Conditional, multi-host dotflie manager

• easily deploy your dotfiles with a single command
• re-use files with minor changes for different hosts
• quickly import existing files for a quick setup

required: python >= 3.10

• Clone this repository, and place the dmg executable somewhere on your PATH.

• Create a directory somewhere for your dotfile templates to be stored.
• Export the environment variables DMG_ROOT=/path/to/files, pointing at the directory you just created.
• dmg -a import -f <file> to import a file to be managed by dmg.
• Edit the files stored within your DMG_ROOT directory, and use dmg -a deploy to deploy them to their destinations. Any conditional directives will be parsed and applied.

-l {info, warning, error, debug, verify} - set the log level

--dry - dry run, do not perform destructive disk operations

-f FILE - take in a file for input. used for many actions

-s DIR - source directory. May use DMG_ROOT environment variable instead.

-a {deploy,import,parse,edit,delete,verify,diff} - action of choice, see below

deploy

Deploy all files from the source directory, or deploy a single file with -f.

• dmg -a deploy
• dmg -a deploy -f ~/.config/my/config

import

Import a new file to be managed by dmg. File must be specified with -f.

• dmg -a import -f ~/.config/to/import

parse

Parse a file already managed by dmg, and output it to stdout. File must be specified with -f.

• dmg -a parse -f ~/.config/to/parse

edit

Edit a file managed by dmg, and re-deploy if the syntax is OK. Will open using the EDITOR environment variable, or vim if it is not set. File must be specified with -f.

• dmg -a edit -f ~/.config/to/edit

delete

Remove a file so it will no longer be tracked by dmg. This does not delete the deployed version, just the dmg source version (stored in DMG_ROOT). File must be specified with -f.

• dmg -a delete -f ~/.config/to/delete

verify

Verify all files managed by dmg, and report their status.

• dmg -a verify

diff

View the differences between the parsed source version of a file and the deployed version. File must be specified with -f.

• dmg -a diff -f ~/.config/to/diff

All dmg directives begin with ##$, and are expected to be the only content on the line. The directives will NOT be included in the output file, so this should not cause any issues as far as various configuration formats go. (Though, many consider # to be a comment anyway)

hosts: arg1, arg2...

name: hosts description: the hosts that this file should be deployed to argument(s): the hosts that this file should be deployed to note: This directive is NOT required if you do not intend to use any other directives in the file. However, if you want to use only or not, it IS required.

only: arg1, arg2...

name: only description: beginning of a block of text, that should only be included on the given hosts argument(s): the hosts that this block of text should be included on

not: arg1, arg2...

name: not description: beginning of a block of text, that should be included on all hosts except given argument(s): the hosts that this block of text should NOT be included on

end

name: end description: end block of text (to be used after only/not directive) argument(s): none

Take the following (imaginary) configuration file:

blah_blah=something
foo=56
bar=42
exit=never
battery=yes
monitors=2

If you wanted to share mostly the same configuration between two systems (say - your laptop and your desktop), but have some minor differences, you could break the file up like this:

##$ hosts: my_desktop, my_laptop

blah_blah=something
foo=56
bar=42
exit=never

##$ only: my_laptop
battery=yes
##$ end
##$ only: my_desktop
monitors=2
##$ end

(please note that the extra lines are not necessary, but have been added for readability)

If this file is deployed to my_desktop, it will look like this:

blah_blah=something
foo=56
bar=42
exit=never

monitors=2

And when deployed to my_laptop, it will look like this:

blah_blah=something
foo=56
bar=42
exit=never

battery=yes

As you can see, the directives work a lot like the #ifndef, #define, and #endif preprocessor directives from C/C++.

You can also introduce more machines into the mix. For example, if you have a server, which does not need this config file, then you simply do not add it to the hosts directive. dmg will not deploy this file for that host.

You can also use the not directive, which is the inverse of the only directive. It will include the contents for all hosts except the ones listed in the directive arguments.