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Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2024 6:13 pm
by W4tchT0wer
Hi folks,
I am trying to clean up my user home directory on my Linux system.
And I am simply trying to change the location MakeMKV uses instead of ~/.MakeMKV/ as my user home is full of files that simply do not belong there, including the directory by MakeMKV.
I can see in the MakeMKV settings, that I can change the data directory, but that's not enough.
Most apps provide a environment variable that can be set, and it would be very nice if MakeMKV also has one.
Does anybody know something about that?
Thanks and have a nice day!
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Wed Oct 02, 2024 7:06 am
by segfaulted
The variable HOME will set the directory where .MakeMKV will be found. I don't think there's any way to change the name for .MakeMKV itself. A few other external libs also seem to reference that variable, so don't be surprised if other dot folders show up alongside it.
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Wed Oct 02, 2024 5:35 pm
by flojo
Makemkv doesn't need to pollute the environment. Try using a script to define HOME=/what/ever then start makemkv.
Code: Select all
#!/bin/bash
mkdir -p /home/$USER/apps
HOME=/home/$USER/apps
makemkv
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2024 1:07 pm
by W4tchT0wer
Thanks for your replies and sad to see that MakeMKV does not support such a simple thing.
I've opted for creating the wrapper script
~/.local/bin/makemkv and override
$HOME in there. That way, my desktop shortcut etc. also works properly.
Code: Select all
#!/bin/sh
export HOME="${XDG_STATE_HOME:-$HOME/.local/state}"/makemkv
mkdir --parent "$HOME"
/usr/bin/makemkv
I haven't had any issues yet, but we'll see
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2024 8:12 pm
by bmillham
W4tchT0wer wrote: ↑Tue Oct 01, 2024 6:13 pm
And I am simply trying to change the location MakeMKV uses instead of
~/.MakeMKV/ as my user home is full of files that simply do not belong there, including the directory by MakeMKV.
The convention of having . directories in $HOME (vs somewhere like .config) is over 50 years old. I would just leave well enough alone.
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2024 8:40 pm
by W4tchT0wer
bmillham wrote: ↑Wed Oct 09, 2024 8:12 pm
The convention of having . directories in $HOME (vs somewhere like .config) is over 50 years old. I would just leave well enough alone.
Well, it would be pretty easy to fix/improve ^^
A lot of applications allow you to provide a path via Env-Vars and I got rid of about 20 dot files/directories in my user-home with that.
Having apps use the correct location by-default would be better, but that's a valid workaround for me and very worth it.
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Tue Oct 14, 2025 6:41 pm
by hhmit164
bmillham wrote: ↑Wed Oct 09, 2024 8:12 pm
W4tchT0wer wrote: ↑Tue Oct 01, 2024 6:13 pm
And I am simply trying to change the location MakeMKV uses instead of
~/.MakeMKV/ as my user home is full of files that simply do not belong there, including the directory by MakeMKV.
The convention of having . directories in $HOME (vs somewhere like .config) is over 50 years old. I would just leave well enough alone.
Nothing would change for the better if we just stuck to conventions. There are many threads about the same general idea for a wide variety of apps, and many are using XDG base directories by default with $HOME as a fallback if they aren't defined. It would be nice to see makemkv do the same.
https://specifications.freedesktop.org/ ... ec/latest/
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2025 9:05 am
by georgesgiralt
Hello,
Have you thought that if you move config directories from your home folder to another place, all users on the system will be forced to use YOUR settings ! (and see what they are ...)
Remember that Linux emanate from Unix which is a multi user system ....
Re: Env-Var to move ~/.MakeMKV/ directory?
Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2025 9:30 am
by W4tchT0wer
georgesgiralt wrote: ↑Fri Oct 17, 2025 9:05 am
Hello,
Have you thought that if you move config directories from your home folder to another place, all users on the system will be forced to use YOUR settings ! (and see what they are ...)
Remember that Linux emanate from Unix which is a multi user system ....
Hi,
you seem to be misunderstanding. The config directory is still inside your $HOME, just in a sub-directory.
So for example $HOME/.config/makekmv/ or $HOME/.local/share/makemkv/
And even for users upgrading, MakeMKV could first check its old/current path and if it does
not exist, it will start using the new directory.