Overview

The system supports multiple installation methods to accommodate different tool distribution patterns. Each method has its own page with its parameters and examples; this page compares them and links to those pages.

Choosing the Right Method

Direct download methods like github-release, curl-tar, or curl-binary are strongly recommended when available. Because they fetch isolated binaries directly into the dotfiles data directory, the dotfiles manager maintains full control over the runtime environment, version tracking, and execution shims.

Using external package managers like brew or npm is fully supported and sometimes necessary, but introduces potential state drift. These package managers natively own their own placement, upgrades, and environment links. If you run brew upgrade externally, the binary may update out of sync with what the dotfiles manager recorded. While this won’t break the system, it’s best practice to drive all updates through the dotfiles update CLI directly to keep state consistent.

Method	Best For	Pros	Cons
apt	Debian-family Linux packages	Uses distro packages	Linux distro-specific, external state
brew	macOS/Linux tools	Simple, well-maintained	Platform-specific, requires Homebrew
cargo	Rust tools	Fast pre-compiled binaries	Rust tools only
curl-binary	Direct binary downloads	Simplest, no extraction needed	Manual URL management
curl-script	Custom installers	Flexible, handles complex setups	Less predictable, security concerns
curl-tar	Archive downloads	Simple, no dependencies	Manual URL management
dmg	macOS .app bundles	Handles mount/unmount, archive extract	macOS only
dnf	RPM-family Linux packages	Uses distro packages	Linux distro-specific, external state
gitea-release	Codeberg / self-hosted Gitea tools	Supports any Gitea-compatible host	Requires instance URL
github-release	Most open source tools	Automatic updates, cross-platform	Requires GitHub hosting
manual	Custom scripts, configuration tools	Include files with dotfiles, flexible	Manual file management
npm	Node.js tools	Simple, version management	Requires Node.js/npm
pacman	Arch-family Linux packages	Uses distro packages	Linux distro-specific, external state
pkg	macOS installer packages	Uses native installer flow	macOS only
zsh-plugin	Zsh plugins from Git repos	Simple, automatic updates	Zsh plugins only

Parameters shared by every method (auto) are documented under Base Install Parameters. The env install parameter is read only by curl-script.