isolated-desktops

Version: 1.6.1

isolated-desktops is a session-profile manager for testing multiple Linux desktop setups on a single machine while keeping the same Linux user and separate session homes.

The repository name stays isolated-desktops because it is short and memorable, but the project is documented precisely:

• it does isolate profile-level user files
• it does not isolate the whole operating system

This project should therefore be understood as session-profile isolation, not VM-style or container-style system isolation.

Quick start

git clone https://github.com/Vguver/isolated-desktops.git
cd isolated-desktops
chmod +x install.sh
./install.sh --bootstrap

# See the supported profile names from your local checkout
scripts/idtool.sh list --names-only

# Inspect a profile before installing it
scripts/idtool.sh analyze <profile-name>

# Install and verify the profile
scripts/idtool.sh install <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh verify <profile-name>

# Create a launcher and a login session
scripts/idtool.sh launcher create <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh session create <profile-name> --scope user --type wayland

Example:

scripts/idtool.sh analyze omarchy
scripts/idtool.sh install omarchy
scripts/idtool.sh verify omarchy

Screenshots

Status dashboard

Available profile list

What this project solves

Many third-party desktop projects assume a fresh installation. When you try several of them on one real machine, their user configuration files tend to mix together.

isolated-desktops keeps one Linux account but lets you start different sessions that each point to a different profile home. That makes it much easier to:

• test multiple desktop setups on one system
• compare how different projects structure their configuration
• keep the parts you like and discard the rest
• edit profile files from VS Code or VSCodium through generated workspaces
• export, import, verify, update, and snapshot profiles with a cleaner workflow

What is isolated

Separated per profile:

• HOME
• .config
• .local/share
• .cache
• .local/state
• profile-specific logs, reports, snapshots, backups, workspaces, managed dotfiles, and runtime helpers

Still shared system-wide:

• installed packages
• services
• /etc
• /usr
• display-manager behavior
• anything an upstream installer decides to change outside the profile home

Main concepts

The project is organized around these layers:

1. manifests describe supported upstream desktop projects
2. adapters handle project-specific installation behavior
3. profiles store the real per-session state on disk
4. managed dotfiles provide safer symlink-based editing and recovery
5. editor workspaces make profile editing practical from VS Code or VSCodium
6. verification, rollback, trash, export, and presets make the workflow safer and easier to maintain

This replaces the older generic approach of “find any install.sh and run it”.

Current project layout

isolated-desktops/
├── assets/
│   └── screenshots/
├── docs/
├── examples/
├── manifests/
├── presets/
├── scripts/
│   ├── adapters/
│   ├── commands/
│   ├── completions/
│   └── lib/
├── tests/
├── CHANGELOG.md
├── CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
├── CONTRIBUTING.md
├── INSTALLATION.md
├── LICENSE
├── SECURITY.md
├── VERSION
└── install.sh

Installed profile state lives outside the repository under:

~/.local/share/isolated-desktops/profiles/<profile-name>/

Each profile contains:

home/
repo/
logs/
reports/
snapshots/
runtime/
dotfiles/
workspace/
backups/
meta.json

Main commands

./install.sh --bootstrap
scripts/idtool.sh status
scripts/idtool.sh list
scripts/idtool.sh analyze <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh install <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh update <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh verify <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh launcher create <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh session create <profile-name> --scope system
scripts/idtool.sh links prepare <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh workspace open <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh sync <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh export <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh start <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh completion install
scripts/idtool.sh self-update

Use scripts/idtool.sh list --names-only to discover available profile names.

Typical workflow

# 1. See which profiles are available
scripts/idtool.sh list --names-only

# 2. Review the install plan
scripts/idtool.sh analyze <profile-name>

# 3. Install the profile
scripts/idtool.sh install <profile-name>

# 4. Verify the resulting setup
scripts/idtool.sh verify <profile-name>

# 5. Create a launcher and an optional login session
scripts/idtool.sh launcher create <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh session create <profile-name> --scope user --type wayland

# 6. Start the profile or open its editor workspace
scripts/idtool.sh start <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh workspace open <profile-name>

Managed dotfiles

By default, managed dotfiles live inside the profile itself:

~/.local/share/isolated-desktops/profiles/<profile-name>/dotfiles/home/

Useful commands:

scripts/idtool.sh links prepare <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh links link <profile-name> .config
scripts/idtool.sh links adopt <profile-name> .config
scripts/idtool.sh links repair <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh links status <profile-name>

You can still override the dotfiles base with ID_DOTFILES_ROOT if you intentionally want an external tree.

Editor workflow

The project generates real VS Code / VSCodium workspace files.

scripts/idtool.sh workspace create <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh workspace open <profile-name>

The generated workspace includes:

• profile home
• cloned repository
• managed dotfiles
• logs
• reports
• snapshots
• backups

Health checks and updates

Before trusting a profile, use:

scripts/idtool.sh analyze <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh verify <profile-name>

To re-run installation logic against an already installed profile:

scripts/idtool.sh update <profile-name>

Export, import, trash, and presets

scripts/idtool.sh export <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh import ~/.local/share/isolated-desktops/exports/<profile-name>-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS.tar.gz
scripts/idtool.sh remove <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh trash list
scripts/idtool.sh trash restore <trash-id>
scripts/idtool.sh preset list
scripts/idtool.sh preset install hyprland-suite

Safety features

Highlights from the hardened 1.5.x and 1.6.x line:

• stale-lock recovery for fallback lock mode
• transaction-style rollback snapshots stored outside the live profile tree
• stronger managed-dotfiles adoption with staged copies and restore-on-failure behavior
• broader default managed paths (.config, .local/bin, .local/share)
• healthier verification checks for launcher syntax, session file format, repository integrity, and start-command availability
• atomic first clone into a temporary checkout before moving into place
• export archive verification and improved import checks
• safer cleanup of custom manifests and external dotfiles when removing profiles
• Bash completion support and git-based project self-update
• lifecycle and resilience tests for clone failures, disk-space guards, interrupted installs, and lock contention

Strong warning

This project is much safer and cleaner than the original generic-script approach, but it still cannot guarantee that every third-party installer will stay inside the profile.

If an upstream installer:

• installs packages
• edits /etc
• enables services
• writes into /usr/share
• changes display manager settings

those are still host-wide changes.

Always run:

scripts/idtool.sh analyze <profile-name>
scripts/idtool.sh verify <profile-name>

before trusting a profile on your main machine.

Requirements

Required:

• Bash 4+
• Git
• curl

Recommended:

• an Arch-based host if you want to test Arch-specific desktop installers
• VS Code or VSCodium for workspace editing
• a display manager such as SDDM, GDM, or LightDM if you want login-screen sessions

Included documentation

• INSTALLATION.md
• docs/ARCHITECTURE.md
• docs/ADAPTERS.md
• docs/MANIFESTS.md
• docs/STATE-LAYOUT.md
• docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md
• docs/FAQ.md
• docs/MIGRATION_FROM_V2.md
• CONTRIBUTING.md
• SECURITY.md
• CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md

Publishing and legal notes

This repository uses the MIT License for the project code itself. Third-party desktop projects referenced by manifests keep their own licenses, trademarks, assets, and install logic. If you later add screenshots, wallpapers, themes, fonts, or copied upstream files, review the license of each upstream project before redistributing them.

Community files

This repository includes:

• LICENSE
• CONTRIBUTING.md
• SECURITY.md
• CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md

These files help GitHub show a healthier public project profile and make expectations clearer for contributors and users.

License

Released under the MIT License. See LICENSE.