# alichtman/shallow-backup

Git-integrated backup tool for macOS and Linux devs.

Repository: https://github.com/alichtman/shallow-backup
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/shallow-backup
Language: Python
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: backup-script, mac-backup-script, backup-utility, linux-backup, backup
Last push: 2026-03-21T11:43:30+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 79/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 73, release rhythm 75, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 3083, "days_push": 165, "days_rel": 165, "gap_med": 0, "n_releases_24m": 2}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1336, forks 267 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:25.486552+00:00)

## What it is
shallow-backup is a Python CLI tool that creates lightweight backups of installed packages, applications, fonts, and dotfiles, automatically pushing them to a remote Git repository. It supports conditional backup and idempotent reinstallation across multiple systems.

## Use cases
- back up my dotfiles to a git repo
- create a lightweight backup of installed packages on linux
- sync dotfiles across multiple computers
- reinstall dotfiles from a backup
- back up fonts and applications on macOS
- manage dotfiles without symlinking

## When to choose
- you want git-integrated, lightweight backups of dotfiles and package lists on macOS or Linux
- you need conditional backup/reinstall across multiple machines
- you prefer copying files over symlinking

## When to avoid
- you need full-disk or large binary file backups
- you are on Windows
- you want a GUI backup solution

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: active
- function: backup, developer-tools, cli, file-system
- domain: developer-tools, self-hosted
- platform: cli, python
- tags: dotfiles, backup-utility, git-integration, package-lists, system-configuration, command-line, automation, macos, linux

## Member repositories
- alichtman/shallow-backup (main) score 79

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:25.486552+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T04:44:06.882511+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/alichtman/shallow-backup (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:25.486552+00:00, sha 97d0d17b496a)
  - registry_pypi: https://pypi.org/pypi/shallow-backup/json (fetched 2026-08-29T12:03:23.505147+00:00, sha eed60d1e5405)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.