Single file backup and command line support

[Stephan Henningsen]

Basically I want to make it easier to apply one's personal system and application preferences (ie. Ubuntu Tweak Backups). I suggest these two new features:
1) Save the Backup in a single file, e.g.: mybackup.tar.bz2.
2) Have the Ubuntu Tweak application take command line arguments from applying settings, e.g.: ubuntu-tweak --apply mybackup.tar.bz2 (and perhaps: ubuntu-tweak --backup-system --backup-applications mybackup.tar.bz2)

The format might very well need rethinking but the concept should be clear =).

Background: I already have a script that installs all my favourite packages including extra package sources e.g. for Ubuntu Tweak. But I would like to be able to provide my personal preferences in a single file along side my script and apply them from the script as described above. Back in them olden days, a personal system restore was just a matter of copying your ~/.*rc files back, with the invention of gconf and whatnot this process has been complicated a great deal. Adding single file backup and command line support would restore some peace in -- at least -- my mind =)

[Ding Zhou (tualatrix)]

This is a good idea. But some processes became complicated since Ubuntu 11.10 (GNOME 3.2) because of the mixed using of Gconf and Dconf, and Dconf has no "load" feature like Gconf.

Maybe when dconf gets the full feature like Gconf, it's time to implement it

[Stephan Henningsen (zta77)]

Thanks for the feedback. Now I understand why the CLI cannot be implemented with dconf as it is today.

Still, the part about archiving all backup data into one file can still be implemented. This is also the most important of the two requests. Again, it allows one to easily copy all personal preferences to a different machine, though one has to use the GUI to apply it. Another important option is that it becomes easier to keep a copy of one's personal preferences in, say, subversion when they're stored in a single file instead of the current more messy directory trees.