chezmoi#

chezmoi dotfile template management and workflow automation.

Topics#

TopicDescriptionGuideapplyInteractive diff review — per-file AskUserQuestion approval + commit-tidyapply.mdconsolidateDetect duplicate modify templates and generate shared scriptsconsolidate.mdcross-platformmacOS/Windows compatibility diagnostics and fixescross-platform.mddoctorCheck required files and auto-copy if missingdoctor.mdmcp-syncMCP server configuration synchronizationmcp-sync.md

Related Skills#

FeatureSkillCommit splittingcommit-splitter

Quick Reference#

Apply (Interactive Diff Review)#

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"chezmoi apply"             → Per-file diff review + AskUserQuestion approval
"chezmoi diff"              → Show all changes, decide per file

Consolidate (Template Merging)#

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"chezmoi check duplicates"  → Detect templates with identical content
"merge templates"           → Consolidate into shared scripts

Doctor (Environment Validation)#

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"chezmoi doctor"            → Check for required scripts
"missing script"            → Auto-copy scripts to ~/bin/

MCP Sync (MCP Synchronization)#

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"add MCP server"            → Add to mcp-servers.json and apply
"MCP sync"                  → Propagate MCP config to all apps

Directory Structure#

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~/.local/share/chezmoi/
├── .chezmoi-lib/              # Shared scripts
│   ├── executable_vscode-settings.sh
│   ├── executable_vscode-keybindings.sh
│   ├── executable_mcp-servers.sh
│   ├── executable_generate-utcp-config.sh
│   └── executable_sourcegit-preference.sh
├── .chezmoitemplates/         # Shared data
│   └── mcp-servers.json       # MCP server single source of truth
├── .chezmoiignore             # OS-specific path branching
├── modify_*.sh.tmpl           # Per-app modify templates
├── private_Library/           # macOS app settings
│   └── private_Application Support/
└── AppData/                   # Windows app settings
    ├── Roaming/               # %APPDATA%
    └── Local/                 # %LOCALAPPDATA%

Required Validation Before Apply#

Always run chezmoi diff to review changes before any chezmoi apply.

bash

# 1. Preview changes
chezmoi diff

# 2. Apply after user approval
chezmoi apply

• Skip apply if diff output is empty
• Show diff results to user and get approval via AskUserQuestion
• See the chezmoi section in ~/.agent/rules/iac.md