kyrat
SSH wrapper that transfers and sources your local dotfiles to remote sessions without requiring installation on the remote host.
What is kyrat?
Kyrat is an SSH wrapper script that transfers and sources your local dotfiles (bashrc, vimrc, inputrc, tmux.conf, zshrc) to remote SSH sessions. It solves the problem of inconsistent shell environments when working across multiple servers by bringing your personalized configuration with you without requiring any installation on remote hosts.
System administrators, DevOps engineers, and developers who frequently SSH into multiple remote servers and want to maintain a consistent shell environment across all their sessions.
Kyrat provides a lightweight, zero-installation solution for dotfile synchronization that works without root access on remote hosts, unlike alternatives that require package installation or complex setup procedures on each server.
Overview
SSH wrapper script that brings your dotfiles always with you on Linux and OSX
Use Cases
Best For
- Maintaining consistent shell aliases and functions across multiple servers
- Bringing custom vim configurations to remote editing sessions
- Keeping tmux configurations synchronized across different machines
- Ensuring consistent inputrc settings (like case-insensitive tab completion) on all SSH connections
- Working with multiple client shells (bash, zsh) while keeping configurations portable
- Securely transferring dotfiles without leaving permanent traces on remote hosts
Not Ideal For
- Environments with strict SSH security policies that limit command-line argument length or script execution
- Users needing to synchronize dotfiles beyond the supported types (e.g., .gitconfig, .profile, .ssh/config)
- Cross-platform teams that include Windows users, as Kyrat only supports Linux and macOS clients
- Scenarios requiring permanent dotfile installation on remote hosts for all user sessions
Pros & Cons
Pros
Requires no software installation or root access on remote hosts, as dotfiles are encoded and passed via ssh command line, making it ideal for shared or restricted servers.
Uses Base64 encoding and Gzip compression to obfuscate dotfiles during transfer, and automatically removes them from remote /tmp directories on session exit, enhancing security.
Allows spawning bash, zsh, or sh shells remotely via the KYRAT_SHELL environment variable, accommodating different user preferences without remote configuration.
Works on both Linux and macOS systems, enabling consistent dotfile usage across different local machines, as highlighted in the platform-specific installation instructions.
Cons
Only supports bashrc, vimrc, inputrc, tmux.conf, and zshrc, excluding common configuration files like .gitconfig or .profile, which limits its utility for full environment synchronization.
Requires bash >=4.0 and GNU coreutils, with manual installation via git clone and PATH export—no package manager support—making setup more complex than drop-in solutions.
The README's troubleshooting section is intentionally left blank, offering no guidance for resolving potential problems, which could frustrate users encountering errors.
Frequently Asked Questions
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