diethist #

sqlite-backed shell history with fuzzy ctrl-r search, for bash, fish and zsh.

Your shell history on a diet: a much smaller atuin with just the session-agnostic history and the search TUI.

Inspired by stinkpot, a similarly tiny Go take on the same idea.

install #

Try it without installing:

nix run github:nagasrinath/diethist

script (linux, macOS) #

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nagasrinath/diethist/main/install.sh | bash

This installs the latest release binary into ~/.local/share/bin, adds it to your PATH, and wires up the shell integration. Restart your shell, or run the activation line the script prints to use it right away. A specific version can be installed with install.sh v0.1.2. The install directory can be overridden with DIETHIST_INSTALL_DIR.

nix #

Add the input:

inputs.diethist.url = "github:nagasrinath/diethist";

Then either take the package directly:

{
  environment.systemPackages = [inputs.diethist.packages.${pkgs.system}.default];
}

or bring in the overlay and use pkgs.diethist:

{
  nixpkgs.overlays = [inputs.diethist.overlays.default];
  environment.systemPackages = [pkgs.diethist];
}

nix-darwin #

{
  inputs = {
    nixpkgs.url = "github:nixos/nixpkgs/nixos-unstable";
    nix-darwin.url = "github:nix-darwin/nix-darwin";
    diethist.url = "github:nagasrinath/diethist";
  };

  outputs = {
    nixpkgs,
    nix-darwin,
    diethist,
    ...
  }: {
    darwinConfigurations."your-host" = nix-darwin.lib.darwinSystem {
      system = "aarch64-darwin";
      modules = [
        ({pkgs, ...}: {
          nixpkgs.overlays = [diethist.overlays.default];
          environment.systemPackages = [pkgs.diethist];
        })
      ];
    };
  };
}

home-manager #

The module installs diethist and wires up the shell integration. It works the same under nix-darwin, via home-manager.darwinModules.home-manager.

{
  imports = [inputs.diethist.homeManagerModules.default];

  programs.diethist = {
    enable = true;
    enableFishIntegration = true; # or enableBashIntegration
  };
}

There is no zsh option yet; add the zsh line below by hand.

setup #

Without home-manager, add one line to your shell config:

eval "$(diethist init)"       # ~/.bashrc
diethist init fish | source   # ~/.config/fish/config.fish
eval "$(diethist init zsh)"   # ~/.zshrc

usage #

Seed the database from your existing history. The format is detected from the file, or picked from $SHELL:

diethist import
diethist import --file ~/.local/share/fish/fish_history
diethist import --shell fish

Re-importing is safe: a command already stored keeps whichever timestamp is newer.

Then hit ctrl-r:

> search history...
 1s vim flake.nix
 3m redis-server
35m jj show m
  788 matches · ↑/↓ move · enter accept · esc cancel

tab/enter accepts the selection, esc cancels, ↑/↓ move.

See the last 50 recorded commands without the TUI:

diethist list

uninstall #

rm "${DIETHIST_INSTALL_DIR:-$HOME/.local/share/bin}/diethist"
rm -rf ~/.local/share/diethist   # database

Then remove the lines install.sh added to your shell config — look for the # diethist shell integration marker comment in ~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, or ~/.config/fish/config.fish.

troubleshooting #

The database is at ~/.local/share/diethist/history.db. If an upgrade ever breaks it, delete it and run diethist import again — re-importing is safe (see usage).

build #

cargo build --release
cargo test