yadm-perms

Change file permissions

$ yadm perms

yadm perms

The `yadm-perms` command, often part of the `yadm` (Yet Another Dotfiles Manager) suite, is a helper script designed to ensure that the permissions of files managed by `yadm` are correctly set after deployment or updating. `yadm` tracks configuration files and system settings across multiple machines. `yadm-perms` automates the process of applying the desired permissions to these tracked files after they've been transferred to a new system or after `yadm` updates them. This is important to prevent security vulnerabilities, ensure correct application behavior, and respect the intended access control of configuration files. The script typically iterates through the files managed by `yadm` and applies predefined permissions based on user or group ownership, read/write/execute flags or even ACLs. This helps avoid cases of default insecure settings. Note The implementation and specific features of `yadm-perms` depend heavily on the user's configuration and the version of `yadm` in use. You can check the `yadm` documentation to get a better understanding of what your configuration actually does.

The specific behavior of `yadm-perms` depends on the user's `yadm` configuration. Incorrect configuration can lead to files being given incorrect permissions, potentially compromising security or causing application malfunctions.

A common workflow involves configuring `yadm` to track files, then running `yadm perms` after each `yadm clone`, `yadm pull`, or other operation that modifies the managed files. A well-configured `yadm` setup can automatically execute `yadm perms` as part of post-update hooks or other events.

The behavior of `yadm-perms` is usually defined within the `yadm` configuration files. These configurations might specify the desired owner, group, and permission bits for specific files or groups of files. Users often define these configurations using shell scripts or other configuration languages supported by `yadm`.

The `yadm-perms` command evolved as a natural extension to `yadm` functionality. As users started managing dotfiles across multiple machines, the need to consistently set file permissions on these files became apparent. Initially, users had to manually adjust permissions using tools like `chmod` and `chown`. `yadm-perms` automated this process, streamlining deployment and updates and preventing the accidental exposure of sensitive configuration data.

yadm(1), chmod(1), chown(1)