Forem: Alberto Gonzalez Escalante

Load secrets automatically with 1password and direnv

Alberto Gonzalez Escalante — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 07:50:25 +0000

Problem

Load automatically secrets stored in 1password as environment variables.

Solution

Global config

## File: ~/.config/direnv/direnv.toml

[global]
load_dotenv = true

[whitelist]
prefix = [ "~/workspace" ]

Root working directory

## File: ~/workspace/.envrc

# Inject 1password secrets into environment
use_sourceop() {
  if printenv | grep -q "op://"; then
    source <(printenv | grep "op://" | op inject)
  fi
}

Project directory

## File: ~/workspace/python/project/.envrc

dotenv_if_exists
source_up_if_exists
use sourceop

## File: ~/workspace/python/project/.env

PROJECT_VAR=<EXAMPLE>
PROJECT_SECRET="op://Private/Python Project Secret/password"

Explanation

In the global configuration file, we enable loading environment variables from .env files by default.
In the root working directory, we create a script for loading secrets from 1password.
In the project directory, we load .env files, add config from the root working directory and finally run the script for loading secrets.

References

Create systemd unit timers

Alberto Gonzalez Escalante — Wed, 22 Oct 2025 10:06:00 +0000

Problem

Run a script every day at midnight using systemd.

Solution

1. Systemd service file

## File: /etc/systemd/system/run-script.service
[Unit]
Description=Run a script every day at midnight

[Service]
Type=simple
EnvironmentFile=/path/to/environment
ExecStart=/path/to/script.sh

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

2. Systemd timer file

## File: /etc/systemd/system/run-script.timer
[Unit]
Description=Run a script every day at midnight

[Timer]
OnCalendar=*-*-* 00:00:00
Unit=run-script.service

[Install]
WantedBy=timers.target

3. Reload and start the timer

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable run-script.timer
sudo systemctl enable run-script.service

Explanation

The systemd unit timers are a powerful feature that allows you to schedule tasks to run at specific times or intervals. They are similar to cron jobs but offer more flexibility and control. You can take advantage of systemd's built-in capabilities like logging and monitoring, environment variables, and more.

Generate passwords from CLI

Alberto Gonzalez Escalante — Tue, 21 Oct 2025 09:26:35 +0000

Problem

Simple and easy method for generating random passwords from the command line.

Solution

Use the command below:

LC_ALL=C </dev/urandom tr -cd '[:alnum:]' | head -c 32

Explanation

This command generates a random string, remove non-alphanumeric characters and print the first 32 characters.

Adjust the length of the password by changing the number after -c in head -c 32.

Add symbols by replacing the character class with [:graph:] as in tr -cd '[:graph:]'.

DNS query without nslookup command

Alberto Gonzalez Escalante — Mon, 20 Oct 2025 06:58:18 +0000

Problem

The nslookup command is not available on the system.

Solution

Use the command getent hosts.

getent hosts agonza.net

Explanation

Most of the time, the getent command is available.

Other options include using dig or host, however, if the nslookup utility is not available, these commands are usually not installed either.