The minimal-emacs.d repository offers a starter kit with improved Emacs defaults and optimized startup, designed to serve as a robust foundation for your vanilla Emacs configuration and enhance your overall Emacs experience.

The author is using minimal-emacs.d as his early-init.el and init.el. He is using 152 packages and his Emacs configuration starts in 0.44 seconds:

(The optimizations in minimal-emacs.d significantly contribute to speeding up Emacs startup. Other factors include deferring package loading when not necessary on startup by using :defer t with use-package, and byte-compiling and native-compiling all .el files in advance using elispcomp.)

Installation
Features
Update
Customizations
Frequently asked questions
Author and license
Links

Installation

Execute the following command to clone this repository into ~/.emacs.d:

git clone https://github.com/jamescherti/minimal-emacs.d ~/.emacs.d

Features

Performance Improvements:
- Increases the amount read from processes in a single chunk.
- Prefers loading newer compiled files.
- Reduces startup screen and message noise, including removing the "For information about GNU Emacs..." message.
- Configures Emacs to start with a scratch buffer in fundamental-mode to shave seconds off startup time.
- Delays garbage collection during startup to improve performance and resets it to a more reasonable value once Emacs has started.
- Customizes file-name-handler-alist for improved startup time and package load time (Special thanks to the Doom Emacs developers for the file-name-handler-alist optimizations; This function have been inspired by their project and will contribute to improving vanilla Emacs configurations.)
- Reduces rendering workload by not rendering cursors or regions in non-focused windows.
- Disables warnings from the legacy advice API and suppresses warnings about aliased variables.
- Avoids unnecessary excessive UI updates.
- Disables font compacting to avoid high memory usage.
Native Compilation and Byte Compilation:
- Configures native compilation and byte compilation settings
- Suppresses compiler warnings and errors during native compilation.
UI Element Management:
- Disables the startup screen and messages, including menu bar, tool bar, and scroll bars.
- Configures Emacs to avoid resizing frames and minimizes unnecessary UI updates.
Package Management:
- Configures package archives and priorities for MELPA, ELPA, and other repositories.
Customizable Initialization Files:
- Supports additional configuration files (pre-init.el, post-init.el, pre-early-init.el, and post-early-init.el) to allow further customization at different stages of the startup process.
File Management:
- Manages auto-save and backup files, including backup options and version control settings.
User Experience Enhancements:
- Configures user interface settings such as cursor behavior, scrolling, and response to prompts.
- Disables beeping and blinking to avoid distractions.
Buffer and Window Configuration:
- Sets default fringe widths and buffer boundaries.
- Configures smooth scrolling and cursor behavior for a more seamless editing experience.
Miscellaneous
- Configure recentf, savehist, and auto-save

Update

To keep your Emacs configuration up to date, you can pull the latest changes from the repository. Run the following command in your terminal:

git -C ~/.emacs.d pull

Customizations

How to customize early-init.el and init.el?

The init.el and early-init.el files should never be modified directly because they are intended to be managed by Git during an update.

The minimal-emacs.d init files support additional customization files that are loaded at different stages of the Emacs startup process. These files allow you to further customize the initialization sequence:

~/.emacs.d/pre-init.el: This file is loaded before init.el. Use it to set up variables or configurations that need to be available early in the initialization process but after early-init.el.
~/.emacs.d/post-init.el: This file is loaded after init.el. It is useful for additional configurations or package setups that depend on the configurations in init.el.
~/.emacs.d/pre-early-init.el: This file is loaded before early-init.el. Use it for configurations that need to be set even earlier in the startup sequence, typically affecting the initial setup of the Emacs environment.
~/.emacs.d/post-early-init.el: This file is loaded after early-init.el but before init.el. It is useful for setting up configurations that depend on the early initialization but need to be set before the main initialization begins.

Always begin your pre-init.el, post-init.el, post-early-init.el, and pre-early-init.el files with the following header to prevent them from being byte-compiled and to activate lexical binding:

;;; FILENAME.el --- DESCRIPTION -*- no-byte-compile: t; lexical-binding: t; -*-

(Replace FILENAME.el with the actual name and DESCRIPTION with a brief description of its purpose.)

How to activate recentf, savehist, saveplace, and auto-revert?

The recentf, savehist, saveplace, and auto-revert built-in packages are already configured by minimal-emacs.d. All you need to do is activate them by adding the following to ~/.emacs.d/post-init.el:

;; Auto-revert in Emacs is a feature that automatically updates the
;; contents of a buffer to reflect changes made to the underlying file
;; on disk.
(add-hook 'after-init-hook #'global-auto-revert-mode)

;; recentf is an Emacs package that maintains a list of recently
;; accessed files, making it easier to reopen files you have worked on
;; recently.
(add-hook 'after-init-hook #'recentf-mode)

;; savehist is an Emacs feature that preserves the minibuffer history between
;; sessions. It saves the history of inputs in the minibuffer, such as commands,
;; search strings, and other prompts, to a file. This allows users to retain
;; their minibuffer history across Emacs restarts.
(add-hook 'after-init-hook #'savehist-mode)

;; save-place-mode enables Emacs to remember the last location within a file
;; upon reopening. This feature is particularly beneficial for resuming work at
;; the precise point where you previously left off.
(add-hook 'after-init-hook #'save-place-mode)

How to activate the Garbage Collector Magic Hack (gcmh-mode)

The Garbage Collector Magic Hack (gcmh-mode) optimizes Emacs' garbage collection process, reducing the frequency of garbage collection during normal operations and only performing it during idle times. This results in smoother performance and fewer interruptions, especially during intensive tasks or when working with large files.

To activate gcmh-mode, add the following to the beginning of ~/.emacs.d/post-init.el, before all other use-package statements:

(use-package gcmh
  :ensure t
  :hook (after-init . gcmh-mode)
  :custom
  (gcmh-idle-delay 'auto)
  (gcmh-auto-idle-delay-factor 10)
  (gcmh-low-cons-threshold minimal-emacs-gc-cons-threshold))

How to automatically compile Emacs Lisp code (auto-compile)

The auto-compile package automates the byte-compilation of Emacs Lisp files, ensuring that your code runs more efficiently by converting it to byte-code. This process reduces the load time and execution time of your Emacs configuration and other Lisp files, leading to faster performance. Additionally, auto-compile helps maintain an up-to-date and optimized configuration by recompiling files automatically when they are saved, eliminating the need for manual compilation and minimizing potential issues caused by outdated byte-code.

To activate auto-compile, add the following to the beginning of ~/.emacs.d/post-init.el, before all other use-package statements:

(use-package auto-compile
  :demand t
  :custom
  (auto-compile-check-parens nil)
  :config
  (auto-compile-on-load-mode)
  (auto-compile-on-save-mode))

How to configure Vim keybindings using Evil?

Configuring Vim keybindings in Emacs can greatly enhance your editing efficiency if you are accustomed to Vim's modal editing style. Add the following to ~/.emacs.d/post-init.el to set up Evil mode:

(use-package evil
  :ensure t
  :custom
  (evil-undo-system 'undo-fu)
  (evil-want-keybinding nil)
  (evil-want-integration t)
  :config
  (evil-select-search-module 'evil-search-module 'evil-search)
  (evil-mode 1))

(use-package evil-collection
  :ensure t
  :after evil
  :config
  (evil-collection-init))

(use-package undo-fu
  :ensure t)

(use-package undo-fu-session
  :ensure t
  :config
  (undo-fu-session-global-mode))

You can also use the vim-tab-bar Emacs package to ~/.emacs.d/post-init.el to give the built-in Emacs tab-bar a style similar to Vim's tabbed browsing interface:

(use-package vim-tab-bar
  :ensure t
  :config
  (vim-tab-bar-mode 1))

You can also install vdiff, which provides Vimdiff-like functionality for Emacs.

(use-package vdiff
  :ensure t
  :defer t
  :commands (vdiff-buffers
             vdiff-buffers3
             vdiff-quit
             vdiff-files
             vdiff-files3)
  :custom
  (vdiff-auto-refine t)
  (vdiff-only-highlight-refinements t))

How to configure straight.el?

Add the straight.el bootstrap code to ~/.emacs.d/pre-init.el:

;; Users of Emacs versions >= 27 will want to set
;; package-enable-at-startup to nil
(setq package-enable-at-startup nil)

;; Straight
(defvar bootstrap-version)
(let ((bootstrap-file
       (expand-file-name
        "straight/repos/straight.el/bootstrap.el"
        (or (bound-and-true-p straight-base-dir)
            user-emacs-directory)))
      (bootstrap-version 7))
  (unless (file-exists-p bootstrap-file)
    (with-current-buffer
        (url-retrieve-synchronously
         "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/radian-software/straight.el/develop/install.el"
         'silent 'inhibit-cookies)
      (goto-char (point-max))
      (eval-print-last-sexp)))
  (load bootstrap-file nil 'nomessage))

Frequently asked questions

How to increase gc-cons-threshold?

Add the following to ~/.emacs.d/pre-early-init.el to ensure that minimal-emacs.d restores the specified amount after startup:

(setq minimal-emacs-gc-cons-threshold (* 64 1024 1024))

How to change the outline-mode or outline-minor-mode Ellipsis (...) to (▼)?

If you want to to change the outline-mode or outline-minor-mode Ellipsis (...) to (▼), use the code snippet in this article: Changing the Ellipsis (“…”) in outline-mode and outline-minor-mode.

How to run the minimal-emacs.d Emacs configuration from another directory?

To run minimal-emacs.d from a different directory, you can specify the path to your configuration directory using the --init-directory option. For example, to run Emacs with the configuration located in ~/.config/minimal-emacs.d/, use the following command:

emacs --init-directory ~/.config/minimal-emacs.d/

(This allows you to keep your Emacs setup organized in a specific location and easily switch between different configurations.)

Are post-early-init.el and pre-init.el the same file in terms of the logic?

During the execution of early-init.el (and pre-early-init.el and post-early-init.el), Emacs has not yet loaded the graphical user interface (GUI). This file is used for configurations that need to be applied before the GUI is initialized, such as settings that affect the early stages of the Emacs startup process.

Thus, post-early-init.el and pre-init.el serve different purposes and are not the same.

Author and license

This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program.

README.md

Minimal ~/.emacs.d - Emacs Starter Kit with Better Defaults and Optimized Startup

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