geerlingguy/mac-dev-playbook
Mac Dev Playbook
This project is an Ansible-based automation suite designed to provision macOS development environments. It utilizes a set of playbooks to automate the installation of software, the configuration of system settings, and the setup of tools required for software engineering.
The system distinguishes itself through variable-driven configuration and symlink-based dotfile syncing, allowing users to override default package lists and synchronize preferences from a central store. It supports both local setup and remote machine provisioning via SSH.
The automation surface covers idempotent state management, system font installation, and selective task execution using tags to filter specific configuration subsets. It manages the deployment of shells, editors, and command-line packages to establish a consistent local development workspace.
Features
- macOS Development Environments - Provides a curated set of tools and system configurations specifically tailored for software development on macOS.
- Ansible macOS Provisioning - Provides a comprehensive set of Ansible playbooks to automate the setup and configuration of macOS development environments.
- Dotfiles and Configuration - Manages the deployment of personal dotfiles and system preferences from a central repository.
- Application Settings - Synchronizes user preferences and configuration files from a central store to the local system.
- Dotfile Managers - Implements symlink-based synchronization of user preferences and configuration files from a central store.
- Dotfile Symlinking - Synchronizes configuration files by mirroring a central repository to the local home directory using symbolic links.
- Environment Configuration Tools - Automates the installation and configuration of shells, editors, and tools to create a consistent development environment.
- Installation Configuration - Allows customizing the software installation process by overriding default package lists via configuration files.
- Local Development Environments - Establishes a consistent coding workspace by configuring a specific set of shells, editors, and command line tools.
- Ansible Modules - Provides a collection of Ansible playbooks and tasks to automate the configuration and software installation on macOS.
- Configuration Variable Overrides - Uses variable-driven YAML configurations to allow users to override default package lists and system settings.
- Selective Task Application - Allows running specific subsets of the installation process using tags to update only certain components.
- Task Filtering - Allows selective execution of specific configuration subsets by filtering tasks through defined tags.
- SSH-Based Remote Execution - Enables the execution of configuration tasks on remote machines via secure shell connections.
- Remote Server Provisioning - Automates the initial setup and configuration of development environments on remote systems via SSH.
- Remote macOS Provisioning - Configures development environments on remote macOS machines over SSH from a local controller.
- SSH Deployment Tools - Supports the remote deployment of software and system configurations to macOS machines via secure shell connections.
- System State Idempotency - Implements idempotent state management to ensure system settings are applied without duplicating work on subsequent runs.
- Configuration Automation - Full macOS development machine setup via Ansible.
