Self-Update¶

Overview¶

linthis supports automatic self-update functionality, inspired by oh-my-zsh's auto-update mechanism. This feature automatically checks and updates linthis itself when running, ensuring you always use the latest version.

Manual Update Command¶

linthis update                  # Check and upgrade to latest
linthis update --check          # Only check, don't install
linthis update --force          # Force reinstall
linthis update -v 0.18.0       # Install specific version
linthis upgrade                 # Alias for update

Detects installation method automatically (cargo, pip, uv tool, pipx) and uses the correct upgrade command. For cargo installs, checks crates.io; for pip-based installs, checks PyPI.

Features¶

Manual update command: linthis update / linthis upgrade with install method detection
Specific version install: linthis update -v <VERSION> with auto-update conflict warning
Configurable check interval: Customize how often to check for updates (default: 7 days)
Multiple update modes:
auto: Update automatically without confirmation
prompt: Ask user before updating (default)
disabled: Disable auto-update
Smart update detection: Only prompts when new version is available; silently updates timestamp when no update exists
Smart time tracking: Uses Unix timestamps to avoid timezone issues
Multi-source version detection: PyPI for pip installs, crates.io API for cargo installs
Graceful user interaction: Clear progress indicators and error handling

Configuration¶

Configuration File¶

Add to .linthis/config.toml or ~/.linthis/config.toml:

# Self-update settings
[self_auto_update]
enabled = true           # Enable auto-update checking
mode = "prompt"          # Update mode: "auto", "prompt", "disabled"
interval_days = 7        # Check interval (days)

Configuration Options¶

`enabled`¶

Type: Boolean
Default: true
Description: Whether to enable auto-update checking

`mode`¶

Type: String
Default: "prompt"
Options:
"auto": Update automatically without user confirmation
"prompt": Ask user before updating
"disabled": Disable auto-update

`interval_days`¶

Type: Integer
Default: 7
Description: Number of days between update checks

How It Works¶

Time Tracking¶

Auto-update uses ~/.linthis/.self_update_last_check to store the timestamp (Unix epoch seconds) of the last check.

Trigger¶

Each time linthis runs, the system: 1. Loads self_update settings from config 2. Checks ~/.linthis/.self_update_last_check file 3. Calculates time since last check 4. If interval exceeded, triggers update check flow

Update Flow¶

Based on configured mode:

auto mode:
Check PyPI for latest version via pip index versions linthis
If no new version: Silently update timestamp, no prompt
If new version available: Automatically run pip install --upgrade linthis
Display update progress
Update timestamp
prompt mode:
Check PyPI for latest version
If no new version: Silently update timestamp, no prompt
If new version available: Prompt A new version of linthis is available: 0.0.4 → 0.0.5. Update now? [Y/n]:
Wait for user input
If confirmed, execute update
If declined, skip and update timestamp
disabled mode:
Skip all checks

Important: Only prompts or auto-updates when a new version is detected. No unnecessary interruptions when already up-to-date.

Examples¶

Example 1: Default (Prompt Mode)¶

[self_auto_update]
enabled = true
mode = "prompt"
interval_days = 7

When interval exceeded and new version available:

$ linthis
A new version of linthis is available: 0.0.4 → 0.0.5. Update now? [Y/n]: y
↓ Upgrading linthis via pip...
✓ linthis upgraded successfully

When interval exceeded but no new version:

$ linthis
# Silently updates check timestamp, no prompt
# Continues with normal linting flow

Example 2: Auto Mode¶

[self_auto_update]
enabled = true
mode = "auto"
interval_days = 3

Auto-checks every 3 days and updates without confirmation:

$ linthis
↓ Upgrading linthis via pip...
✓ linthis upgraded successfully

Example 3: Disable Auto-Update¶

[self_auto_update]
enabled = false

Or:

[self_auto_update]
mode = "disabled"

Example 4: Manual Update¶

You can always manually update:

pip install --upgrade linthis

Comparison with oh-my-zsh¶

Feature	oh-my-zsh	linthis
Default interval	13 days	7 days
Update modes	auto, reminder, disabled	auto, prompt, disabled
Time tracking	`~/.zsh-update`	`~/.linthis/.self_update_last_check`
Update method	git pull	pip install --upgrade

Configuration Priority¶

Configuration is loaded with the following priority (highest to lowest): 1. Project config (.linthis/config.toml) 2. Global config (~/.linthis/config.toml) 3. Built-in defaults

Troubleshooting¶

Auto-update not working¶

Checklist: 1. Confirm self_update.enabled = true 2. Confirm self_update.mode is not "disabled" 3. Check permissions on ~/.linthis/.self_update_last_check 4. Check for error messages in output 5. Confirm pip is available: pip --version

Prompts too frequent¶

Solution: Increase interval_days:

[self_auto_update]
interval_days = 14  # Change to 14 days

Want to completely disable¶

Solution:

[self_auto_update]
enabled = false

pip permission issues¶

If you encounter permission issues, try user mode install:

pip install --user --upgrade linthis

Or use sudo (not recommended):

sudo pip install --upgrade linthis

Relationship with Plugin Auto-Sync¶

linthis supports both: 1. Self-Update (this feature): Update linthis itself 2. Auto-Sync: Sync plugins automatically

Both are configured and run independently:

# Update linthis itself
[self_auto_update]
enabled = true
mode = "prompt"
interval_days = 7

# Sync plugins
[plugin_auto_sync]
enabled = true
mode = "prompt"
interval_days = 7

Execution order: 1. Check for linthis self-update first 2. Then check for plugin sync