Scatter Gather Git (sggit)

A Git wrapper CLI tool for managing files scattered across your operating system. Track, synchronize, and version control configuration files, scripts, and other important files from their original locations while maintaining a centralized git repository.

Features

• Cross-platform file tracking: Track files from anywhere on your filesystem
• Platform-aware synchronization: Automatically handles different file locations per platform (Linux, macOS, Windows)
• Automatic git commits: The update command creates detailed git commits with timestamps
• Safe bidirectional sync: Modification date checks prevent accidental overwrites
• JSON configuration: Human-readable tracking configuration

Installation

From Source

git clone <repository-url>
cd sggit
cargo install --path .

Prerequisites

• Rust 1.75+ (for compatibility with older systems)
• Git (for repository operations)

Quick Start

1. Initialize a new sggit repository:

   mkdir my-configs
   cd my-configs
   sggit init

2. Add files to track:

   sggit add ~/.bashrc
   sggit add ~/.vimrc
   sggit add /etc/nginx/nginx.conf

3. Update from remote locations:

   sggit update

4. Sync changes back to remote locations:

   sggit sync

Commands

sggit init

Creates an empty git repository and initializes sggit configuration.

sggit init

sggit add <remote_path>

Adds a file to be tracked by sggit. The file must exist at the specified path.

sggit add ~/.bashrc
sggit add /home/user/scripts/backup.sh

What it does:

• Records the file's remote location and current platform
• Stores metadata in .sggit/config.json
• Creates a local filename based on the original filename

sggit update

Copies files from their remote locations to the local sggit repository and commits the changes.

sggit update

What it does:

• Copies tracked files from remote locations to local repository
• Creates a git commit with detailed information:
  • Number of files updated
  • List of files with their last modified timestamps
• Only processes files that match the current platform

Example commit message:

Update 2 files from remote locations

- bashrc (modified: 2025-01-05 14:30:25 UTC)
- vimrc (modified: 2025-01-05 14:28:10 UTC)

sggit sync

Updates remote files with changes from the local repository.

sggit sync

What it does:

• Copies files from local repository back to their remote locations
• Checks modification dates to prevent overwriting newer remote files
• Only syncs files where local version is newer than remote version
• Updates last sync timestamp in configuration

Configuration

Sggit stores its configuration in .sggit/config.json. This file tracks all managed files and their metadata.

Configuration Format

{
  "files": {
    "bashrc": [
      {
        "remote_path": "/home/user/.bashrc",
        "platform": "linux",
        "local_path": "bashrc",
        "last_synced": "2025-01-05T14:30:25.123456789Z"
      }
    ],
    "config.ini": [
      {
        "remote_path": "/home/user/.config/app/config.ini",
        "platform": "linux", 
        "local_path": "config.ini",
        "last_synced": null
      },
      {
        "remote_path": "C:\\Users\\user\\AppData\\app\\config.ini",
        "platform": "windows",
        "local_path": "config.ini", 
        "last_synced": null
      }
    ]
  }
}

Platform Support

Sggit automatically detects the current platform and only processes files that match:

• linux - Linux systems
• macos - macOS systems
• windows - Windows systems

This allows you to track the same logical file across different platforms with different paths.

Use Cases

Configuration Management

# Track shell configurations
sggit add ~/.bashrc
sggit add ~/.zshrc
sggit add ~/.tmux.conf

# Track application configs
sggit add ~/.config/nvim/init.vim
sggit add ~/.gitconfig

System Administration

# Track server configurations
sggit add /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
sggit add /etc/systemd/system/myapp.service
sggit add /etc/crontab

Development Environment

# Track IDE settings
sggit add ~/.vscode/settings.json
sggit add ~/.vscode/keybindings.json

# Track development tools
sggit add ~/.tool-versions
sggit add ~/.env.example

Workflow Example

1. Set up tracking:

   mkdir ~/dotfiles
   cd ~/dotfiles
   sggit init
   sggit add ~/.bashrc
   sggit add ~/.vimrc

2. Capture current state:

   sggit update
   git log --oneline  # See the commit with timestamps

3. Edit files locally:

   # Edit the local copies
   vim bashrc
   vim vimrc
   
   # Commit your changes
   git add .
   git commit -m "Update shell aliases and vim plugins"

4. Deploy changes:

   sggit sync  # Updates the actual files in their original locations

5. Regular synchronization:

   # Pull in external changes
   sggit update
   
   # Push local changes
   sggit sync

Safety Features

• Modification date checking: sync only overwrites remote files if local files are newer
• Platform isolation: Only processes files that match the current operating system
• Git integration: Full version history of all file changes
• Non-destructive operations: Files are copied, never moved

Testing

Run the test suite:

cargo test

The tests use temporary directories to simulate file operations without affecting your actual filesystem.

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Add tests for new functionality
4. Ensure all tests pass
5. Submit a pull request

License

[Add your license here]

Troubleshooting

"File does not exist" error

Make sure the file path exists and is accessible:

ls -la /path/to/file

"No such file or directory" git error

Ensure you're in a sggit repository:

ls -la .sggit/

Permission denied

Check file permissions and ensure sggit has access to both source and destination paths:

chmod +r /source/file
chmod +w /destination/directory