boxxy (case-sensitive) is a tool for boxing up misbehaving Linux applications and forcing them to put their files and directories in the right place, without symlinks!
boxxy is a part of the amyware discord server.
If you like what I make, consider supporting me on Patreon:
Linux-only! boxxy uses Linux namespaces for its functionality.
For example, consider tmux. It wants to put its config in ~/.tmux.conf
. With
boxxy, you can put its config in ~/.config/tmux/tmux.conf
instead:
# ~/.config/boxxy/boxxy.yaml
rules:
- name: "redirect tmux config from ~/.tmux.conf to ~/.config/tmux/tmux.conf"
target: "~/.tmux.conf"
rewrite: "~/.config/tmux/tmux.conf"
mode: "file"
I recently had to use the AWS CLI. It wants to save data in ~/.aws
, but I
don't want it to just clutter up my $HOME
however it wants. boxxy lets me
force it to puts its data somewhere nice and proper.
- box any program and force it to put its files/directories where you want it to
- context-dependent boxing, ie different rules apply in different directories depending on your configuration
- minimal overhead
- opt-in immutable fs outside of rule rewrites, ie only the files/directories you specify in rules are writable
0.5.0
: boxxy can scan your homedir to automatically suggest rules for you!0.6.0
: boxxy can use project-localboxxy.yaml
files, and can load.env
files for you!0.6.1
: boxxy rules can inject env vars:0.7.2
: boxxy can fork the boxxed process into the background with the--daemon
flag.0.8.0
: boxxy can pass rules at the command line with--rule
, and disable loading config files with--no-config
.0.8.2
: Explain how to run AppImages properly:
- new project, 0.x.y, comes with all those warnings
- cannot use sudo inside the container (see #6)
- primarily tested for my use-cases
git:(mistress) | ▶ cat ~/.config/boxxy/boxxy.yaml
rules:
- name: "Store AWS CLI config in ~/.config/aws"
target: "~/.aws"
rewrite: "~/.config/aws"
git:(mistress) | ▶ boxxy aws configure
INFO boxxy > loaded 1 rules
INFO boxxy::enclosure > applying rule 'Store AWS CLI config in ~/.config/aws'
INFO boxxy::enclosure > redirect: ~/.aws -> ~/.config/aws
INFO boxxy::enclosure > boxed "aws" ♥
AWS Access Key ID [****************d]: a
AWS Secret Access Key [****************c]: b
Default region name [b]: c
Default output format [a]: d
git:(mistress) | ▶ ls ~/.aws
git:(mistress) | ▶ ls ~/.config/aws
config credentials
git:(mistress) | ▶ cat ~/.config/aws/config
[default]
region = c
output = d
git:(mistress) | ▶
alias aws="boxxy aws"
(repeat for other tools)- use contexts to keep project configs separate on disk
- dotfiles!
- stop using symlinks!!!
- no more dev config files when writing code
The boxxy configuration file lives in ~/.config/boxxy/boxxy.yaml
. If none
exists, an empty one will be created for you.
rules:
# The name of the rule. User-friendly name for your reference
- name: "redirect aws-cli from ~/.aws to ~/.config/aws"
# The target of the rule, ie the file/directory that will be shadowed by the
# rewrite.
target: "~/.aws"
# The rewrite of the rule, ie the file/directory that will be used instead of
# the target.
rewrite: "~/.config/aws"
- name: "use different k8s configs when in ~/Projects/my-cool-startup"
target: "~/.kube/config"
rewrite: "~/Projects/my-cool-startup/.kube/config"
# The context for the rule. Any paths listed in the context are paths where
# this rule will apply. If no context is specified, the rule applies
# globally.
context:
- "~/Projects/my-cool-startup"
# The mode of this rule, either `directory` or `file`. `directory` is the
# default. Must be specified for the correct behaviour when the target is a
# file. Required because the target file/directory may not exist yet.
mode: "file"
# The list of commands that this rule applies to. If no commands are
# specified, the rule applies to all programs run with boxxy.
only:
- "kubectl"
rules:
- name: "any valid string" # required
target: "path" # required
rewrite: "path" # required
context: # optional
- "path"
- "path"
mode: "directory | file" # optional
only: # optional
- "binary name"
- "binary name"
env: # optional
KEY: "value"
- set up pre-commit:
pre-commit install
- make sure it builds:
cargo build
- do the thing!
- test with the command of your choice, ex.
cargo run -- ls -lah ~/.config
- create temporary directory in /tmp
- set up new user/mount namespace
- bind-mount
/
to tmp directory - bind-mount rule mounts rw so that target programs can use them
- remount
/
ro - run!
fixtures/helloworld-appimage-x86_84.AppImage
: https://github.com/ClonedRepos/hello-world-appimage