DouAL - Dynamic Alias Manager

A powerful command-line tool for managing shell aliases with support for package-based distribution through GitHub repositories.

Features

• Local Alias Management: Create, update, and remove custom shell aliases
• Package System: Install pre-configured alias packages from GitHub repositories
• Bucket Management: Add and manage GitHub repositories as package sources
• Cross-Shell Support: Automatically integrates with your shell configuration
• Smart Conflict Resolution: Handles alias conflicts intelligently
• Search & Discovery: Find packages across all configured buckets

Installation

# Fast installaton (npmjs package)
npm i -g doual


# Manual installation
git clone https://github.com/douxxtech/doual
cd doual

npm i
npm link

Quick Start

# Add a package bucket
dal bucket add douxxtech/dal-bucket

# Search for available packages
dal search

# Install a package
dal install git-shortcuts

# List installed packages
dal list --packages

# Create a custom alias
dal create "ls -la" ll

# Remove an alias
dal remove ll

Commands

Local Alias Management

Create Alias

dal create <command> <alias> [options]

Create or update a local shell alias.

Options:

• -a, --args <arguments>: Additional arguments for the command
• -r, --root <true|false>: Run command as root (default: false)

Examples:

# Simple alias
dal create "ls -la" ll

# Alias with arguments
dal create "docker ps" dps -a "-a --format table"

# Alias requiring root privileges
dal create "systemctl restart" srestart -r true

Remove Alias

dal remove <alias>

Remove a local alias with confirmation prompt.

List Aliases

dal list [options]

Display all configured aliases.

Options:

• -p, --packages: Show only installed packages

Bucket Management

Add Bucket

dal bucket add <user/repo>

Add a GitHub repository as a package source.

Example:

dal bucket add douxxtech/dal-bucket

Remove Bucket

dal bucket remove <user/repo>

Remove a configured bucket.

List Buckets

dal bucket list

Display all configured buckets with package counts.

Refresh Bucket

dal bucket refresh <user/repo>

Update package list from a specific bucket.

Package Management

Install Package

dal install <package> [options]

Install a package from configured buckets.

Options:

• -b, --bucket <bucket>: Install from specific bucket
• -f, --force: Force overwrite existing aliases

Examples:

# Install from any bucket
dal install git-shortcuts

# Install from specific bucket
dal install git-shortcuts -b douxxtech/dal-bucket

# Force overwrite existing aliases
dal install git-shortcuts --force

Uninstall Package

dal uninstall <package> [options]

Remove an installed package and all its aliases.

Options:

• -f, --force: Skip confirmation prompt

Search Packages

dal search [query] [options]

Search for available packages across all buckets.

Options:

• -b, --bucket <bucket>: Search specific bucket only

Examples:

# List all packages
dal search

# Search for git-related packages
dal search git

# Search in specific bucket
dal search docker -b douxxtech/dal-bucket

Package Structure

DAL packages are JSON files stored in GitHub repositories. Each package defines one or more aliases:

{
  "name": "git-shortcuts",
  "description": "Essential Git command shortcuts",
  "version": "1.2.0",
  "author": "Your Name",
  "tags": ["git", "version-control", "productivity"],
  "aliases": [
    {
      "alias": "gs",
      "command": "git status",
      "description": "Show git status",
      "args": "--short --branch",
      "runAsRoot": false,
      "tags": ["status", "quick"]
    },
    {
      "alias": "gp",
      "command": "git push",
      "description": "Push changes to remote",
      "runAsRoot": false
    }
  ]
}

Package Fields

• name: Package identifier (string, required)
• description: Package description (string, optional)
• version: Package version (string, optional, default: "1.0.0")
• author: Package author (string, optional)
• tags: Package tags for discovery (array, optional)
• aliases: Array of alias configurations (required)

Alias Configuration

• alias: The alias name (string, required)
• command: The command to execute (string, required)
• description: Alias description (string, optional)
• args: Default arguments (string, optional)
• runAsRoot: Execute with sudo (boolean, optional, default: false)
• tags: Alias-specific tags (array, optional)

Creating Your Own Bucket

1. Create a new GitHub repository
2. Add JSON package files to the root directory
3. Each .json file represents a package
4. Follow the package structure outlined above
5. Users can add your bucket with: dal bucket add douxxtech/your-repo

Example Bucket Structure

your-bucket/
├── git-shortcuts.json
├── docker-helpers.json
├── system-tools.json
└── README.md

Configuration Files

DouAL stores configuration in your home directory:

• ~/.doual_aliases: Local aliases and package information
• ~/.doual_buckets: Configured bucket repositories
• Shell RC files: ~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, etc. (aliases are appended here)

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. Aliases not available after installation

   • Reload your terminal: source ~/.bashrc (or restart terminal)
   • Check if aliases were added to the correct RC file

2. Package not found

   • Refresh bucket contents: dal bucket refresh <bucket-name>
   • Verify package name with: dal search <package-name>

3. Permission denied errors

   • Ensure proper file permissions on configuration files
   • For root-level commands, use the runAsRoot option

4. GitHub API rate limits

   • Wait and try again later
   • Consider using authentication for higher limits

Getting Help

dal --help
dal <command> --help

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch: git checkout -b feature-name
3. Make your changes and add tests
4. Commit your changes: git commit -m "Add feature"
5. Push to your branch: git push origin feature-name
6. Create a Pull Request

Available Buckets

Below are known DAL package buckets you can add to your configuration:

Official/Community Buckets

| Bucket | Description | Packages | Maintainer | |--------|-------------|----------|------------| | douxxtech/dal-bucket | Example bucket with common shell utilities | Various | @douxxtech |

Adding More Buckets

If you know of other DAL-compatible buckets or have created your own, please:

1. Open an issue or pull request to add it to this list
2. Ensure the bucket follows the package structure guidelines
3. Include a brief description and package count

To test a bucket before adding it to this list:

dal bucket add username/repository-name
dal search

Note: This is an open-source project. Feel free to contribute by creating your own packages, reporting issues, or improving the codebase!

License

Licensed under NSDv1.0

Support

• 🐛 Bug Reports: Create an issue
• 💡 Feature Requests: Create an issue