Skip to main content

​
Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to common questions about Obsidian Chess Studio.

​
General Questions

Obsidian Chess Studio is a comprehensive, open-source chess analysis platform that combines powerful engine integration, advanced game analysis, and intelligent training systems into a single, cross-platform application.It provides:
  • Deep game analysis with multi-engine support
  • Opening repertoire training with spaced repetition
  • Integrated player statistics from Lichess and Chess.com
  • Advanced database search capabilities
  • Adaptive puzzle system
  • And much more!
Yes! Obsidian Chess Studio is completely free and open source, licensed under GPL-3.0. There are no premium features, subscriptions, or hidden costs.
While ChessBase is a premium product (~€500), Obsidian Chess Studio provides similar professional-grade features for free:
  • ✅ Multi-engine simultaneous analysis
  • ✅ Large downloadable databases
  • ✅ Cross-platform (Windows, macOS, Linux)
  • ✅ Modern, intuitive interface
  • ✅ Online account sync (Lichess, Chess.com)
  • ✅ Open source
See our comparison table for a detailed breakdown.
Obsidian Chess Studio runs on:
  • Windows (Windows 10 and later)
  • macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel)
  • Linux (AppImage, .deb, .rpm)
  • Android (APK available, mobile app in development)

​
Installation & Setup

  1. Visit the releases page
  2. Download the appropriate file for your platform:
    • Windows: .exe
    • macOS: .dmg
    • Linux: .AppImage, .deb, or .rpm
  3. Install and launch the application
See our Installation Guide for detailed instructions.
No! Obsidian Chess Studio comes with Stockfish built-in, so you can start analyzing immediately. You can also add additional UCI-compatible engines if desired.
  1. Go to Settings → Accounts
  2. Connect your Lichess or Chess.com account
  3. Your games will automatically sync
You can also manually import games by:
  • Pasting a game URL
  • Importing PGN files
  • Entering games manually
Yes! Obsidian Chess Studio supports all UCI-compatible engines. To add a custom engine:
  1. Go to Settings → Engines
  2. Click Add Engine
  3. Select your engine’s executable file
  4. Configure engine options as needed

​
Features & Usage

  1. Open or import a game
  2. Click the Analysis tab
  3. Start the engine (it’s enabled by default)
  4. Navigate through moves to see engine evaluations
For deep analysis:
  • Use Computer Analysis to automatically analyze all moves
  • View the Report tab for detailed statistics
  • Check Mistakes to see blunders and missed opportunities
Opening repertoires help you memorize and practice your opening lines using spaced repetition.To create a repertoire:
  1. Go to Repertoire tab
  2. Click New Repertoire
  3. Choose your color and name
  4. Add variations from games or manually
  5. Use the trainer to practice regularly
The system will automatically track which positions you know well and which need more practice.
The adaptive puzzle system adjusts difficulty based on your performance:
  • Puzzles have their own Elo rating
  • Your puzzle rating increases when you solve them correctly
  • The system presents puzzles near your current rating
  • Track your progress with statistics and streaks
Access puzzles from the Puzzles tab in the main menu.
Yes! Obsidian Chess Studio has powerful search capabilities:Exact position search:
  • Search by FEN string
  • Find games with identical positions
Partial position search:
  • Search by material patterns
  • Filter by piece placement
  • Find similar positions
Additional filters:
  • Player names
  • ECO codes (opening classification)
  • Date ranges
  • Game results
  • Rating ranges
  1. Create a player profile in Settings → Profiles
  2. Link your online accounts (Lichess, Chess.com)
  3. Go to Statistics tab
You can view:
  • Rating progression over time
  • Performance by time control
  • Opening statistics
  • Win/draw/loss breakdown
  • Pawn structure analysis
  • Monthly game distribution
  • And much more!

​
Troubleshooting

Try these steps:
  1. Check if the engine is enabled:
    • Look for engine status in the analysis panel
    • Verify engine is running in Settings → Engines
  2. Restart the engine:
    • Click the engine stop button
    • Click start again
  3. Reinstall/re-add the engine:
    • Remove the engine in settings
    • Add it again
  4. Check system resources:
    • Ensure your computer has available CPU/memory
    • Close other resource-intensive applications
If the problem persists, open an issue with details.
Common solutions:
  1. Check your internet connection
  2. Verify account credentials:
    • Go to Settings → Accounts
    • Reconnect your account
  3. Check if the account is public:
    • Some accounts require public game access
  4. Try manual import:
    • Download PGN from Lichess/Chess.com
    • Import the PGN file directly
If you’re still having issues, check GitHub Discussions or report a bug.
Performance tips:
  1. Reduce engine threads:
    • Go to Settings → Engines
    • Lower the number of threads
  2. Limit engine depth:
    • Set a maximum depth (e.g., 20-25)
    • Reduce analysis time
  3. Close other applications:
    • Free up system resources
  4. Check database size:
    • Very large databases may take time to index
    • Consider splitting into multiple databases
  5. Update to the latest version:
    • Performance improvements are regularly added
If you need to reset Obsidian Chess Studio to default settings:
  1. Close the application
  2. Locate the configuration directory:
    • Windows: %APPDATA%/obsidian-chess-studio
    • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/obsidian-chess-studio
    • Linux: ~/.config/obsidian-chess-studio
  3. Delete or rename the config folder
  4. Restart the application
This will reset all settings including engine configurations, preferences, and account connections. Your games and databases will not be affected.
We appreciate bug reports! Please:
  1. Search existing issues to avoid duplicates
  2. Gather information:
    • App version (Settings → About)
    • Operating system and version
    • Steps to reproduce
    • Screenshots/logs if available
  3. Submit a bug report:
See our Support page for more information.

​
Advanced Usage

Yes! This is one of Obsidian Chess Studio’s key features:
  1. Go to Settings → Engines
  2. Add multiple engines
  3. In the analysis view, enable multiple engines
  4. Compare evaluations side-by-side
This is useful for:
  • Getting different perspectives on positions
  • Comparing specialized engines (endgame, tactical, etc.)
  • Training and learning
Tablebases provide perfect play in endgames:
  1. Download Syzygy tablebase files (3-7 piece tables)
  2. Go to Settings → Engines
  3. Configure the tablebase path for your engine
  4. Restart the engine
Engines will automatically use tablebases when applicable, showing “Tablebase” in the evaluation.
Yes! Obsidian Chess Studio has fully customizable keybindings:
  1. Go to Settings → Keybindings
  2. Click on any action to reassign its shortcut
  3. Press your desired key combination
  4. Save changes
All navigation, analysis, and interface actions can be customized.
To export games with analysis:
  1. Open the game you want to export
  2. Click Export or use the file menu
  3. Choose PGN format
  4. Select what to include:
    • Engine evaluations
    • Variations
    • Comments
    • Annotations
  5. Save the file
The exported PGN can be imported into any chess software that supports PGN with annotations.

​
Development & Contributing

We welcome contributions! You can help by:
  • Code: Submit bug fixes or new features
  • Translations: Help localize the app
  • Documentation: Improve or expand docs
  • Testing: Report bugs and test new features
  • Feedback: Share ideas and suggestions
Check our Contributing Guide for details.
To build Obsidian Chess Studio yourself:
# Clone the repository
git clone [email protected]:luisrivasnoriega/Obsidian-Chess-Studio.git
cd Obsidian-Chess-Studio

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Run in development mode
pnpm tauri dev

# Build for production
pnpm tauri build
See the README for prerequisites and detailed instructions.
Obsidian Chess Studio uses:Backend:
  • Rust (via Tauri)
  • SQLite for database storage
Frontend:
  • React 19
  • TypeScript
  • Vite
  • Mantine UI components
Chess Libraries:
  • Chessground for board rendering
  • chessops for chess logic

​
Still Have Questions?

If you didn’t find your answer here:

GitHub Discussions

Ask the community

Report an Issue

Found a bug? Let us know

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get started for freeTalk to us