diff --git a/config/functions b/config/functions
index 58364d45ce..aa40401a68 100644
--- a/config/functions
+++ b/config/functions
@@ -1,4 +1,12 @@
 ### FUNCTION HELPERS ###
+# die (message, code) abort with optional message and code
+die() {
+  if [ -n "$1" ]; then
+    echo -e "$1" >&2
+  fi
+  exit "${2:-1}"
+}
+
 # return 0 if $2 in space-separated list $1, otherwise return 1
 listcontains() {
   if [ -n "$1" -a -n "$2" ]; then