SlothTool

🐌 A lightweight plugin manager and dispatcher for CLI tools.


Overview

SlothTool is a plugin management system that allows you to install, manage, and run CLI tools as plugins without
polluting your global npm environment. All plugins are installed in an isolated directory (~/.slothtool/plugins/) with
their own dependencies.

Features

- 🔒 Zero Global Pollution: Plugins install to ~/.slothtool/plugins/ instead of global npm
- 📦 Plugin Isolation: Each plugin has its own dependencies in isolated directories
- 🌍 Bilingual Support: Full Chinese and English interface (configurable)
- 🎯 Simple CLI: Easy-to-use commands with shorthand syntax
- 🎨 Interactive Mode: Menu-driven interface for easier operation
- ⚡ Lightweight: Only one runtime dependency (prompts)

Installation

``bash
npm install -g @holic512/slothtool
`

Quick Start

`bash


Install a plugin

slothtool install @holic512/plugin-loc

Run the plugin (shorthand)

slothtool loc ./src

Or use explicit run command

slothtool run loc ./src

List installed plugins

slothtool list

Configure language (default: Chinese)

slothtool config language en

Interactive mode

slothtool -i
`

Commands

$3

| Command | Description |
|--------------------------------------|--------------------------------|
| slothtool install | Install a plugin from npm |
| slothtool uninstall | Uninstall a plugin |
| slothtool list | List all installed plugins |
| slothtool run [args] | Run a plugin with arguments |
| slothtool [args] | Shorthand for running a plugin |
| slothtool config language | Configure interface language |
| slothtool -i, --interactive | Launch interactive mode |
| slothtool --help | Show help information |

$3

`bash


Install official plugin

slothtool install @holic512/plugin-loc

Install any npm package with bin field

slothtool install some-cli-tool

Run plugin with arguments

slothtool loc ./src --verbose

Uninstall plugin

slothtool uninstall loc

Switch to English interface

slothtool config language en

Use interactive mode

slothtool -i
`

How It Works

SlothTool manages CLI tools as isolated plugins:

1. Installation: Plugins are npm packages with a bin field
2. Storage: Downloaded to ~/.slothtool/plugins// with isolated dependencies
3. Registry: Maintains a registry at ~/.slothtool/registry.json tracking installed plugins
4. Execution: Spawns the plugin's executable when you run it
5. Configuration: User settings stored in ~/.slothtool/settings.json

$3

`
~/.slothtool/
├── plugins/ # Plugin installation directory
│ ├── loc/ # Example: loc plugin
│ │ └── node_modules/
│ └── another-plugin/
├── plugin-configs/ # Plugin-specific configurations
│ └── loc.json
├── registry.json # Plugin registry
└── settings.json # User settings (language, etc.)
`

Configuration

$3

SlothTool supports Chinese (zh) and English (en):

`bash


Switch to English

slothtool config language en

Switch to Chinese (default)

slothtool config language zh

View current language

slothtool config
`

$3

Package names are automatically converted to simple aliases:

- @holic512/plugin-loc → loc
- plugin-mytool → mytool
- some-tool → some-tool

Official Plugins

- @holic512/plugin-loc - Lines of code counter with interactive features

Creating Plugins

Any npm package with a bin field can be a SlothTool plugin.

$3

`json
{
"name": "@yourscope/plugin-mytool",
"version": "1.0.0",
"description": "My awesome CLI tool",
"bin": {
"mytool": "bin/mytool.js"
},
"keywords": [
"slothtool-plugin",
"cli"
]
}
`

$3

1. Naming Convention: Use plugin- prefix or include in package scope
2. Keywords: Add slothtool-plugin keyword for discoverability
3. Internationalization: Read language from ~/.slothtool/settings.json for i18n support
4. Configuration: Store plugin-specific config in ~/.slothtool/plugin-configs/.json
5. Interactive Features: Use prompts library for better UX

$3

`javascript
#!/usr/bin/env node
const fs = require('fs');
const path = require('path');
const os = require('os');

// Read language setting from slothtool
function getLanguage() {
const settingsPath = path.join(os.homedir(), '.slothtool', 'settings.json');
if (fs.existsSync(settingsPath)) {
const settings = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(settingsPath, 'utf8'));
return settings.language || 'zh';
}
return 'zh';
}

const messages = {
zh: {greeting: '你好，世界！'},
en: {greeting: 'Hello, World!'}
};

const lang = getLanguage();
console.log(messages[lang].greeting);
`

$3

`bash


Publish to npm

npm publish --access public

Users can then install it

slothtool install @yourscope/plugin-mytool
slothtool mytool
`

Interactive Mode

Launch interactive mode for a menu-driven experience:

`bash
slothtool -i
`

Features:

- Install official or custom plugins
- Uninstall plugins
- List installed plugins
- Run plugins
- Configure language settings

Uninstalling

$3

When you uninstall a plugin, SlothTool will automatically remove:

- Plugin directory and all its dependencies (~/.slothtool/plugins//)
- Plugin-specific configuration file (~/.slothtool/plugin-configs/.json)
- Registry entry from ~/.slothtool/registry.json

`bash


Uninstall a specific plugin

slothtool uninstall

Example

slothtool uninstall loc
`

The uninstall command will show you exactly what will be removed before proceeding.

$3

To completely remove SlothTool and all its data from your system:

#### Option 1: Using the built-in command (recommended)

`bash


Remove all plugins, configurations, and SlothTool data


slothtool --uninstall-all
`

This will remove:
- All installed plugins (~/.slothtool/plugins/)
- All plugin configurations (~/.slothtool/plugin-configs/)
- Registry file (~/.slothtool/registry.json)
- Settings file (~/.slothtool/settings.json)
- The entire ~/.slothtool/ directory

Then uninstall the global SlothTool package:

`bash
npm uninstall -g @holic512/slothtool
`

#### Option 2: Manual removal

`bash


1. Remove all SlothTool data

rm -rf ~/.slothtool/

2. Uninstall the global package

npm uninstall -g @holic512/slothtool
`

$3

Here's a complete breakdown of what SlothTool stores on your system:

`
~/.slothtool/
├── plugins/ # All installed plugins and their dependencies
│ ├── loc/ # Example: loc plugin
│ │ ├── node_modules/
│ │ └── package.json
│ └── [other-plugins]/
├── plugin-configs/ # Plugin-specific configurations
│ ├── loc.json # Example: loc plugin config
│ └── [other-configs].json
├── registry.json # Plugin registry (tracks installed plugins)
└── settings.json # User settings (language preference, etc.)
`

Note: SlothTool only stores data in ~/.slothtool/. No other system files or directories are modified.

Troubleshooting

$3

`bash


Check installed plugins

slothtool list

Reinstall if needed

slothtool uninstall
slothtool install
`

$3

SlothTool installs to user directory (~/.slothtool/), so no sudo is required. If you encounter permission issues:

`bash


Check directory permissions

ls -la ~/.slothtool/

Fix permissions if needed

chmod -R u+w ~/.slothtool/
`

Development

$3

`bash


Clone repository

git clone https://github.com/holic512/SlothTool.git
cd SlothTool

Install dependencies

npm install

Link for local testing

cd packages/slothtool
npm link

Test the CLI

slothtool --help
`

$3

`
packages/slothtool/
├── bin/
│ └── slothtool.js # CLI entry point
├── lib/
│ ├── commands/ # Command implementations
│ │ ├── install.js
│ │ ├── uninstall.js
│ │ ├── list.js
│ │ ├── run.js
│ │ ├── config.js
│ │ └── interactive.js
│ ├── i18n.js # Internationalization
│ ├── plugin-manager.js # Plugin installation/uninstallation
│ ├── registry.js # Registry management
│ ├── settings.js # Settings management
│ └── utils.js # Utility functions
└── package.json
``

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit issues and pull requests.

Related Documentation

- Configuration Analysis - Detailed analysis of the codebase
- npm link vs SlothTool - Comparison with npm link

License

ISC

Author

holic512