New Machine Setup¶

This is where haven shines. One command takes you from a fresh OS install to a fully configured development environment.

The one-command setup¶

# Install haven
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/johnstegeman/haven/main/install.sh | sh

# Clone your environment repo and apply everything
haven init gh:you/my-env --apply

haven init --apply clones your repo, then runs haven apply — deploying your dotfiles, running Homebrew, triggering mise, and deploying AI skills in sequence.

Selecting a profile¶

If you have multiple profiles (work, personal, minimal), specify which to use:

haven init gh:you/my-env --apply --profile work
haven init gh:you/my-env --apply --profile personal

See Profiles & Modules for how to set up profiles.

Applying sections selectively¶

If you want to apply only certain sections:

haven apply              # everything: files + brews + mise + ai skills
haven apply --files      # dotfiles only
haven apply --brews      # Homebrew packages only
haven apply --ai         # AI skills only

Keeping your environment in sync¶

After the initial setup, staying in sync is straightforward:

# Pull the latest changes from your repo
cd ~/.local/share/haven && git pull

# Apply changes
haven apply

Checking for drift after a pull¶

haven status    # quick overview of what's changed
haven diff      # full diff between source and live files

Re-applying externals¶

External git repos (extdir_ entries, like plugin managers) are cloned on first apply but not updated automatically. To pull updates:

haven apply --apply-externals

Complete new machine checklist¶

1. Install haven
2. haven init gh:you/my-env --apply --profile <name>
3. Set up shell completions (see Installation)
4. Verify: haven status
5. If using 1Password: op signin && haven apply (to render secrets into templates)
6. If using AI skills: haven apply --ai