Tracking Files

Before devsync can sync a file, you need to track it. Tracking registers the path in manifest.json so devsync knows to include it during push and pull.

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Tracking a Single File

devsync track ~/.gitconfig
devsync track ~/.zshrc

After tracking, run devsync push to mirror the file into the sync repository.

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Tracking a Directory

You can track an entire directory. All files inside it, recursively, will be included during push and pull.

devsync track ~/.config/nvim
devsync track ~/.config/fish

Note

Tracking a directory tracks its entire subtree. If you add a new file inside a tracked directory later, it will automatically be included in the next push — you don’t need to track it separately.

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Tracking Multiple Paths at Once

Pass multiple paths in a single command:

devsync track ~/.gitconfig ~/.zshrc ~/.config/nvim

All entries are created with the same mode and profile options provided in that command.

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Tracking with a Mode

By default, files are tracked in normal mode. To use a different mode:

devsync track ~/.ssh/config --mode secret
devsync track ~/.config/local-only --mode ignore

See Sync Modes for a full explanation of each mode.

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Tracking with a Profile

To assign a file to one or more profiles, use --profile:

devsync track ~/.config/work-tool --profile work
devsync track ~/.config/nvim --profile work --profile personal

Entries with no profile are always included during push and pull, regardless of the active profile.

See Profiles for more details.

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How Files Are Mirrored in the Repository

When you run devsync push, tracked files are copied into the sync directory using a path structure that mirrors their location relative to your home directory.

For example:

Local path	Repository artifact
~/.gitconfig	sync/default/.gitconfig
~/.config/nvim/init.lua	sync/default/.config/nvim/init.lua
~/.ssh/config (secret)	sync/default/.ssh/config.devsync.secret

The default segment is the profile namespace. Entries assigned to a profile named work would be stored under sync/work/.

• Directory~/.config/devsync/sync/

  • manifest.json
  • Directorydefault/

    • .gitconfig
    • .zshrc
    • Directory.config/

      • Directorynvim/

        • init.lua
    • Directory.ssh/

      • config.devsync.secret
  • Directorywork/

    • Directory.config/

      • Directorywork-tool/

        • settings.json

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Untracking a File

To stop tracking a file, use devsync untrack:

devsync untrack ~/.gitconfig

This removes the entry from manifest.json. It does not delete the local file or the existing artifact in the sync repository. You can remove the artifact manually with devsync cd if needed.

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Checking What Is Tracked

Use devsync status to see the current state of all tracked entries — what has changed since the last push, what is new, and what has been deleted:

devsync status

Use --dry-run with push or pull to preview what would be written without actually applying anything:

devsync push --dry-run
devsync pull --dry-run