Cliverman

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A lightweight runtime manager focused on consistency.

Learn one runtime. Manage them all.

Cliverman is a universal runtime manager written entirely in Bash. It provides a single, predictable workflow for installing, switching and managing development runtimes without plugins, hidden behavior or runtime-specific commands.

Once a runtime is installed, Cliverman gets out of your way. You simply use java, go, node, nvim or any other executable as if it were installed directly on your system.

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Why Cliverman?

Most runtime managers eventually expose runtime-specific behaviors.

Cliverman follows a different philosophy:

• One workflow for every runtime
• One architecture
• One user experience

If you know how to manage Go, you already know how to manage Java. If you know Node.js, you already know Python.

The commands never change.

cliverman search
cliverman install
cliverman use
cliverman list
cliverman uninstall

The runtime is just another parameter.

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Philosophy

Cliverman was designed around a few principles.

Consistency

Every runtime implements exactly the same interface.

Searching, installing, activating and removing versions always behaves the same way.

Transparency

After selecting a runtime, Cliverman disappears.

You simply execute:

java
go
node
nvim

No wrappers. No special launch commands.

Lightweight

• Pure Bash
• Minimal dependencies
• No plugin ecosystem
• Fast startup

Integrated

Unlike plugin-based runtime managers, every runtime module is part of the project itself.

This provides:

• consistent UX
• consistent implementation
• easier maintenance
• predictable behavior

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Features

• Universal runtime management
• Consistent commands across every runtime
• Automatic shim generation
• Runtime aliases (latest, lts)
• Download verification using checksums
• Pure Bash implementation
• Small footprint
• Zero runtime-specific commands

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Supported runtimes

	Runtime	Status
1	Flutter	🟢 OK
2	Golang	🟢 OK
3	Java (Temurin)	🟢 OK
4	Neovim	🟢 OK
5	Node.js	🟢 OK
6	Python	🟡 PENDING

More runtimes will be added over time without changing the user experience.

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Installation

curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/marcoaurelima/cliverman/refs/heads/main/installer.sh | bash

Add shims to your PATH:

export PATH="$HOME/.cliverman/shims:$PATH"

Reload your shell.

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Usage

Search available versions:

cliverman search java

Install a runtime:

cliverman install java:21

Install aliases:

cliverman install java:lts
cliverman install java:latest

Activate a version:

cliverman use java:21

Use it normally:

java -version
javac
jar

List installed versions:

cliverman list java

Output:

• 21
• 25 (current)
• 26

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How it works

Cliverman manages complete runtime installations.

Each runtime lives inside:

~/.cliverman/installs/

Executables are exposed through generated shims:

~/.cliverman/shims/

A shim is a tiny executable that transparently redirects execution to the currently active runtime.

When you type:

java

the shell actually executes:

~/.cliverman/shims/java

which resolves the active runtime and executes the real binary.

The same mechanism works for every executable contained in a runtime.

For Java, for example, Cliverman automatically generates shims for every executable found inside the JDK bin/ directory.

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Project structure

src/
│
├── install.sh
├── search.sh
├── use.sh
├── list.sh
├── ...
│
└── runtimes/
    ├── java/
    ├── golang/
    ├── nodejs/
    └── ...

Each runtime implements the same interface.

This architecture allows new runtimes to be added without changing the user experience.

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Requirements

• Bash 4+
• curl
• jq

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Roadmap

• More runtimes
• Shell completion
• Windows support
• Additional Java distributions
• Automated tests

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Contributing

Contributions are welcome.

Please keep the project philosophy in mind:

• simplicity
• consistency
• transparency

Every runtime should behave exactly like every other runtime.

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License

MIT

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Inspired by projects like asdf, but built around a fully integrated runtime architecture instead of plugins.