What This Script Does
The quick-setup.sh script is designed for experienced developers who want to get a fresh Mac into a productive state as quickly as possible. Unlike the full interactive setup, this script does not ask questions or present menus. Instead, it installs a carefully curated set of tools and configurations that represent a solid starting point for most development workflows. The entire process takes just a few minutes on a fast internet connection.
The script begins by ensuring that Homebrew is installed and up to date. If Homebrew is not present on your system, the script installs it automatically using the official installer. On Apple Silicon Macs, it configures the correct installation path at /opt/homebrew and updates your shell profile so the brew command is immediately available.
Once Homebrew is ready, the script installs a comprehensive set of command-line tools using a bundled Brewfile. This includes essential developer tools like Git, Node.js, Python, and other commonly needed utilities. The Brewfile approach means all packages are installed in a single batch operation, which is significantly faster than installing them one at a time. If any package is already installed, Homebrew skips it automatically, so the script is safe to run more than once.
After the CLI tools are installed, the script moves on to Visual Studio Code configuration. It installs a set of popular VSCode extensions that are useful across many programming languages and workflows. These include language support extensions, formatting tools, Git integration enhancements, and productivity boosters. If VSCode is not installed, the script installs it first via Homebrew Cask before adding the extensions.
The final step is Git configuration. The script prompts you for your name and email address and writes them to your global Git config file at ~/.gitconfig. These settings are required for making commits, and configuring them during setup saves you from encountering errors the first time you try to commit code. If your Git config already has a name and email set, the script detects this and skips the prompt entirely.
Like all scripts in the toolkit, quick-setup.sh supports the --dry-run flag, which lets you preview every action that would be taken without actually executing anything. This is useful if you want to review the Brewfile contents or check which VSCode extensions would be installed before committing to the full setup. Every action is also logged so you have a complete record of what was installed and when.
The quick setup script does not require a configuration file. It uses its own internal defaults, making it completely self-contained. This is ideal for situations where you need to bootstrap a machine quickly — for example, setting up a new work laptop, preparing a loaner Mac, or getting started on a fresh macOS installation without spending time customizing a config file first.