From 752a06ec0ebf20d6232b13f1ea53fe21fefcefbd Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Sadeep Madurange Date: Mon, 8 Dec 2025 17:34:35 +0800 Subject: Fix list indentation. --- _blog/suckless-software.md | 90 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 90 insertions(+) create mode 100644 _blog/suckless-software.md (limited to '_blog/suckless-software.md') diff --git a/_blog/suckless-software.md b/_blog/suckless-software.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..86fb5bc --- /dev/null +++ b/_blog/suckless-software.md @@ -0,0 +1,90 @@ +--- +title: How I manage Suckless software packages +date: 2025-11-30 +layout: post +--- + +Since suckless software requires users to modify the +source code and recompile to customize, I need a way to maintain patches over +the long term while retaining the ability to upgrade the software as new +versions are released. + +## Initial setup + +When using a suckless program, I usually begin by cloning the project and +setting the remote URL to push a copy of the source code with my patches to my +own git repository: + +``` +git clone git://git.suckless.org/dwm +git reset --hard +git remote set-url --push origin git@git.asciimx.com:/repos/dwm +``` + +This way, I can pull updates from the upstream project whenever I want, while +committing my changes to my own git repository. The git reset command aligns my +branch head with a stable release before applying patches or installing the +software. + +If all I want to do is reconfigure the software (e.g., change key bindings), +which is what I need most of the time, the recommended approach is to modify +the config.h file. If the config.h isn't yet in the project, the following +command generates it from the defaults and compiles the software using `make +clean ` here `` is the name of the application (e.g., dwm) +found in the Makefile. I modify the resulting config.h file and run `make clean +install` to install the software before committing and pushing my changes to my +git repo. + +## dwm and slstatus + +Since dwm and slstatus are always running, `make install` will likely fail for +them. The operating system will prevent the installer from replacing running +executables with new ones. Hence, we must first stop the running instances of +these programs (Mod + Shift + q). Then, switch to a tty (Ctrl + Alt + F1), +log in, and change the directory to where dwm/slstatus is. We can run `make +install` to install the software and switch back to the graphical session +(Ctrl + Alt + F5). + +The key combinations for switching to the tty and back may differ across +systems. The ones listed above are for OpenBSD. + +## Subsequent upgrades + +When suckless releases a new version, I run `git pull --rebase` to fetch the +upstream changes and rebase my patches on top of them. Because I tend to use +stable versions, I perform another interactive rebase to drop the commits +between the latest stable version tag and my patch before installing the +software. + +Commit log before upgrading: + +``` +dt236 My patch. +3fkdf Version 6.5. +``` + +Commit log after pulling: + +``` +w467d My patch. +gh25g A commit. +g525g Another commit. +3fkdf Version 6.6. +vd425 Old commit. +q12vu Another old commit. +3fkdf Version 6.5. +``` + +Commit log after the interactive rebase: + +``` +h57jh My patch. +3fkdf Version 6.6. +vd425 Old commit. +q12vu Another old commit. +3fkdf Version 6.5. +``` + +And finally, commit and push all the changes to my own git repository. + -- cgit v1.2.3