Zsh & Terminal Customization¶

1. Installation¶

Install the shell and git, which is required for downloading the theme and plugins.

# Update package list and install
sudo apt update && sudo apt install zsh git -y

# Verify installation
zsh --version

2. Oh My Zsh Framework¶

Oh My Zsh (OMZ) is a configuration framework that manages the Zsh environment.

Install via Curl:

sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"

Note: If prompted to change the default shell to zsh, type Y and press Enter.

3. Powerlevel10k Theme¶

Powerlevel10k is a high-performance theme that adds context-aware prompts (e.g., Git status, Docker context, execution time).

A. Download the Theme Clone the repository into the custom themes directory:

git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/romkatv/powerlevel10k.git "${ZSH_CUSTOM:-$HOME/.oh-my-zsh/custom}/themes/powerlevel10k"

B. Configure .zshrc

Open the configuration file: nano ~/.zshrc

Locate the line ZSH_THEME="robbyrussell" and replace it with:

ZSH_THEME="powerlevel10k/powerlevel10k"

C. Apply and Configure Apply the changes to start the configuration wizard:

source ~/.zshrc

Follow the on-screen prompts to select the visual style.

Important: Font Requirement If icons appear as square placeholders, the client machine (the computer you are typing on) is missing a Nerd Font. Install MesloLGS NF on your local machine and set it as the terminal font. Do not install this on the server.

4. Essential Plugins¶

These plugins add syntax highlighting and predictive text based on history.

A. Install Plugins Clone the repositories into the plugins directory:

zsh-autosuggestions:

git clone https://github.com/zsh-users/zsh-autosuggestions ${ZSH_CUSTOM:-~/.oh-my-zsh/custom}/plugins/zsh-autosuggestions

zsh-syntax-highlighting:

git clone https://github.com/zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting.git ${ZSH_CUSTOM:-~/.oh-my-zsh/custom}/plugins/zsh-syntax-highlighting

B. Activate Plugins Open the config file: nano ~/.zshrc

Locate the line plugins=(git) and update it to:

plugins=(git zsh-autosuggestions zsh-syntax-highlighting)

5. Custom Aliases¶

Append the following block to the bottom of ~/.zshrc to create shortcuts for common Docker and system tasks.

# --- Docker & Homelab Aliases ---
alias dcp='docker compose ps'
alias dcl='docker compose logs -f'  # Follow logs
alias dcd='docker compose down'
alias dcup='docker compose up -d'
alias dcr='docker compose restart'

# --- System Management ---
alias update='sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y'
alias ports='sudo ss -tulpn | grep LISTEN' # uses ss instead of netstat
alias reload='source ~/.zshrc'

# --- Navigation ---
alias ..='cd ..'
alias ...='cd ../..'
alias ll='ls -lah'

6. Finalize¶

Reload the configuration one last time to apply plugins and aliases:

source ~/.zshrc

Troubleshooting¶

"Command not found": Ensure source ~/.zshrc was executed after editing the file.
Wrong Shell: If the prompt remains in Bash after a reboot, force the default shell change:
```
chsh -s $(which zsh)
```

Note: A logout/login is required for chsh to take effect.