$HOME/notes-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M)" mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR" osascript -l JavaScript -e ' const Notes = Application("Notes"); const data = Notes.defaultAccount.notes().map(n => ({ id: n.id(), title: n.name(), body: n.body(), folder: n.container().name(), created: n.creationDate().toISO...