launchpad

A modern dependency manager for your system and your projects. Effortlessly manage development tools, runtime environments, and project dependencies with automatic environment isolation. Think Homebrew meets project-aware dependency management.

What is Launchpad?

Launchpad is a comprehensive dependency management solution that bridges the gap between system-wide package management and project-specific environments. Whether you're setting up a new development machine, managing system tools, or working on projects with specific dependency requirements, Launchpad provides a unified interface for all your dependency needs.

System Management:

• Install and manage development tools system-wide
• Automatic PATH configuration and shell integration
• Cross-platform compatibility (macOS, Linux, Windows)
• Smart permission handling and installation paths

Project Management:

• Automatic project environment detection and activation
• Isolated dependency environments per project
• Version-specific tool installation
• Seamless switching between project contexts

At its core, Launchpad leverages pkgx's powerful package ecosystem while adding intelligent management, environment isolation, and developer-friendly workflows.

Features

Launchpad transforms how you manage dependencies across your entire development workflow:

System-Wide Dependency Management

• 📦 Global Tool Installation — Install development tools and runtimes system-wide with automatic PATH management
• 🔧 Smart Installation Paths — Automatically chooses /usr/local for system-wide access or ~/.local for user-specific installs (pkgm compatible)
• 🔌 Shell Integration — Seamless integration with your shell for immediate tool availability
• 🪟 Cross-Platform Support — Consistent experience across macOS, Linux, and Windows

Project-Aware Environment Management

• 🌍 Automatic Environment Isolation — Project-specific environments that activate when you enter a project directory
• 🎯 Dependency Detection — Automatically reads dependencies.yaml, package.json, and other project files
• 🔄 Context Switching — Seamlessly switch between different project environments
• 📋 Version Management — Install and manage specific versions of tools per project
• 🗂️ Environment Management — List, inspect, clean, and remove project environments with readable identifiers

Developer Experience

• ⚡ Fast Operations — Leverage pkgx for efficient package management
• 🗑️ Clean Removal — Remove packages or completely uninstall with proper cleanup
• 🔄 Auto-Updates — Configure automatic updates for your dependency management tools
• 🎛️ Flexible Configuration — Customize behavior through config files or command-line options

Why Launchpad?

Modern development requires managing dependencies at multiple levels - from system tools to project-specific requirements. Traditional approaches fall short:

Traditional Package Managers (Homebrew, apt, etc.):

• ❌ Global conflicts — Different projects need different versions
• ❌ Slow operations — Installing or updating can take minutes
• ❌ Manual environment management — Switching between project contexts is manual
• ❌ PATH pollution — All tools are globally available, causing conflicts

Manual Dependency Management:

• ❌ Inconsistent setups — Different team members have different environments
• ❌ Complex PATH management — Manual shell configuration is error-prone
• ❌ Version drift — Hard to maintain consistent tool versions
• ❌ Platform differences — Different setup procedures for each OS

Launchpad's Solution:

• ✅ Unified Management — Single tool for both system and project dependencies
• ✅ Automatic Isolation — Project environments activate automatically
• ✅ Fast Operations — Efficient package management with intelligent caching
• ✅ Consistent Experience — Same commands and behavior across all platforms
• ✅ Smart Defaults — Sensible installation paths and configuration out of the box

Read more about why we created Launchpad

Installation

Get started with Launchpad through your preferred package manager:

# Install with Bun (recommended)
bun add -g @stacksjs/launchpad

# Or with npm
npm install -g @stacksjs/launchpad

# Or with yarn
yarn global add @stacksjs/launchpad

# Or with pnpm
pnpm add -g @stacksjs/launchpad

See Installation Guide for more options.

Quick Start

Launchpad is designed to handle both system setup and project management seamlessly! 🎯

System Setup (First Time)

Bootstrap your development environment with everything you need:

# Complete system setup - installs to /usr/local by default
./launchpad bootstrap

# Or for a custom installation path
./launchpad bootstrap --path ~/.local --verbose

# Skip specific components if needed
./launchpad bootstrap --skip-bun --skip-shell-integration

The bootstrap command sets up your entire development foundation:

• ✅ Install pkgx (package manager)
• ✅ Install Bun (JavaScript runtime)
• ✅ Configure your PATH automatically
• ✅ Set up shell integration for project auto-activation
• ✅ Provide clear next steps

System-Wide Tool Management

Install and manage development tools across your entire system:

# Install essential development tools system-wide
launchpad install node python go rust

# Install specific versions
launchpad install node@22 python@3.12

# Install to /usr/local (default system-wide location)
launchpad install typescript --system

# Or specify any custom path
launchpad install docker --path /opt/tools

# Use shorthand for quick installs
launchpad i node@22 typescript@5.7

Smart Installation Behavior:

• Default: Installs to /usr/local if writable, otherwise ~/.local
• System-wide: Use --system for explicit system installation (same as default)
• Custom paths: Use --path <directory> for any location
• Automatic PATH: Tools are immediately available in new shells

Project Environment Management

Launchpad automatically manages project-specific dependencies:

# Create a project with dependencies
echo "dependencies:
  - node@22
  - typescript@5.7
  - bun@1.2" > dependencies.yaml

# Environment activates automatically when you enter the directory
cd my-project
# → ✅ Environment activated for /path/to/my-project

# Tools are available in project context
node --version  # Uses project-specific Node.js
tsc --version   # Uses project-specific TypeScript

# Leave project - environment deactivates automatically
cd ..
# → 🔄 Environment deactivated

Supported Project Files:

• dependencies.yaml / dependencies.yml
• package.json (Node.js projects)
• pyproject.toml (Python projects)
• Cargo.toml (Rust projects)
• And more...

Environment Management

Manage your project environments with human-readable identifiers:

# List all development environments
launchpad env:list

# Inspect a specific environment
launchpad env:inspect my-project_1a2b3c4d

# Clean up old or failed environments
launchpad env:clean --dry-run

# Remove a specific environment
launchpad env:remove old-project_5e6f7g8h --force

Environment Hash Format: {project-name}_{8-char-hex}

• final-project_7db6cf06 - Easy to identify and manage
• working-test_208a31ec - Human-readable project identification
• my-app_1a2b3c4d - Collision-resistant unique identifiers

Package Management

Remove packages and manage your installation:

# Remove specific system tools
launchpad remove node python

# Remove project-specific versions
launchpad rm node@22

# See what would be removed
launchpad remove python --dry-run

# Complete system cleanup
launchpad uninstall

Advanced Operations

# Create executable shims
launchpad shim node@22 typescript@5.7

# List all installed packages
launchpad list

# Configure auto-updates
launchpad autoupdate:enable

# Install additional tools
launchpad pkgx    # Install pkgx itself
launchpad bun     # Install Bun runtime

Configuration

Customize Launchpad's behavior for your system and projects:

import type { LaunchpadConfig } from '@stacksjs/launchpad'

const config: LaunchpadConfig = {
  // System-wide installation preferences
  installationPath: '/usr/local', // Default system location
  autoSudo: true, // Auto-elevate when needed
  sudoPassword: '', // Password for sudo operations

  // Development environment settings
  devAware: true, // Enable dev-aware installations
  symlinkVersions: true, // Create version-specific symlinks
  forceReinstall: false, // Force reinstall if already installed

  // Operation settings
  verbose: true, // Detailed logging
  maxRetries: 3, // Retry failed operations
  timeout: 60000, // Operation timeout in milliseconds

  // PATH and shell integration
  shimPath: '~/.local/bin', // Custom shim location
  autoAddToPath: true, // Automatic PATH management

  // Shell message configuration
  showShellMessages: true,
  shellActivationMessage: '✅ Environment activated for {path}',
  shellDeactivationMessage: 'dev environment deactivated',
}

export default config

See Configuration Guide for all options.

GitHub Action

Integrate Launchpad into your CI/CD workflows:

- name: Setup Development Environment
  uses: stacksjs/launchpad-installer@v1
  with:
    packages: node@22 typescript@5.7 bun@1.2.14

See GitHub Action Documentation for details.

Advanced Usage

Explore advanced dependency management topics:

• Project Environment Configuration
• Custom Shims and Tool Management
• Cross-platform Compatibility
• Performance Optimization
• API Reference

Comparing to Alternatives

vs Traditional Package Managers (Homebrew, apt, yum)

• 🎯 Project Awareness: Automatic project environment management vs manual setup
• ⚡ Speed: Faster installations with intelligent caching
• 🔒 Isolation: Project-specific versions vs global conflicts
• 🌍 Cross-Platform: Consistent experience across all operating systems

vs Language-Specific Managers (nvm, pyenv, rbenv)

• 🔄 Unified Interface: Single tool for all languages vs multiple managers
• 🤖 Automatic Switching: Context-aware environment activation
• 📦 Broader Scope: Manages system tools beyond just language runtimes
• 🛠️ Integrated Workflow: Seamless integration between system and project dependencies

vs Container-Based Solutions (Docker, devcontainers)

• 🚀 Lightweight: Native performance without virtualization overhead
• 💻 System Integration: Tools available in your native shell and IDE
• 🔧 Flexible: Mix system-wide and project-specific tools as needed
• ⚡ Instant: No container startup time or resource overhead

Changelog

Please see our releases page for information on changes.

Contributing

Please see CONTRIBUTING for details.

Community

For help or discussion:

• Discussions on GitHub
• Join the Stacks Discord Server

Postcardware

"Software that is free, but hopes for a postcard." We love receiving postcards from around the world showing where Stacks is being used! We showcase them on our website too.

Our address: Stacks.js, 12665 Village Ln #2306, Playa Vista, CA 90094, United States 🌎

Credits

• Max Howell - for creating pkgx and Homebrew
• pkgm & dev - thanks for the inspiration
• Chris Breuer
• All Contributors

Sponsors

We would like to extend our thanks to the following sponsors for funding Stacks development. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please reach out to us.

• JetBrains
• The Solana Foundation

License

The MIT License (MIT). Please see LICENSE for more information.

Made with 💙