pier
A CLI tool to organize, manage, and run short Unix shell scripts with metadata and search capabilities.
What is pier?
Pier is a command-line interface (CLI) tool designed to centralize and manage short Unix shell scripts, one-liners, and tools. It solves the problem of forgotten scripts buried in bin folders by providing a structured repository with metadata tagging and easy retrieval. It treats scripts as first-class citizens in the terminal, offering a menu-like interface for discovery and execution.
System administrators, DevOps engineers, and developers who frequently use the terminal and accumulate a collection of custom scripts, one-liners, or CLI tools that they need to organize and recall easily.
Developers choose Pier over manual script management because it adds metadata tagging and a centralized catalog to scripts, enabling easy search and retrieval without moving files. Unlike plain bin folders, it supports multi-language scripts via shebangs and integrates with existing scripts without relocation.
Overview
A CLI to organize and run short Unix shell scripts
Use Cases
Best For
- Organizing and categorizing a personal collection of terminal one-liners and scripts with tags and descriptions.
- Managing Docker-related commands and cleanup scripts in a centralized, searchable repository.
- Executing scripts written in various interpreted languages (e.g., Python, Node.js) directly from a CLI tool using shebangs.
- Cataloging existing scripts from bin folders without moving them, by attaching metadata for easy recall.
- Simplifying the discovery and running of system administration scripts (e.g., service management, network commands) through a structured interface.
- Setting up a shared repository of team scripts with human-readable TOML configuration for consistency across environments.
Not Ideal For
- Users needing automated script scheduling or cron-like functionality
- Teams requiring real-time collaborative script editing with version control integration
- Projects where scripts have complex dependencies requiring isolated environments or package management
Pros & Cons
Pros
Provides commands to add, remove, list, and run scripts from a single repository, as shown in operations like `pier list` and `pier add`, eliminating the need to dig through bin folders.
Allows attaching tags and descriptions to scripts for easy categorization, evident in TOML config examples with tags like 'docker' and 'infosec', enhancing discoverability.
Executes scripts in any interpreted language using shebangs, and supports compiled languages via tools like scriptisto, demonstrated in examples for Python and Rust scripts.
Can catalog pre-existing scripts without moving them by attaching metadata, as mentioned in the description, making it easy to integrate with current workflows.
Cons
Recent versions like 0.1.4 introduced breaking changes, such as removing `default_interpreter`, requiring manual config updates that can disrupt existing setups.
Key functionalities like fuzzy search, autocomplete, and commands like 'mv' and 'tag' are still on the roadmap to v1.0.0, limiting advanced usability compared to mature tools.
Relies on human-readable TOML configuration files, which might be unfamiliar to some users and cumbersome to manage for large or dynamically changing script collections.
Frequently Asked Questions
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