How Do I Manage Dotfiles In Linux
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How Do I Manage Dotfiles In Linux

Learn how to manage dotfiles in Linux using Stow, Git, and Systemd.

Updated January 20, 2024
2 min read
  • I use stow, git,systemd

Stow

  • stow simplifies managing configuration files by creating symbolic links.
  • make a parent directory that will contain all configs
  • create subfolders within your ~/dotfiles directory, with each subfolder holding the configuration for a specific program (e.g., ~/dotfiles/nvim)
  • Stow creates symbolic links (shortcuts, essentially) from the files inside that subfolder to where your system or applications expect them to be in your actual home directory.
  • So, if you have ~/dotfiles/bash/.bashrc, Stow will create a symlink at ~/.bashrc that points back to the original file in your ~/dotfiles directory.
  • So, ~/dotfiles/vim/.config/nvim/, will create symlink at ~/.config/nvim/
sudo pacman -S stow
mkdir ~/dotfiles
cd ~/dotfiles
mkdir -p vim/.config/nvim/init.lua
stow nvim
ls ~/.config/nvim #confirm that a symlink was generated

Git

  • init a git repo and connect it to github
git init
git remote add origin YOUR_REMOTE_URL

push script

  • make a push script using bash
  • ~/dotfiles/push_script.sh
#!/bin/sh
# Assuming your dotfiles repo is at ~/dotfiles

cd $HOME/dotfiles # Or wherever your dotfiles repo is
git add . # Add any new or changed files
git commit -m "Auto-commit dotfiles changes $(date +%Y-%m-%d_%H-%M-%S)" || true # Commit only if changes exist
git push
  • Make it executable:
chmod +x push_script.sh

systemd

  • Systemd operates on the principle of “units,” and each unit type (like a service, timer, socket, etc.) has its own dedicated file extension and purpose.

    • A .service file describes what to run (e.g., a script, an application).
    • A .timer file describes when to run a corresponding service.

  • Create a service file (~/.config/systemd/user/dotfiles-push.service)

[Unit]
Description=Push dotfiles to GitHub

[Service]
Type = oneshot
ExecStart=/bin/bash -c "~/dotfiles/push_script.sh"
# Ensure HOME is set correctly for your script
Environment=HOME=%h
  • Create a timer file (~/.config/systemd/user/dotfiles-push.timer)
[Unit]
Description=Run dotfiles push service hourly

[Timer]
OnCalendar=hourly
Persistent=true
# This line links the timer to the service:
Unit=dotfiles-push.service

[Install]
WantedBy=timers.target
  • Reload systemd, enable, and start the timer:
systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable dotfiles-push.timer
systemctl --user start dotfiles-push.timer
  • check the status
systemctl --user status dotfiles-push.timer
journalctl --user -u dotfiles-push.service

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