Multi-Device Workflow

This guide walks through the entire lifecycle of using dotweave — from setting up your first machine to keeping multiple devices in sync every day.

Initial setup on Machine A

1. Initialize dotweave

   dotweave init

   This creates a Git-backed sync directory in dotweave's app-data directory.

2. Track your files

   dotweave track ~/.gitconfig
   dotweave track ~/.config/starship.toml
   dotweave track ~/.ssh/config --mode secret

   Each command adds an entry to manifest.jsonc inside the sync directory.

3. Push local files into the sync directory

   dotweave push

4. Commit and push to a remote

   dotweave never creates Git commits for you — you stay in full control:

   dotweave cd   # opens a shell inside the sync directory
   git add -A && git commit -m "initial sync"
   git remote add origin git@github.com:you/dotfiles.git
   git push -u origin main
   exit

Setting up Machine B

1. Initialize from the remote URL

   dotweave init git@github.com:you/dotfiles.git

2. Pull files to their local paths

   dotweave pull

   dotweave reads manifest.jsonc, resolves platform-specific paths, decrypts any secrets, and writes every file to the correct location.

Daily workflow

Once both machines are set up, the day-to-day flow is short and predictable.

On the machine where you made changes:

dotweave push
dotweave cd
git add -A && git commit -m "update shell aliases"
git push
exit

On the other machine:

dotweave cd
git pull
exit
dotweave pull

Handling conflicts

The sync directory is a regular Git repository, so conflicts are resolved the usual way:

dotweave cd
git pull            # may report merge conflicts
# resolve conflicts in the affected files
git add -A && git commit -m "resolve merge conflict"
git push
exit
dotweave pull        # apply the resolved state locally

Checking health

dotweave doctor

This verifies the sync directory exists, Git is configured, encryption keys are in place, and tracked paths are accessible.

Adding more machines

Adding a third (or fourth, or fifth) machine follows the same steps as Machine B — dotweave init with the remote URL, then dotweave pull. From there the daily push/pull cycle is identical on every device.

Quick reference