Introduction

Quickonf is a semi-automatic configuration tool for Linux desktop computers, allowing you to reinstall your Linux system and quickly get your favorite environment back.

It could for instance be useful if you reinstall Ubuntu every now and then and do not want to use the same user environment over and over (because sometimes, when keeping older configuration files, some app may dysfunction).

Think Ansible, but as a single binary command tailored for local desktop usage.

How it works

You write the desired state of your system in a configuration file (named quickonf.qconf by default).

Then you execute quickonf or quickonf your-file.qconf. Quickonf reads this file and checks the status of the systems, then allows you to apply modifications to the system. No other argument can be provided, everything is done in an interactive interface.

General knowledge

Groups

The configuration is split in groups, a group could represent a part of your configuration. A group is composed of instructions, which are started one after another. As long as an instruction does not fail, the next instructions are executed. If an instruction fails, execution of all instructions in the same group is aborted.

Moreover, these groups are completely independent, and except for some special cases, you should make sure there is no dependency between two groups.

Idempotence

The goal of this app is to be idempotent. It means that you can execute it as many times as you want, the result will always be the same. Of course, you may break this logic in the configuration file, that’s why you sometimes need to be vigilant about the instructions you use, and that’s why there are some recipes.

It will also allow you to run the command on a regular basis to ensure all applications are up-to-date, even if they are not installed with a package manager.

Run as root and paths

Quickonf must be run as root, (eg. using sudo) because a large part of a system configuration is done as root (installing packages, etc). Moreover, it is easier to execute commands and modify files as root, allowing access to any part of the system.

Therefore, most paths given as arguments of the instructions must be absolute. Some user-specific instructions allow relative paths, which are relative to the relevant user.

Quickstart

This quickstart guide works on Debian-based systems, especially Ubuntu, if the Flatpak installer is not already installed.

1. Download the latest executable
2. Open a terminal and cd into the directory where you have downloaded Quickonf
3. Make it executable with chmod a+x quickonf
4. Create a example.qconf file in the same directory
5. Copy/paste the following lines in that file:

Flatpak installer
	priority 1
	apt.install flatpak

EasyEffects
	flatpak.install com.github.wwmm.easyeffects

Remove Flatpak
	apt.remove flatpak

6. Execute Quickonf with sudo ./quickonf example.qconf
7. The user interface is then displayed, showing the groups in the left side, the first group being selected, and its detailed actions in the right side
8. Select the line “Flatpak installer” in the left side, press the Enter key: Quickonf installs Flatpak
9. Press the Esc key to quit Quickonf
10. Restart Quickonf with sudo ./quickonf example.qconf
11. Now, the “Flatpak installer” in the left side is hidden because Flatpak is already installed
12. If you want to have the EasyEffects installed, select “EasyEffects” and press Enter
13. If you want to remove Flatpak, Select “Remove Flatpak” and press Enter

Note: for this example, there is a group to install Flatpak and another group to remove it, but usually, you wouldn’t do that!