A simple script to keep track of working directories in bash.
Intended as a lightweight alternative to screen/tmux
for developers working on a number of projects
with different directories/environments.
The installation script downloads the bcs script, installs it in the specified directory,
and adds the required functions to the logon file (see below).
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kpedro88/breadcrumbs/master/install_bcs.sh
chmod +x install_bcs.sh
./install_bcs.sh -d [directory]
Installation script options:
-d installation directory (required)
-f logon file to install functions (default = ~/.bashrc)
-a function name for cd + env (default = bcd)
-b function name for cd (default = bgo)
-e script name for CMSSW singularity env (default = benv)
-v version of bcs to install (default = master)
-h print this message and exit
bcs keeps track of a list of directories in a json file. It can list the directories
(including certain metadata attributes), as well as add, remove, or change associated metadata.
Each directory has a unique label (if not specified, automatically set to the directory path
to ensure uniqueness) as well as a non-unique type (used as a classifier to allow removing
groups of directories). The date a directory was added to the list is also stored, and
newest directories are displayed first. (Re-adding a directory updates its date,
but modifying metadata (label or type) does not change the date.)
The simplest usage is just to call bcs add before closing one's terminal or ssh connection,
to keep track of one's last location. This can be automated by including the bcs add
call in a logout file. (The "type" attribute can be used to separate directories added
automatically from those added manually, if desired.)
One can then call bcs list on login to see the list of breadcrumbs.
The unique labels can be used as keywords if the user does not want to keep track of
the automatic numbering in the list.
When adding a directory, the environment command will be automatically populated with
eval `scramv1 runtime -sh`
if the directory name contains "CMSSW". This can be disabled using the -E flag.
If Singularity is needed for a given CMSSW version (determined by checking the base OS),
the environment command will launch the appropriate container (with GPU support, if possible),
and call the above CMSSW environment command.
This is accomplished by a bash script benv that is created by the installation script.
A directory in the list can block other related directories from being added to the list.
By default, blocking is not enabled. A directory with a block level of 0 will block any of its subdirectories.
A higher block level will also block subdirectories of the corresponding higher-level directory.
For example, a directory /A/B/C/D with a block level of 1 would block all other subdirectories of /A/B/C,
while a block level of 2 would block all other subdirectories of /A/B.
Examples of the above:
.bash_login:
if type bcs >& /dev/null; then
bcs list -l
fi.bash_logout:
if type bcs >& /dev/null && [ "$PWD" != "$HOME" ] && [ "$PWD" != "$(readlink $HOME)" ]; then
bcs add -t auto
fibcs add:
usage: bcs add [-h] [-l LABEL] [-t TYPE] [-e ENV] [-E] [-k BLOCK] [-f] [-b] [dir]
positional arguments:
dir name of directory to add (if not pwd)
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-l LABEL, --label LABEL label for directory to add (optional)
-t TYPE, --type TYPE type for directory to add (optional)
-e ENV, --env ENV env command for directory to add (optional)
-E, --no-auto-env disable automatic env determination
-k BLOCK, --block BLOCK block level (optional)
-f, --force force update of already-used label or directory
-b, --backup make backup before changes
bcs set:
usage: bcs set [-h] [-l LABEL] [-t TYPE] [-e ENV] [-k BLOCK] [-f] [-b] [dir]
positional arguments:
dir # or label of directory to update
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-l LABEL, --label LABEL label for directory to update (optional)
-t TYPE, --type TYPE type for directory to update (optional)
-e ENV, --env ENV env command for directory to update (optional)
-k BLOCK, --block BLOCK block level (optional)
-f, --force force update of already-used label
-b, --backup make backup before changes
bcs list:
usage: bcs list [-h] [-a] [-l] [-t TYPE | -n | -k] [dir]
positional arguments:
dir # or label of directory to list (lists all by default)
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-a, --all list all properties for directory
-l, --long use long listing (dates, labels, types)
-r, --reverse use reverse ordering w/ negative indices when listing all
-t TYPE, --type TYPE list all of specified type
-n, --nonexistent list only nonexistent directories
-k, --blocked list only blocked directories
bcs rm:
usage: bcs rm [-h] [-v] [-t TYPE] [-n] [-k] [-a] [-b] [dir [dir ...]]
positional arguments:
dir #(s) or label(s) of directory(s) to remove from list
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-v, --verbose print removed directory(s)
-r, --reverse use reverse ordering w/ negative indices for verbose
-t TYPE, --type TYPE remove all of specified type
-n, --nonexistent remove nonexistent directories
-k, --blocked remove blocked directories
-a, --all remove all
-b, --backup make backup before changes
bcs cd: used in shell commands
usage: bcs cd [-h] [-g] [dir]
positional arguments:
dir # or label of directory to cd
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-g, --go go to directory without setting env
bcs update: used at installation for compatibility with schema changes
usage: bcs update [-h] [-b]
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-b, --backup make backup before changes
bcd: (cd and set env)
usage: bcd [dir]
positional arguments:
dir # or label of directory to cd
bgo: (cd, don't set env)
usage: bgo [dir]
positional arguments:
dir # or label of directory to cd
The commands bcd and bgo are implemented as functions in bash.
They can be renamed by the installation script.