Shared folders

Each [[mounts]] entry shares a folder of your Mac with the VM. Both sides see the same files: you edit them on the Mac and run your tools in the VM.

Share your project

limanix.toml

[[mounts]]
source = "."
target = "/workspace"
mode = "rw"

Key	Value
source	The folder on the Mac. Required.
target	Where the folder appears in the VM, an absolute path. Required.
mode	rw to read and write, the default, or ro for read-only in the VM

"." is the folder that holds limanix.toml. Apply the change with limanix update --config limanix.toml; see Changing a VM. In the VM, cd /workspace then opens your project, and lmx info lists the shared folders.

Share several folders

Repeat the block for each folder:

limanix.toml

[[mounts]]
source = "."
target = "/workspace"
mode = "rw"

[[mounts]]
source = "../fixtures"
target = "/mnt/fixtures"
mode = "ro"

Each source must be a folder that exists when you create or update the VM: create ../fixtures on the Mac first. With ro, programs in the VM can read /mnt/fixtures but not change it.

Paths on the Mac

Relative sources resolve from the folder that holds limanix.toml, wherever you run the command. For ~/projects/my-project/limanix.toml:

In the file	On the Mac
"."	~/projects/my-project
"./fixtures"	~/projects/my-project/fixtures
"../shared"	~/projects/shared
"~/projects"	projects in your home folder

Only a leading ~ expands. $HOME and ${PROJECT} stay literal text: the file does not read shell variables. If limanix.toml is a symlink, paths resolve from the real file's folder.

Paths in the VM

A target is an absolute path other than /, without whitespace, : or .. parts. Two mounts cannot overlap: /workspace and /workspace/cache are rejected as two targets.

A mount cannot replace your home folder in the VM or a folder above it. A mount inside it works, such as /home/dev/.config/nvim when your home is /home/dev.

These paths and everything below them belong to the VM's system: /etc, /boot, /usr, /var, /nix, /run, /dev, /proc, /sys, /bin, /sbin, /mnt/limanix, /mnt/dotfiles and /home/limanix-admin. /home itself is reserved too.

Remove all mounts

Without a mounts setting, the VM gets two example mounts: ~/projects/my-project at /workspace and ~/.ssh/limanix at /mnt/git-keys. To have no mounts, put mounts = [] before the first table and remove every [[mounts]] block:

limanix.toml

schema_version = 1
name = "dev-box"
mounts = []

[shell]
preset = "minimal"

Your home folder in the VM stays shared. With the defaults, it lives on the Mac under ~/.limanix and appears at /home/dev; Files and storage explains it.

Changes in the VM change the Mac

A read-write mount is the Mac folder itself, and so is your home folder in the VM. Editing, creating or deleting a file in the VM changes it on the Mac. limanix delete leaves shared folders on the Mac, and it keeps your home folder unless you add --remove-home.

WARNING

A mount is not a backup. Deleting files in /workspace deletes them from your project on the Mac.

Use mode = "ro" for a folder that programs in the VM should only read.