| name | apply-to-machine |
| description | Deploy pending chezmoi source changes from this repo to the live home directory. Use when you've edited files under `home/` and need to render-check templates / modify_ scripts and apply them safely (scoped, verified) to the machine. |
Apply to machine
Push source changes from this repo into $HOME. chezmoi is one-directional:
chezmoi apply renders home/ → live files and overwrites whatever is there.
The one rule
Edit the source under home/, never the live file. A live edit is untracked and the
next apply clobbers it. (chezmoi edit <target> opens the source for you.)
Steps
- Preview:
chezmoi diff [target...] — see exactly what would change.
- Render-check before applying (a template /
modify_ error is invisible until apply):
chezmoi cat <target> renders the final content.- For JSON, also validate:
chezmoi cat <target> | jq -e . >/dev/null && echo OK.
- Apply scoped, not bare:
chezmoi apply ~/.claude/settings.json. Prefer a scoped
target over a bare chezmoi apply whenever other paths show expected drift you don't
want to touch.
- Verify:
chezmoi status (empty output = source and home in sync).
Gotchas specific to this repo
~/.claude/settings.json is a modify_ script (home/private_dot_claude/modify_settings.json),
not a static file — it deep-merges managed keys onto the live file and needs jq. chezmoi cat
runs the script; if jq is missing it fails loud (by design).~/.claude/skills.txt only lists skills — applying it does not install them. See the
sync-skills skill for the install step.~/.claude/plugins/known_marketplaces.json is .chezmoiignored; apply won't touch it.- Secrets are never in the source tree — apply never manages
~/.claude/.credentials.json,
~/.secrets/*, etc.
