Manage packages

You can install additional packages in the OpenCode environment:

• System packages: OS-level tools installed through pkg-install, a wrapper around the Alpine Linux package manager.
• Language packages: Dependencies installed through native package managers such as pip and npm.

Learning objectives

By the end of this tutorial, you will learn how to:

• List, search, install, and remove system packages with pkg-install.
• Install system packages through the OpenCode chat interface using the system-admin skill.
• Install language-specific dependencies with pip, npm, go install, and cargo install.
• Understand how installed packages persist across container restarts and app upgrades.

System packages

The OpenCode container runs as a non-root user, so sudo and apk are not available directly. All system package management goes through pkg-install.

Check pre-installed packages

OpenCode includes many common packages by default. To view the full list of installed packages, open the OpenCode terminal and enter the following command:

pkg-install --list

To search for a specific package by keyword:

pkg-install --search <keyword>

To view detailed information about a package:

pkg-install --info <package>

Install and remove packages

To install a system package:

pkg-install <package>

To install a specific version:

pkg-install <package>=<version>

To remove an installed package:

pkg-install --remove <package>

TIP

OpenCode runs on Alpine Linux. Package names may differ from those on Debian or Ubuntu. Use pkg-install --search to find the correct package name.

Install via AI chat

You can also install system packages through the OpenCode chat interface. Send a message such as "Install ffmpeg", and the system-admin skill runs the appropriate pkg-install command automatically.

If the skill does not activate, load it manually by entering the following command in the chat:

/skill load system-admin

Language packages

For language-specific dependencies, use the appropriate native package manager in the OpenCode terminal:

pip install <package>          # Python
npm install <package>          # Node.js
go install <package>@latest    # Go
cargo install <package>        # Rust

Package persistence

Packages installed through pkg-install persist across container restarts within the same app version. During an app upgrade, OpenCode records your installed packages and reinstalls them automatically after the new version initializes.