pnpm

pnpm is a fast, disk space efficient package manager. It uses a content-addressable store to deduplicate packages across all projects on a machine, and enforces strict dependency resolution by default, preventing phantom dependencies.

pnpm v12 is a Rust rewrite of v11: stable, and keeps v11's commands, flags, settings, and lockfile format — so most guidance here applies to both. A handful of v12 behaviors differ (git deps resolve via HTTPS, project-aware global bins, other package managers, packageImportMethod: auto hardlinks first on Linux, --resolution-only removed) — see best-practices-migration.

Configuration model (important): pnpm settings live in pnpm-workspace.yaml (and the global config.yaml) using camelCase keys. .npmrc is used only for authentication/registry credentials, and the pnpm field of package.json is no longer read. When working in a pnpm project, check pnpm-workspace.yaml for settings/workspace structure and .npmrc only for auth. Always use --frozen-lockfile (or pnpm ci) in CI.

The skill is based on pnpm 12.x, generated at 2026-09-25. It covers v11+v12 behavior (config split, isolated global packages, allowBuilds, pmOnFail, global virtual store, native release management, workspace task orchestration, and experimental Python/Cargo support) where current docs describe them.

Core

Topic	Description	Reference
CLI Commands	install/add/remove/update, run, dlx/pnx, workspace, runtime, publishing (version, view, sbom, stage)	core-cli
Configuration	pnpm-workspace.yaml settings (camelCase), global config.yaml, packageConfigs, .npmrc auth	core-config
Workspaces	Monorepo support: filtering, workspace protocol, shared lockfile, packageConfigs	core-workspaces
Store	Content-addressable store, virtual store, node linker modes, frozen/read-only store	core-store

Features

Topic	Description	Reference
Catalogs	Centralized dependency versions; catalogMode, catalog: in overrides	features-catalogs
Overrides	Force versions (incl. transitive & peer deps); packageExtensions	features-overrides
Patches	Modify third-party packages; patchedDependencies in pnpm-workspace.yaml	features-patches
Aliases	Install under custom names (npm:) and registry aliases (namedRegistries)	features-aliases
Hooks	.pnpmfile.mjs hooks (readPackage, updateConfig, beforePacking), finders, resolvers/fetchers	features-hooks
Peer Dependencies	Auto-install, strict mode, rules, dedupePeers, peers check	features-peer-deps
Config Dependencies	Share hooks/settings/catalogs/patches across repos via configDependencies	features-config-dependencies
Global Virtual Store & Shims	Shared node_modules, git-worktree multi-agent setups, isolated global packages, project-aware bins, other package managers	features-global-virtual-store
Supply-Chain Security	Build approval (allowBuilds), minimumReleaseAge, trustPolicy, lockfile integrity	features-supply-chain-security
Task Orchestration	Cross-project task graphs (tasks/dependsOn), concurrency groups, priority, pnpm pipeline	features-task-orchestration
Release Management	Native versioning: pnpm change/version -r/lane, lanes, epics, fixed groups	features-versioning
Multi-Ecosystem	Python (pypi:) and Cargo (crate:) dependencies alongside npm (experimental)	features-multi-ecosystem

Best Practices

Topic	Description	Reference
CI/CD Setup	GitHub Actions, GitLab, Docker, pnpm ci, store caching, frozen lockfiles	best-practices-ci
Migration	npm/Yarn → pnpm, phantom deps, and pnpm v10 → v11 → v12 upgrade notes	best-practices-migration
Performance	Install optimizations, allowBuilds, global virtual store, workspace parallelization	best-practices-performance