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How does Lazy Install work?

In this document we describe how the Lazy Install works. The Lazy Install is the aqua's characteristic feature, and maybe you feel it like magic.

By aqua i, aqua installs aqua-proxy regardless the aqua's configuration.

$AQUA_ROOT_DIR/
  bin/
    aqua-proxy -> ../pkgs/github_release/github.com/aquaproj/aqua-proxy/v0.2.0/aqua-proxy_darwin_amd64.tar.gz/aqua-proxy
  pkgs/
    github_release/github.com/aquaproj/aqua-proxy/v0.2.0/aqua-proxy_darwin_amd64.tar.gz/aqua-proxy

And by aqua i, aqua reads the configuration file and creates symbolic links to aqua-proxy in $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/bin. The symbolic link name is the package's file name.

For example, by the following configuration symbolic links go and gofmt are created.

aqua.yaml

registries:
- name: local
  type: local
  path: registry.yaml

packages:
- name: go
  registry: local
  version: "1.17"

registry.yaml

packages:
- name: go
  type: http
  url: https://golang.org/dl/go{{.Version}}.{{.OS}}-{{.Arch}}.tar.gz
  files:
  - name: go # the symbolic `go` is created
    src: go/bin/go
  - name: gofmt # the symbolic `gofmt` is created
    src: go/bin/gofmt
$AQUA_ROOT_DIR/
  bin/
    go -> aqua-proxy
    gofmt -> aqua-proxy

Add $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/bin to the environment variable PATH. When go version is executed, $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/bin/go is a symbolic link to aqua-proxy so aqua-proxy is executed. Then aqua-proxy executes aqua exec passing the program name and command line arguments. In case of go version, aqua exec -- go version is executed. aqua exec reads the configuration file and finds the package which includes go and gets the package versions. aqua installs the package version in $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/pkgs if it isn't installed yet Then aqua executes the command $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/pkgs/http/golang.org/dl/go1.17.darwin-amd64.tar.gz/go/bin/go version.

$AQUA_ROOT_DIR/bin is shared by every aqua.yaml, so maybe in aqua exec the package isn't found. Please comment out the package go and execute go version again.

registries:
- name: local
  type: local
  path: registry.yaml

packages:
# - name: go
#   registry: local
#   version: "1.17"

If the package isn't found in the configuration files, aqua finds the command from the environment variable PATH. For example, if the PATH is $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/bin:/usr/local/bin:/bin, aqua checks the following files.

  1. $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/bin/go
  2. /usr/local/bin/go
  3. /bin/go

To prevent the infinite loop, aqua ignores the symbolic to aqua-proxy. $AQUA_ROOT_DIR/bin/go is a symbolic link to aqua-proxy, so this is ignored. If go is installed in /usr/local/bin/go, /usr/local/bin/go version is executed. If go isn't found, aqua exits with non zero exit code.