add-dotfile

name	add-dotfile
description	Safely add a new dotfile to chezmoi management, determining the correct prefix and committing the result.

Add Dotfile to chezmoi

Guide the user through adding a new configuration file to chezmoi management safely and correctly.

Instructions

1. Identify the Target File

If the user provided a path (e.g. /add-dotfile ~/.config/starship.toml), use that. Otherwise, ask which file they want to add.

Check whether the file exists:

ls -la <target-path>

2. Determine the Correct Prefix

Inspect the file content to decide whether private_ is needed:

cat <target-path>

Apply this decision table:

File contains	Recommended prefix
API keys, tokens, passwords, private keys	private_ required
Personal info (email, username, etc.)	private_ recommended
Only tool settings (theme, keybindings, etc.)	No private_ needed
Executable script	executable_ required

Ask the user to confirm the prefix choice before proceeding.

3. Add to chezmoi

# For a regular file
chezmoi add <target-path>

# For a file that should be private
chezmoi add --encrypt <target-path>   # if encryption is configured
# or rely on chezmoi inferring private_ from permissions

# Verify the source path chezmoi created
chezmoi source-path <target-path>

4. Verify the Result

chezmoi diff <target-path>
chezmoi status

Confirm that:

• The source file exists with the expected name under ~/.local/share/chezmoi/
• chezmoi diff shows no unintended changes

5. Apply and Test

chezmoi apply <target-path>

Verify the deployed file looks correct.

6. Commit

Stage only the newly added source file and commit:

git -C ~/.local/share/chezmoi add <source-relative-path>
git -C ~/.local/share/chezmoi commit -m "feat(<tool>): add <filename> to chezmoi"

Use the tool name (e.g. starship, ghostty, git) as the commit scope.

Output

Report:

• The source path that was created (e.g. private_dot_config/starship.toml)
• The target path it deploys to
• Whether private_ was applied and why
• The commit that was created

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