Filtering¶

Trail provides two types of property-based filtering: Filters control which files appear in a group, and Show conditions control when a group is visible at all.

Filters¶

Filters limit which files appear in a group based on their frontmatter properties.

Setting Up Filters¶

Open Settings → Trail
Expand the group you want to filter
In the Filters section, click Add filter
Configure the filter settings

Filter Settings¶

Property Key¶

The frontmatter property to check. Case-insensitive.

Examples: type, status, category, tags

Operator¶

Operator	Behavior
Equals	Property value exactly matches the filter value
Contains	Property value contains the filter value (for arrays/strings)
Exists	Property exists (any value, including empty)
Not exists	Property doesn't exist

Value¶

The value to compare against. Required for Equals and Contains operators.

Match Mode¶

When you have multiple filters, the match mode determines how they combine:

Mode	Behavior
Match all	File must pass ALL filters (AND logic)
Match any	File must pass AT LEAST ONE filter (OR logic)

Filter Examples¶

Show Only Certain Note Types¶

Filter: Show only "person" type notes

Property	Operator	Value
`type`	Equals	`person`

In your notes:

---
type: person
name: Alice
---

Only notes with type: person appear in this group.

Show Completed Tasks¶

Filters: Show completed tasks (Match all)

Property	Operator	Value
`type`	Equals	`task`
`status`	Equals	`done`

Both conditions must be true.

Show Any Active Item¶

Filters: Show active tasks OR in-progress projects (Match any)

Property	Operator	Value
`status`	Equals	`active`
`status`	Equals	`in-progress`

Either condition being true includes the file.

Exclude Archived Items¶

Filter: Hide archived notes

Property	Operator	Value
`archived`	Not exists	—

Notes without an archived property pass. Add archived: true to any note to hide it from this group.

Show Notes with Tags¶

Filter: Show notes tagged with "important"

Property	Operator	Value
`tags`	Contains	`important`

Works with array properties:

---
tags:
  - project
  - important
  - urgent
---

Show Conditions¶

Show conditions control whether a group appears at all, based on the active note's properties (not the related notes).

Use Case¶

Show a "Family Members" group only when viewing a person note. When viewing a project note, that group doesn't appear.

Setting Up Show Conditions¶

Open Settings → Trail
Expand the group
In the Show conditions section, click Add condition
Configure like a regular filter

How It Differs from Filters¶

Feature	Filters	Show Conditions
What it checks	Related notes	Active note
What it affects	Which items appear	Whether group is visible
When empty	Shows all items	Group always visible

Show Condition Examples¶

Family Group for People¶

Show conditions: Only show when active note is a person

Property	Operator	Value
`type`	Equals	`person`

When viewing a person note, the "Family" group appears. When viewing any other note type, it's hidden.

Project Tasks for Projects¶

Show conditions: Show when active note is a project

Property	Operator	Value
`type`	Equals	`project`

The "Tasks" group only appears when you're looking at a project note.

Context-Aware Groups¶

You can create multiple groups with different show conditions:

Group 1: "Ancestors" (always visible)

No show conditions

Group 2: "Family Tree" (people only)

Show condition: type equals person

Group 3: "Project Hierarchy" (projects only)

Show condition: type equals project

Each note type gets relevant groups without clutter from irrelevant ones.

Combining Filters and Show Conditions¶

You can use both on the same group:

Group: "Active Subtasks"

Show conditions:

Property	Operator	Value
`type`	Equals	`task`

Filters:

Property	Operator	Value
`status`	Equals	`active`

This group:

Only appears when viewing a task note (show condition)
Only shows related notes that are active (filter)

Property Value Types¶

Filters work with various frontmatter value types:

Strings¶

status: active

Equals active → matches

Numbers¶

priority: 1

Equals 1 → matches

Booleans¶

published: true

Equals true → matches

Arrays¶

tags:
  - important
  - work

Contains important → matches Equals important → doesn't match (equals requires exact match)

Best Practices¶

Use Show Conditions for Note Types¶

If you have distinct note types (people, projects, papers), use show conditions to show relevant groups for each type.

Use Filters for Status/State¶

Filter within groups to show only certain states (active, completed, archived).

Keep Filter Logic Simple¶

Complex filter combinations can be hard to debug. If you need many filters, consider:

Splitting into multiple groups
Using a single property with clear values
Simplifying your note schema
Using TQL queries for complex boolean logic, date ranges, or regex matching

Test Your Filters¶

After setting up filters:

Open a note that should match
Check the Trail pane
Open a note that shouldn't match
Verify it's excluded