dotman

Dotfile manager — track, sync, and restore config files across machines.

dotman is a fast, terminal-native dotfile manager that keeps your configuration files in sync across all your machines. It moves tracked files into a central dotfiles directory, creates symlinks at their original locations, and uses git to sync changes. Profiles let you maintain separate file sets for work, home, and server environments — all protected by optional AES-256-GCM encryption for sensitive configs.

• Symlink management — Move files to your dotfiles repo; symlinks stay in place transparently
• Git sync — Commit, push, and pull with a single command to keep machines in sync
• Profiles — Separate dotfile sets for work, home, server, or any context
• Diff view — See exactly what changed since your last backup
• Backup & restore — Timestamped snapshots; one command to restore all symlinks on a fresh machine
• AES-256-GCM encryption — Protect sensitive files (SSH keys, API tokens) at rest
• Rich terminal UI — Color-coded status tables, panels, and progress output

Installation

pip install dotfiles-tool

Usage

# Initialize dotman
dotman init --dir ~/.dotfiles

# Start tracking config files
dotman track ~/.bashrc ~/.vimrc ~/.tmux.conf

# Check status
dotman status
dotman list

# Sync to remote
dotman sync --init --remote git@github.com:you/dotfiles.git
dotman sync --push -m "add tmux config"

# Set up on a new machine
git clone git@github.com:you/dotfiles.git ~/.dotfiles
dotman restore

# Encrypt sensitive files
dotman encrypt ~/.ssh/config --password mysecret
dotman decrypt ~/.ssh/config.enc --password mysecret

Commands

Configuration

dotman stores its config at ~/.config/dotman/config.json:

{
  "dotfiles_dir": "~/.dotfiles",
  "git_remote": "git@github.com:you/dotfiles.git",
  "active_profile": "default",
  "encrypt_secrets": false
}

Override the config location with DOTMAN_HOME:

export DOTMAN_HOME=/custom/path

Profiles

Profiles let you group dotfiles by context:

dotman profile create work
dotman track ~/.config/work-tool.conf --profile work

dotman profile create server
dotman track ~/.nanorc --profile server

# Switch active profile
dotman profile switch work

# Export/import for sharing
dotman profile export work work-manifest.json
dotman profile import work-manifest.json

License

MIT © shazeus