Config Files Setup Guide

A collection of shell configuration files for a modern, productive terminal experience. This repository contains Zsh configuration with Zinit plugin manager and Fastfetch system information display. Created by og GeneCodeSavvy & enhanced by Buildwithmanav

Table of Contents

• Prerequisites
• Installation
  • macOS
  • Linux
  • Windows
• Configuration
  • Zsh Configuration
  • Fastfetch Configuration
• Features
• Troubleshooting

Prerequisites

Before installing, ensure you have:

• Git - For cloning repositories and plugin management
• Zsh - Shell (usually pre-installed on macOS and most Linux distributions)
• curl or wget - For downloading installation scripts

Optional but Recommended Tools

The configuration integrates with these tools (they'll work without them, but features will be limited):

• Starship - Cross-shell prompt
• FZF - Fuzzy finder
• Zoxide - Smart directory jumper
• eza - Modern ls replacement
• fd - Fast find replacement
• Bun - JavaScript runtime

Installation

macOS

1. Install Zsh (if not already installed)

Zsh comes pre-installed on macOS. Verify with:

zsh --version

If not installed, install via Homebrew:

brew install zsh

2. Install Oh My Zsh (Optional - This config uses Zinit)

Note: This configuration uses Zinit instead of Oh My Zsh, but if you want Oh My Zsh as a base, you can install it:

sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"

However, this config will automatically install Zinit, so Oh My Zsh is optional.

3. Install Fastfetch

Using Homebrew:

brew install fastfetch

Or using MacPorts:

sudo port install fastfetch

Or build from source:

git clone https://github.com/fastfetch-cli/fastfetch.git
cd fastfetch
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
cmake --build . -j
sudo cmake --install .

4. Install Configuration Files

# Clone or navigate to this repository
cd /path/to/config

# Backup existing config (if any)
[ -f ~/.zshrc ] && mv ~/.zshrc ~/.zshrc.backup

# Copy zsh config
cp "zsh config/.zshrc" ~/.zshrc

# Create fastfetch config directory
mkdir -p ~/.config/fastfetch

# Copy fastfetch config
cp "fast fetch config/config.jsonc" ~/.config/fastfetch/config.jsonc

5. Make Zsh Your Default Shell

# Add zsh to allowed shells
echo /opt/homebrew/bin/zsh | sudo tee -a /etc/shells

# Change default shell
chsh -s /opt/homebrew/bin/zsh

6. Start a New Terminal Session

Close and reopen your terminal, or run:

exec zsh

---

Linux

1. Install Zsh

Ubuntu/Debian:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install zsh git curl

Fedora/RHEL/CentOS:

sudo dnf install zsh git curl

Arch Linux:

sudo pacman -S zsh git curl

openSUSE:

sudo zypper install zsh git curl

2. Install Oh My Zsh (Optional)

sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"

Note: This config uses Zinit, which will auto-install on first run.

3. Install Fastfetch

Ubuntu/Debian (using apt):

sudo apt install fastfetch

Fedora/RHEL/CentOS:

sudo dnf install fastfetch

Arch Linux (AUR):

yay -S fastfetch
# or
paru -S fastfetch

Build from source:

git clone https://github.com/fastfetch-cli/fastfetch.git
cd fastfetch
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
cmake --build . -j
sudo cmake --install .

4. Install Configuration Files

# Clone or navigate to this repository
cd /path/to/config

# Backup existing config (if any)
[ -f ~/.zshrc ] && mv ~/.zshrc ~/.zshrc.backup

# Copy zsh config
cp "zsh config/.zshrc" ~/.zshrc

# Create fastfetch config directory
mkdir -p ~/.config/fastfetch

# Copy fastfetch config
cp "fast fetch config/config.jsonc" ~/.config/fastfetch/config.jsonc

5. Make Zsh Your Default Shell

# Verify zsh is in /etc/shells
grep -q /usr/bin/zsh /etc/shells || echo /usr/bin/zsh | sudo tee -a /etc/shells

# Change default shell
chsh -s $(which zsh)

6. Start a New Terminal Session

exec zsh

---

Windows

Option 1: WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) - Recommended

1. Install WSL:

   Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

   wsl --install

   Or for a specific distribution:

   wsl --install -d Ubuntu

2. Follow Linux installation steps above within your WSL distribution.

3. Install Windows Terminal (optional but recommended):

   winget install Microsoft.WindowsTerminal

Option 2: Git Bash

1. Install Git for Windows (includes Git Bash):

   • Download from: https://git-scm.com/download/win
   • During installation, ensure "Git Bash Here" is enabled

2. Install Zsh for Git Bash:

   # In Git Bash
   pacman -S zsh

3. Install Fastfetch:

   # Build from source (requires CMake and a C compiler)
   git clone https://github.com/fastfetch-cli/fastfetch.git
   cd fastfetch
   mkdir build && cd build
   cmake ..
   cmake --build . -j

4. Install Configuration Files:

   # Navigate to config directory
   cd /path/to/config
   
   # Backup existing config
   [ -f ~/.zshrc ] && mv ~/.zshrc ~/.zshrc.backup
   
   # Copy configs
   cp "zsh config/.zshrc" ~/.zshrc
   mkdir -p ~/.config/fastfetch
   cp "fast fetch config/config.jsonc" ~/.config/fastfetch/config.jsonc

Option 3: MSYS2

1. Install MSYS2:

   • Download from: https://www.msys2.org/

2. Install Zsh and Fastfetch:

   pacman -S zsh fastfetch git curl

3. Follow the configuration steps from Option 2.

---

Configuration

Zsh Configuration

The Zsh configuration includes:

• Zinit Plugin Manager - Automatically installed on first run
• Syntax Highlighting - Real-time command syntax highlighting
• Autosuggestions - Suggests commands based on history
• FZF Tab Completion - Fuzzy tab completion
• History Substring Search - Search history with arrow keys
• Auto-notify - Notifications for long-running commands
• You Should Use - Reminds you about available aliases
• Oh My Zsh Snippets - Useful plugins (git, sudo, extract, etc.)

Customization

Edit ~/.zshrc to customize:

• Target Date Countdown: Change the date in the remaining_days function call (line 431)
• Aliases: Modify the aliases section (lines 367-417)
• Plugins: Add or remove Zinit plugins (lines 69-102)
• Local Config: Create ~/.zshrc.local for machine-specific settings

After making any changes, reload your configuration:

source ~/.zshrc

Or use the built-in alias:

reload

Note: Always run source ~/.zshrc after:

• Adding or removing plugins
• Modifying aliases or functions
• Changing environment variables
• Removing configuration lines
• When configuration changes don't seem to take effect

Fastfetch Configuration

The Fastfetch config displays system information on terminal startup.

Customization

Edit ~/.config/fastfetch/config.jsonc:

1. Replace {YOUR USERNAME} with your actual username in:

   • Line 5: Logo source path
   • Line 20: Title format

2. Custom Logo (Optional):

   • Place your logo at ~/.config/fastfetch/yourlogo.png
   • Adjust width, height, and padding as needed

3. Modules: Add or remove modules from the modules array to customize what information is displayed

4. Colors: Change the display.color value to match your theme

Note: Fastfetch config changes take effect on the next terminal session. No need to reload zsh config for fastfetch changes.

---

Features

Included Plugins

• zsh-syntax-highlighting - Command syntax highlighting
• zsh-autosuggestions - Command autosuggestions
• zsh-completions - Additional completions
• fzf-tab - Fuzzy tab completion
• zsh-history-substring-search - History search
• zsh-auto-notify - Long command notifications
• zsh-you-should-use - Alias reminders
• LS_COLORS - Enhanced directory colors

Custom Functions

• remaining_days <YYYY-MM-DD> - Calculate days until a target date
• mkcd <directory> - Create directory and cd into it
• extract <file> - Extract various archive formats

Integrations

• Starship - Modern prompt (if installed)
• FZF - Fuzzy finder (if installed)
• Zoxide - Smart cd (if installed)
• eza - Enhanced ls (if installed)
• Bun - JavaScript runtime (if installed)

Aliases

• c / cls - Clear screen
• zshrc - Edit zsh config
• reload - Reload zsh config
• ll - Long list with icons
• lt - Tree view
• bro - Bun run dev
• gst, gco, gp, gl - Git shortcuts
• And many more...

---

Troubleshooting

Configuration changes not working

If you've made changes to ~/.zshrc but they're not taking effect:

1. Reload the configuration:

   source ~/.zshrc

2. If that doesn't work, restart your shell:

   exec zsh

3. Check for errors:

   zsh -n ~/.zshrc

4. Verify the changes were saved:

   cat ~/.zshrc | grep -A 5 "your_change_here"

Common scenarios requiring source ~/.zshrc:

• After adding/removing plugins
• After modifying aliases
• After changing environment variables
• After removing configuration lines
• When new commands aren't recognized
• When aliases don't work

Zsh not found

macOS:

brew install zsh

Linux:

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install zsh

# Fedora
sudo dnf install zsh

# Arch
sudo pacman -S zsh

Zinit installation fails

If Zinit fails to install automatically:

mkdir -p ~/.local/share/zinit
git clone https://github.com/zdharma-continuum/zinit.git ~/.local/share/zinit/zinit.git

Then reload your configuration:

source ~/.zshrc

Or restart your terminal.

Fastfetch not found

1. Verify installation:

   which fastfetch
   fastfetch --version

2. If not found, install using your package manager (see installation sections above)

3. On Windows, ensure it's in your PATH

Slow startup time

1. Disable startup display: Comment out the fastfetch and remaining_days calls in ~/.zshrc (lines 425-431)

2. Reduce plugins: Comment out unused plugins in the plugins section

3. Use lazy loading: Some tools (like NVM) are already lazy-loaded in this config

After making changes, reload:

source ~/.zshrc

Permission denied errors

# Make scripts executable
chmod +x ~/.zshrc

# Fix directory permissions
chmod 755 ~/.config
chmod 755 ~/.local/share

Config not loading

1. Reload the configuration:

   source ~/.zshrc

   If this doesn't work, try:

   exec zsh

2. Verify zsh is your shell:

   echo $SHELL

3. Check config file location:

   ls -la ~/.zshrc

4. Test config manually:

   zsh -c "source ~/.zshrc"

5. Check for syntax errors:

   zsh -n ~/.zshrc

   This will show any syntax errors without executing the file.

Windows-specific issues

• WSL: Ensure you're running commands inside WSL, not PowerShell
• Git Bash: Some features may be limited; WSL is recommended
• Path issues: Use forward slashes / instead of backslashes \

---

Additional Resources

• Zsh Documentation
• Zinit Documentation
• Fastfetch Documentation
• Starship Prompt
• FZF
• Zoxide

One click installation using brew

brew install \
  starship \
  eza \
  fzf \
  zoxide \
  fd \
  fastfetch \
  tree \
  oven-sh/bun/bun \
  node@22 \
  nvm \
  unzip \
  unrar \
  p7zip \
  gzip \
  bzip2 \
  git \
  net-tools

---

Contributing

If you have improvements or find issues, please open an issue or submit a pull request.

Happy coding! 🚀