quadlet-migrator-skill/references/deployment-notes.md

Deployment Notes

Use this file when the user wants deployment-ready instructions alongside generated Quadlet units.

Contents

• Delivery flow
• Apply target directories
• Helper-script expectations
• Operational notes
• Optional enhancements

Delivery Flow

For design mode, stop after the user reviews the finalize snapshot in conversation. For generate mode, continue only after the user has reviewed and confirmed the finalize snapshot or requested edits.

Recommended apply flow:

1. Generate the reviewable artifacts in the current working directory by default, or in another user-requested output directory.
2. Review the finalized design together with the generated Quadlet files, env files, helper scripts, and required repo-local support files.
3. Use install.sh to copy only the reviewed Quadlet unit files into the chosen Quadlet directory.
4. Run the appropriate daemon-reload command.
5. Use start.sh, stop.sh, and restart.sh to manage services.
6. Use uninstall.sh only when the user wants to remove the installed reviewed Quadlet unit files without broad Podman cleanup.

Keep installation separate from service-management scripts so the user can review generated files before applying them.

Apply Target Directories

Rootless

• default apply target: ~/.config/containers/systemd/
• user-scoped management commands use systemctl --user

Rootful

• default apply target: /etc/containers/systemd/
• system-scoped management commands use systemctl

See podman-systemd.unit.5.md for the full search-path matrix.

Helper-Script Expectations

• install.sh is the canonical apply script. It copies only reviewed Quadlet unit files into the selected Quadlet target directory.
• Do not generate a separate apply.sh by default. Use that alternate name only when the user explicitly asks for it.
• Helper shell scripts must discover the reviewed Quadlet files through their shared generated prefix, using shared-prefix glob matching such as <prefix>* instead of hardcoding exact filenames or assuming a fixed file count.
• install.sh must not start, stop, restart, or reload services as a side effect.
• uninstall.sh removes only the installed reviewed Quadlet unit files from the selected Quadlet target directory.
• uninstall.sh should stop affected services before removing their installed unit files, and should not delete support files, unrelated files, shared directories, named volumes, images, or Podman objects unless the user explicitly asks for broader cleanup.
• reload.sh runs only the appropriate daemon-reload command after installation changes.
• start.sh, stop.sh, and restart.sh manage services only and must not silently install or overwrite reviewed files.
• When a generated topology includes <name>.pod plus child containers linked with Pod=<name>.pod, helper scripts should use the pod service as the lifecycle entrypoint. Derive that service name from ServiceName= when present on the .pod, otherwise use Quadlet's default generated pod service name. Do not add ServiceName= merely to simplify helper scripts.

Operational Notes

• Review not only Quadlet unit files but also env files, mounted config, initialization assets, entrypoint scripts, and other support files required at runtime.
• Do not add explicit runtime naming directives such as PodName=, ServiceName=, ContainerName=, or NetworkName= by default. Use Quadlet's derived names unless the user explicitly asks for custom naming or a reviewed requirement depends on it.
• Do not use ServiceName= as an application connection target. It controls the generated systemd unit name only.
• Within a single pod, use 127.0.0.1 / localhost for container-to-container communication instead of generating AddHost= entries for sibling-container discovery.
• If a service inside the pod must accept connections from sibling containers, ensure its effective listen address is reachable within the shared pod namespace, typically 127.0.0.1 or 0.0.0.0.
• Bind mounts may hit UID/GID mismatches, especially in rootless deployments.
• Do not add User=, Group=, or UserNS=keep-id by default. Consider them only when the user is working through container permission or ownership behavior, or when the source explicitly requires that runtime identity mapping.
• For rootless long-running services that should survive logout, mention lingering:

sudo loginctl enable-linger <username>

• Ensure bind-mount source directories exist before first start.
• Normalize relative source paths against the source Compose file directory or the directory the user specifies.
• Emit absolute host paths in generated Quadlet files when using bind mounts.

Optional Enhancements

• AutoUpdate=registry for opt-in automatic image refresh workflows when the approved image strategy uses fully qualified registry images
• explicit .volume or .network units when the user wants declarative infrastructure instead of implicit Podman objects
• service defaults such as:

[Service]
Restart=always
TimeoutStartSec=900

Use the timeout especially when first start may need to pull large images or build locally.

Output Language

If you generate a README, deployment note, or operator-facing document as part of the migration, write it in the user's language unless the user explicitly asks for another language.