ConfigBack

Back up and restore developer configuration files across Linux, macOS, and Windows.

ConfigBack is a single-file Python tool that helps you migrate developer environment configurations between machines. It supports backing up pip/PyPI settings, conda environments, npm/yarn configs, git settings, and SSH configurations into a single portable archive.

Features

• Cross-platform: Works on Linux, macOS, and Windows
• All-in-one archive: ZIP-based backup with organized category structure
• CLI + GUI: Full command-line interface and tkinter-based graphical interface
• Optional encryption: AES encryption (Fernet) with PBKDF2 key derivation
• Selective backup/restore: Choose specific categories to include
• Safe restore: Existing files are backed up (.bak) before overwriting
• Dry-run mode: Preview restore operations without making changes
• Conda environment export: Automatically exports conda environment specs

Supported Configurations

Category	ID	Files
PyPI / pip	pip	pip.conf / pip.ini, .pypirc (tokens & credentials)
Conda	conda	.condarc, conda environment exports (YAML)
npm / yarn	npm	.npmrc, .yarnrc, .yarnrc.yml
Git	git	.gitconfig, .gitignore_global
SSH	ssh	~/.ssh/config, ~/.ssh/known_hosts, private keys (opt-in)

Installation

# Basic installation
pip install configback

# With encryption support
pip install configback[encryption]

Or install from source:

git clone https://github.com/configback/configback.git
cd configback
pip install .

Quick Start

# Back up all configurations
configback backup

# Back up with encryption
configback backup --encrypt

# Back up specific categories only
configback backup -c pip,git,ssh

# List contents of a backup
configback list configback_myhost_20260306_143000.zip

# Restore from backup (dry-run first)
configback restore configback_myhost_20260306_143000.zip --dry-run

# Restore for real
configback restore configback_myhost_20260306_143000.zip

# Launch GUI
configback gui

CLI Reference

configback backup

Create a backup archive of configuration files.

Argument	Description
-o, --output	Output file path (default: configback_{hostname}_{timestamp}.zip)
-e, --encrypt	Encrypt the backup archive
-p, --password	Encryption password (interactive prompt if omitted)
--include-keys	Include SSH private keys in backup
-c, --categories	Comma-separated list: pip,conda,npm,git,ssh

Output: A .zip file (or .zip.enc if encrypted) containing the selected configuration files and a manifest.json with metadata.

Example:

$ configback backup -c pip,git -o my_configs.zip
ConfigBack v1.0.0 - Backup
Categories: pip, git

  Backed up: pip/pip.conf
  Backed up: pip/.pypirc
  Backed up: git/.gitconfig
  Backed up: git/.gitignore_global

Backup complete: my_configs.zip
  Files: 4  Size: 2.3 KB

Success!

configback restore

Restore configuration files from a backup archive.

Argument	Description
FILE	Path to backup archive (positional, required)
-p, --password	Decryption password (auto-detected if archive is encrypted)
-c, --categories	Comma-separated categories to restore
--dry-run	Show what would be restored without making changes
--force	Skip confirmations, force overwrite existing conda envs

Output: Restores files to their platform-appropriate locations. Existing files are backed up with .bak.{timestamp} suffix before overwriting.

Example:

$ configback restore my_configs.zip --dry-run
ConfigBack v1.0.0 - Restore
[DRY-RUN MODE]

Archive from: linux (myworkstation)
Created: 2026-03-06T14:30:00+00:00
  [DRY-RUN] pip/pip.conf -> /home/user/.config/pip/pip.conf (exists)
  [DRY-RUN] pip/.pypirc -> /home/user/.pypirc (exists)
  [DRY-RUN] git/.gitconfig -> /home/user/.gitconfig (exists)

Done!

configback list

Display the contents of a backup archive.

Argument	Description
FILE	Path to backup archive (positional, required)
-p, --password	Decryption password

Example:

$ configback list my_configs.zip
ConfigBack Archive: my_configs.zip
  Version:   1.0.0
  Created:   2026-03-06T14:30:00+00:00
  Platform:  linux
  Hostname:  myworkstation
  Encrypted: False

  [Git]
    .gitconfig                                    1.2 KB
    .gitignore_global                             0.3 KB
  [PyPI / pip]
    pip.conf                                      0.2 KB
    .pypirc                                       0.5 KB

  Total: 4 files

configback gui

Launch the graphical user interface.

The GUI provides three tabs:

• Backup: Select categories, set output path, optional encryption
• Restore: Browse for archive, select categories, dry-run option
• List: Browse and inspect archive contents in a tree view

Global Options

Argument	Description
--version	Show version number
-v, --verbose	Enable verbose/debug output

Archive Format

The backup archive is a standard ZIP file with the following structure:

archive.zip
├── manifest.json
├── pip/
│   ├── pip.conf
│   └── .pypirc
├── conda/
│   ├── .condarc
│   └── envs/
│       ├── base.yml
│       └── myenv.yml
├── npm/
│   ├── .npmrc
│   └── .yarnrc
├── git/
│   ├── .gitconfig
│   └── .gitignore_global
└── ssh/
    ├── config
    └── known_hosts

The manifest.json contains:

• configback_version: Tool version that created the archive
• timestamp: Creation time (ISO 8601)
• platform: Source OS (linux, darwin, win32)
• hostname: Source machine name
• encrypted: Whether the archive was encrypted
• categories: Map of category -> list of archived file paths

Encryption

When using --encrypt, the archive is encrypted using:

• Algorithm: AES-128-CBC (via Fernet)
• Key derivation: PBKDF2-HMAC-SHA256 with 480,000 iterations
• Salt: 16 bytes, randomly generated per archive

The encrypted file has a CFGBAK01 magic header for auto-detection.

Requires the cryptography package:

pip install cryptography

Cross-Platform Path Mapping

ConfigBack automatically maps configuration file paths between platforms:

Config	Linux	macOS	Windows
pip config	~/.config/pip/pip.conf	~/Library/Application Support/pip/pip.conf	%APPDATA%\pip\pip.ini
.pypirc	~/.pypirc	~/.pypirc	%USERPROFILE%\.pypirc
.condarc	~/.condarc	~/.condarc	%USERPROFILE%\.condarc
.npmrc	~/.npmrc	~/.npmrc	%USERPROFILE%\.npmrc
.gitconfig	~/.gitconfig	~/.gitconfig	%USERPROFILE%\.gitconfig
SSH config	~/.ssh/config	~/.ssh/config	%USERPROFILE%\.ssh\config

Security Notes

• SSH private keys are excluded by default. Use --include-keys explicitly.
• Encrypted archives use strong key derivation (PBKDF2, 480k iterations).
• Avoid passing passwords via --password on shared systems (visible in process list). Use the interactive prompt instead.
• The .pypirc file may contain PyPI upload tokens. Handle backups accordingly.

Publishing to PyPI

Upload scripts are included:

# Linux / macOS
./upload_pypi.sh

# Windows
upload_pypi.bat

# Upload to TestPyPI first
./upload_pypi.sh --test

License

MIT License. See LICENSE for details.