CLI Config Import

ed config import

Applies a JSON document of settings, reporting what it did rather than failing on the parts it cannot use.

ed config import <file|-> [--dry-run] [--json]

Argument	Type / values	Default	What it does
file	a path, ~ expanded, or - for stdin	required	The document to apply

Option	Type / values	Default	What it does
--dry-run	flag	false	Report what would change without writing
--json	flag	false	Emit JSON on stdout

Keys are processed in sorted order and each one lands in exactly one of three buckets. applied is a value that parsed and differs from what is stored; unchanged is a value that parsed and matches; skipped is everything else, which is an unknown key, a read-only key, a map setting, a value of the wrong JSON type, or a string outside the setting's allowed list.

What each type wants in the document:

Type	Wants	Note
bool	a JSON boolean	a JSON 1 or 0 is accepted too
int	a JSON number	a decimal is truncated, so 60.7 becomes 60
number	a JSON number
string, csv	a JSON string	checked against the allowed list; a csv value is one comma separated string, not an array
stringList	a JSON array of strings	a bare string is skipped
map	nothing	always skipped

{
  "applied": [
    "appearance"
  ],
  "dryRun": true,
  "skipped": [
    "cleanerCategoryDefaults",
    "limitsProvider",
    "micMuted",
    "notARealKey",
    "showDockIcon"
  ],
  "unchanged": [
    "warnPercent"
  ]
}

ed config import edith.json
ed config import edith.json --dry-run
ed config export | ed config import - --dry-run
cat edith.json | ed config import -

The count goes to stdout and the commentary goes to stderr, so a pipeline sees only the number:

$ ed config import edith.json --dry-run
would apply 1 setting
1 already matched
skipped: cleanerCategoryDefaults, limitsProvider, micMuted, notARealKey, showDockIcon

A document where nothing is usable still exits 0: skipping is a report, not a failure. settingsChanged is posted once at the end, and only when this was not a dry run and at least one setting actually changed. A path that cannot be read exits 3, and a document that is not a JSON object exits 1.

Since a setting whose value already matches counts as unchanged rather than applied, re-importing a document you just exported reports that there is nothing to do:

$ ed config export > edith.json
$ ed config import edith.json --dry-run
would apply 0 settings
83 already matched

Where to go next

• ed config, the rest of this group
• All ed commands