Supercharge Your Terminal: Mastering Zsh with Powerlevel10k and Essential Plugins

If you’re looking to supercharge your terminal, Zsh (Z shell) is one of the best tools you can use. Combined with Oh My Zsh, Powerlevel10k, and a suite of plugins, you can transform your terminal into a highly efficient, visually appealing, and powerful environment. In this guide, we’ll walk you through configuring and using everything defined in the sample .zshrc file.

The file is written for Mac OS, some updates might be needed to support Linux OS

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1. Installing the Basics

Install Zsh

Zsh is the default shell on macOS, but if it’s not installed, you can add it:

brew install zsh

Install Oh My Zsh

Oh My Zsh is a framework that makes managing Zsh configurations, themes, and plugins easy:

sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"

Install Powerlevel10k Theme

Powerlevel10k is a fast and highly customizable Zsh theme:

git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/romkatv/powerlevel10k.git $ZSH_CUSTOM/themes/powerlevel10k

Set the theme in your .zshrc file:

ZSH_THEME="powerlevel10k/powerlevel10k"

After setting up, run:

p10k configure

This will help you customize the prompt with useful features like Git status, Python environments, and more.

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2. Powerlevel10k Instant Prompt

The instant prompt ensures your terminal loads quickly by displaying the prompt even before .zshrc finishes loading. Here’s the relevant configuration:

if [[ -r "${XDG_CACHE_HOME:-$HOME/.cache}/p10k-instant-prompt-${(%):-%n}.zsh" ]]; then
    source "${XDG_CACHE_HOME:-$HOME/.cache}/p10k-instant-prompt-${(%):-%n}.zsh"
fi
# typeset -g POWERLEVEL9K_INSTANT_PROMPT=quiet

• The quiet option suppresses warnings about instant prompt issues.

Why Use It?

• Speed: Terminal loads faster by delaying the execution of heavy tasks.

• Customizability: You can still customize the full prompt via p10k configure.

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3. Plugins for Productivity

Oh My Zsh supports plugins that extend the functionality of your terminal. Here are the plugins we’ve defined and how to use them:

Plugin Configuration in .zshrc:

plugins=(
  git
  zsh-autosuggestions
  zsh-syntax-highlighting
  history
  vscode
  kubectl
)

What Each Plugin Does:

1. git: Adds helpful Git aliases and shortcuts:

   • gst for git status

   • gco for git checkout

2. zsh-autosuggestions: Suggests commands based on your history as you type.

   • Use the → key to accept suggestions.

3. zsh-syntax-highlighting: Highlights commands and flags to improve readability and catch errors.

4. history: Enhances your command history management.

   • history shows past commands.

5. vscode: Provides shortcuts for opening files and projects in Visual Studio Code.

   • Example: code . opens the current directory in VS Code.

6. kubectl: Autocompletes and adds shortcuts for Kubernetes CLI commands.

   • Example: k get pods instead of kubectl get pods.

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4. Environment Variables

Environment variables are crucial for customizing your development environment. Here’s how they’re configured:

Java Configuration:

export JAVA_HOME=$(/usr/libexec/java_home -v 17)

• What It Does: Points tools like Maven or Gradle to Java version 17.

• Usage: Run echo $JAVA_HOME to verify the Java path.

NVM (Node Version Manager):

if [ -d "$HOME/.nvm" ]; then
    export NVM_DIR="$HOME/.nvm"
    [ -s "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh" ] && source "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh"
fi

• What It Does: Enables NVM to manage multiple Node.js versions.

• Usage: Use nvm install <version> to install a specific version of Node.js.

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5. Aliases for Efficiency

Aliases are shortcuts for commonly used commands. Here’s how they’re loaded and used:

Loading Aliases:

if [ -d "$HOME/.alias" ] && [ "$(ls -A $HOME/.alias)" ]; then
    for file in $HOME/.alias/*.sh; do
        [ -f "$file" ] && . "$file"
    done
fi

Examples of Aliases:

alias ll="ls -la"
alias gs="git status"
alias gp="git pull"
alias vim="nvim"

• Usage:

  • ll: Lists all files with details.

  • gs: Runs git status.

  • vim: Opens Neovim instead of Vim.

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6. Additional Integrations

iTerm2 Integration:

if [ -e "$HOME/.iterm2_shell_integration.zsh" ]; then
    source "$HOME/.iterm2_shell_integration.zsh"
fi

• What It Does: Enhances iTerm2 with features like split panes and session restoration.

Backups and Reloading:

alias backup-zshrc="cp ~/.zshrc ~/.zshrc.backup && echo 'Backup created at ~/.zshrc.backup'"
alias update-zsh="source ~/.zshrc && echo 'Reloaded .zshrc settings'"

• Usage:

  • backup-zshrc: Creates a backup of your .zshrc file.

  • update-zsh: Reloads .zshrc after making changes.

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7. Customizing Powerlevel10k

You can customize Powerlevel10k using the following command:

p10k configure

This wizard allows you to set:

• Prompt layout (e.g., minimal, classic).

• Colors, icons, and separators.

• Display options (e.g., Git branch, time, battery level).

If you want to tweak configurations manually, edit ~/.p10k.zsh.

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8. Final Touches

Clean Up Unused .env and .alias Files

Ensure there are no unnecessary files in ~/.env and ~/.alias. Only include variables and aliases you actively use.

Restart Zsh

After making changes, reload your shell:

source ~/.zshrc

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By following these steps, you’ll have a Zsh terminal that’s not only beautiful but also optimized for productivity.

Complete .zshrc file is added for reference

# Enable Powerlevel10k instant prompt. Should stay close to the top of ~/.zshrc.
if [[ -r "${XDG_CACHE_HOME:-$HOME/.cache}/p10k-instant-prompt-${(%):-%n}.zsh" ]]; then
    source "${XDG_CACHE_HOME:-$HOME/.cache}/p10k-instant-prompt-${(%):-%n}.zsh"
fi

# Suppress Powerlevel10k instant prompt warnings
# typeset -g POWERLEVEL9K_INSTANT_PROMPT=quiet

# Path to your oh-my-zsh installation
export ZSH="$HOME/.oh-my-zsh"

# Theme
ZSH_THEME="powerlevel10k/powerlevel10k"

# Enable command auto-correction
ENABLE_CORRECTION="true"

# Display red dots whilst waiting for completion
COMPLETION_WAITING_DOTS="true"

# Plugins
plugins=(
  git
  zsh-autosuggestions
  zsh-syntax-highlighting
  history
  vscode
  kubectl
)

# Load Oh My Zsh
source $ZSH/oh-my-zsh.sh

# Custom Settings

# Java Home
export JAVA_HOME=$(/usr/libexec/java_home -v 17)

# Vim Keybindings
bindkey -v

# Load Environment Variables from `.env` Directory
if [ -d "$HOME/.env" ] && [ "$(ls -A $HOME/.env)" ]; then
    for file in $HOME/.env/*.env; do
        [ -f "$file" ] && . "$file"
    done
fi

# Load Aliases from `.alias` Directory
if [ -d "$HOME/.alias" ] && [ "$(ls -A $HOME/.alias)" ]; then
    for file in $HOME/.alias/*.sh; do
        [ -f "$file" ] && . "$file"
    done
fi

# Additional Path Updates (already moved to system-paths.env)
export PATH="$PATH"

# Enable NVM (Node Version Manager)
if [ -d "$HOME/.nvm" ]; then
    export NVM_DIR="$HOME/.nvm"
    if [ -s "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh" ]; then
        source "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh"
    fi
fi

# iTerm2 Shell Integration
if [ -e "$HOME/.iterm2_shell_integration.zsh" ]; then
    source "$HOME/.iterm2_shell_integration.zsh"
fi

# Backup and Update Aliases
alias backup-zshrc="cp ~/.zshrc ~/.zshrc.backup && echo 'Backup created at ~/.zshrc.backup'"
alias update-zsh="source ~/.zshrc && echo 'Reloaded .zshrc settings'"

# To customize prompt, run `p10k configure` or edit ~/.p10k.zsh.
[[ ! -f ~/.p10k.zsh ]] || source ~/.p10k.zsh