Simple, secure downloads without the complexity of package managers

vfetch is a lightweight tool that downloads, verifies (integrity), and organizes files. It bridges the gap between insecure curl/wget downloads and heavyweight package managers, making you conscious of security while keeping things simple.

Why vfetch?

The Problem with Current Approaches

Package Managers (npm, etc.)

• Heavy overhead and complex dependency trees
• Lock you into specific ecosystems
• Abstract away verification, making you unaware of security
• Require learning package-specific tooling

Raw Downloads (curl, wget)

• No integrity verification by default
• Easy to forget or skip checksum validation
• Manual hash checking is error-prone
• No organized file management

The vfetch Philosophy

Security by Design, Not by Accident

• Forces you to provide checksums for every download
• Supports multiple hash algorithms (SHA256, SHA512, SHA3, BLAKE2b, BLAKE2s)
• Makes verification failure explicit and loud
• Puts you in control - you vet the checksums, not some package registry

Simplicity Without Compromise

• Single binary, no dependencies
• Human-readable JSON configuration
• Predictable file organization
• No hidden magic or complex dependency resolution

Awareness Through Responsibility

• Every download requires a hash - no shortcuts
• You must consciously verify checksums from trusted sources
• Builds security habits through explicit verification requirements
• Makes the cost of trust visible and intentional

Quick Start

1. Download vfetch
2. Create a config file with your downloads and their checksums
3. Run vfetch and get verified, organized files

# Download all items in the config
vfetch -config my-tools.json

# Download specific items by name
vfetch -config my-tools.json esbuild

# Download multiple specific items
vfetch -config my-tools.json esbuild jq node

Example my-tools.json:

{
  "output-dir": "/home/user/tools",
  "bins-dir": "/home/user/.bin",
  "fetch": [
    {
      "name": "esbuild",
      "url": "https://registry.npmjs.org/@esbuild/linux-x64/-/linux-x64-$VERSION.tgz",
      "version": "0.25.10",
      "hash": "sha256:25a7b968b8e5172baaa8f44f91b71c1d2d7e760042c691f22ab59527d870d145",
      "bin-file": "/package/bin/esbuild",
      "extract": true
    }
  ]
}

Usage

Basic Commands

# Download all items defined in config
vfetch -config vfetch-config.json

# Download specific items by name
vfetch -config vfetch-config.json go esbuild

# Use default config file (vfetch-config.json)
vfetch go jq

Selective Downloads

Benefits of selective downloading:

• Faster execution - only download what you need
• Bandwidth efficient - skip unnecessary downloads
• Testing friendly - verify individual items during development
• Deployment flexibility - different tools for different environments

Error Handling

If you specify a name that doesn't exist in the config, vfetch will fail with a clear error:

$ vfetch -config vfetch-config.json nonexistent-tool
Failed to filter fetch items: fetch items not found: [nonexistent-tool]

This fail-fast behavior prevents partial downloads and ensures you get exactly what you expect.

Key Features

Mandatory Verification

• No downloads without checksums - vfetch refuses to proceed without proper hashes
• Multiple hash algorithms supported for maximum compatibility
• Fail-fast verification - stops immediately on hash mismatches

Smart File Handling

• Automatic extraction for ZIP, TAR, TAR.GZ, and GZIP archives
• Binary symlink creation for executable files
• Organized output with predictable directory structures

Flexible Configuration

• Version placeholders in URLs ($version → actual version)
• Per-item overrides for output and binary directories
• Documentation tracking with optional URL fields for license, source, etc.

Zero Dependencies

• Single statically-linked binary
• No runtime dependencies or package ecosystems
• Works anywhere Go runs

Why Checksums Matter

When you download files with curl or wget, you're trusting:

• The network connection isn't compromised
• The server hasn't been hacked
• The file wasn't modified in transit
• DNS hasn't been hijacked

vfetch makes this explicit by requiring you to:

1. Find official checksums from the project's trusted sources
2. Verify them yourself against multiple sources when possible
3. Take responsibility for the integrity of what you download

This isn't paranoia - it's basic operational security that should be standard practice.

Installation

Download Binary

Check the releases page for pre-built binaries.

Using Go Install

go install github.com/alvarolm/vfetch@latest

From Source

git clone https://github.com/alvarolm/vfetch
cd vfetch
go build .
cp ./vfetch /usr/local/bin

Remember to verify the checksum of vfetch itself!

Configuration Reference

See example-config.json for a comprehensive configuration example with all available options.

Required Fields

• name: Human-readable identifier (used for selective downloading)
• url: Download URL (supports $version placeholders)
• version: Version identifier
• hash or hashes: Cryptographic verification

Optional Fields

• extract: Extract archives automatically
• bin-file: Create executable symlinks
• output-dir: Override global output directory
• bin-dir: Override global binary directory

Note: The name field is used for selective downloading. When you run vfetch -config vfetch-config.json go node, vfetch will look for items with "name": "go" and "name": "node" in your configuration.

Examples

Simple Binary Download

{
  "name": "jq",
  "url": "https://github.com/stedolan/jq/releases/download/jq-1.6/jq-linux64",
  "version": "1.6",
  "hash": "sha256:af986793a515d500ab2d35f8d2aecd656e764504b789b66d7e1a0b727a124c44",
  "bin-file": true
}

Archive with Extraction

{
  "name": "node",
  "url": "https://nodejs.org/dist/v$version/node-v$version-linux-x64.tar.gz",
  "version": "18.17.0",
  "hash": "sha256:...actual-hash...",
  "extract": true,
  "bin-file": "node-v18.17.0-linux-x64/bin/node"
}

Multiple Hash Verification

{
  "name": "critical-tool",
  "url": "https://example.com/tool.tar.gz",
  "version": "2.1.0",
  "hashes": [
    "sha256:...",
    "sha512:..."
  ],
  "extract": true
}

Security Best Practices

1. Always verify checksums from official project sources
2. Cross-reference hashes from multiple trusted sources when possible
3. Use HTTPS URLs for downloads
4. Keep vfetch updated to get the latest security improvements
5. Review configurations before running them
6. Store configurations in version control for audit trails

Comparison

Tool	Verification	Complexity	Ecosystem Lock-in	Security Awareness
vfetch	✅ Mandatory	🟢 Low	❌ None	✅ High
npm/pip	⚠️ Registry-based	🔴 High	✅ Heavy	❌ Hidden
curl/wget	❌ Manual/Optional	🟢 Low	❌ None	⚠️ User-dependent

Contributing

vfetch is designed to stay simple and focused. When contributing:

1. Maintain simplicity - avoid feature creep
2. Security first - never compromise on verification requirements
3. Explicit over implicit - make security decisions visible
4. Test thoroughly - especially hash verification and file handling

License

LICENSE - Use it freely, but remember: you are responsible for verifying what you download.

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Remember: Security is not a feature you can install - it's a practice you must maintain.