dev_env — Dotfiles & Config Sync

A lightweight, dependency-free system to synchronize development configurations across Ubuntu machines.

Features

• Two sync modes: append (shell configs) and overwrite (JSON, fonts, etc.)
• Safe by default: automatic backup before every install
• Marker-based append: managed content is clearly delimited, your own additions are preserved
• Post-install hooks: run commands automatically after syncing (font cache refresh, shell reload, etc.)
• Tools check: verify required and optional tools are present before working
• Sudo only when needed: root files use sudo cp, user files don't

Quick Start

git clone https://github.com/froozeify/dev_env ~/dev_env
cd ~/dev_env

# Check required tools are installed
make check

# Preview what will happen
make diff

# Install everything (auto-backup runs first)
make install

Sync Modes

Append mode

Used for files like .bashrc where you want to add your custom config without replacing the whole file.

The repo file contains only the managed content. On install, it is wrapped in markers:

# ===== BEGIN DOTFILES SYNC =====
export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"
# ... your managed content ...
# ===== END DOTFILES SYNC =====

• First install: block is appended at the end of the target file
• Update: content between markers is replaced; everything outside is untouched
• Safe to run multiple times (idempotent)

To add a file to append mode, list it in conf/append.conf:

user_home/.zshrc
user_home/.bashrc

Overwrite mode

Used for structured config files (JSON, fonts, etc.) where the whole file should match the repo.

Everything not listed in conf/append.conf is treated as overwrite.

Post-Install Hooks

Defined in conf/hooks.conf. Commands run automatically after install when a matching file was synced. If multiple files match the same hook, the command runs only once.

# Format: path_prefix ::: command
root/usr/share/fonts ::: fc-cache -f
user_home/.bashrc    ::: source "$HOME/.bashrc" && echo "→ reloaded (open a new terminal to see changes)"

Shell reload hooks (source ~/.bashrc) apply to the install subshell only — open a new terminal or source manually for changes to take effect in your current session.

Tools Check

Defined in conf/tools.conf. Tools are either required (default) or optional (::: optional flag).

make check          # Show all tools with their status
make check-missing  # Show only missing tools

Missing required tools cause make check to exit with an error (useful in CI). Missing optional tools show with a ~ indicator but don't fail.

Available Commands

Command	Description
make install	Backup + sync all files
make dry-run	Preview what install would change
make diff	Show differences between repo and system
make list	List files and their sync mode
make check	Check which tools are installed
make check-missing	Show only missing tools
make backup	Create a manual backup
make clean-backups	Delete all backups
make keep-backups N=5	Keep only the 5 most recent backups

Backups

Backups are stored in ~/.dotfiles-backup/ as timestamped archives:

~/.dotfiles-backup/
├── backup-2026-03-31_143022.tar.gz
└── backup-2026-03-31_150811.tar.gz

# Create a backup manually
make backup

# Delete all backups
make clean-backups

# Keep only the 3 most recent
make keep-backups N=3

You can override the backup directory:

DOTFILES_BACKUP_DIR=/mnt/external/backups make backup

Environment Variables

Variable	Default	Description
DOTFILES_BACKUP_DIR	~/.dotfiles-backup	Where backups are stored