These are dotfiles I use with Windows 11 and Ubuntu on WSL2 to get a fresh OS install ready for JavaScript and Node development with a little Game Development thrown in for fun.
Upon making the decision to make a copy of my dotfiles as a public repo, I took the opportunity to try document everything with as much detail as possible. I'm hoping it will help anybody else looking to start their own dotfiles repo.
To quote, idemptotency is the property of certain operations in mathematics and computer science whereby they can be applied multiple times without changing the result beyond the initial application.
It's just a fancy word meaning the same operation can be run multiple times with the same result.
I have written these dotfiles so that it can be safely run over and over again without any negative impact. If a step has already been successfully completed then the script will automatically skip this and move to the next.
The main script to run is install.sh. This pulls in the functions helper file and near the end it includes and runs our boosters (aka personal customisations).
For a default setup that is all that is really required. But where's the fun in being default...
Boosters (set in a boosters file) are extra steps we might want to run to really customise the dotfiles to our personal preferences. These rockets will take us from a simple orbit all the way to the moon.
My own boosters file sets my Git user and email and lets me avoid commiting those details to a public repo.
To activate WSL2 services in Windows 11 and automatically install the latest Ubuntu LTS, open PowerShell in Windows Terminal and run:
wsl --install
Check the documentation on installing WSL2 if you wish to install a different version of Ubuntu other than the current LTS.
Once completed you will need to reboot your system. Terminal will automatically open upon login to the newly installed Linux and ask you to setup your new user.
If you don't have it open from the previous step, open Terminal and a tab to your installed Linux distro. These dotfiles have been tested on Ubuntu versions 18.04 through to 24.01
There is no requirement for the location, however I recommend cloning into a .dotfiles directory in your home folder.
git clone https://github.com/39digits/dotfiles ~/.dotfiles && cd ~/.dotfiles
At a minimum, read the install.sh and boosters.sample files to familiarise yourself with the specific steps each will take.
If you're curious, also dive into the functions file.
I also make use of winget to automatically install any GUI apps via JSON files in the windows folder.
I tried to document everything as thoroughly as possible in case it helps someone new to shell scripts or the concept of dotfiles.
Create your own boosters file in the root of the dotfiles to run your own custom steps during the install.
I have provided a sample file that includes the actual custom steps I run. It is named boosters.sample to avoid it being run by default as only a file named boosters will be included in the main script.
cp boosters.sample boosters
Open boosters and edit it to your liking. There are some variables close to the top of the samples file that you can customise, for example setting your preferred Git username and email will add that to your ~/.gitconfig.
We are now ready to launch!
./install.sh
By default these dotfiles will install the following on Ubuntu in WSL2:
- Git (latest version)
- ZSH (latest version)
- oh-my-zsh (including helpful ZSH plugins for Node)
- Preferred ZSH prompt (using Oh My Posh)
- Latest version of Node (via nvm)
- A set of commandline tools (e.g. httpie, tree, etc)
- Latest version of vim
- Preferred vim plugins and themes
Any extras or customisations you included in your own boosters file will also be installed as part of the install.
The Windows Package Manager (aka winget) allows us to easily and quickly install apps via the commandline. An extra helpful feature is the ability to run an import command to install all apps within a JSON file.
I have a couple of JSON import files of apps for different purposes that I use to easily decide which apps to install.
To install all my Windows GUI apps, run each of the following.
General Windows apps:
winget.exe import -i ./windows/winget-apps.json
Development Tools:
winget.exe import -i ./windows/winget-devtools.json
Videogame Development:
The import command doesn't allow for interactive installs yet, so we install Visual Studio 2022 Community as a separate command before running the rest of the videogame development import.
winget.exe install --interactive --id Microsoft.VisualStudio.2022.Community --exact
This allows us to customise our Visual Studio installation to include C++ and any other modules we may require.
winget.exe import -i ./windows/winget-gamedev.json
Gaming:
winget.exe import -i ./windows/winget-gaming.json
Note: winget.exe is being run from the Linux shell but we get access to Windows commands!
A monospace powerline font is highly recommended to take full advantage of the customisations in the prompt.
These dotfiles include my recommended fonts:
- For Terminal: MesloLGS NF
- For Code Editor: Source Code Pro for Powerline
Both fonts can be found in the fonts directory which will need to be manually installed. You can open the current folder inside Windows Explorer by typing explorer.exe . from the Linux shell.
Configure your terminal to use MesloLGS NF as the default font to get the most out of the terminal prompt we install for ZSH. If you don't want to use a Powerline font on the prompt you can run p10k configure after installation completes and configure the prompt to not use icons at all.
In Terminal settings find the Linux distro's Profile and edit the Appearance settings. I recommend setting the Windows Terminal color theme to One Half Dark which comes packaged with Windows Terminal. Set the font to MesloLGS NF (see Fonts section).
I also recommend changing the main Startup settings to use Ubuntu as the Default Profile and to ensure Windows Terminal is set as your Default Terminal Application.
- The design of how sections and steps look was heavily inspired by slay.sh by Mina Markham
- Huge thank you to Mathias Bynens MacOS settings in his dotfiles repo