conda-express#

conda-express publishes cx, a native bootstrapper for conda. It installs a working conda environment from a built-in runtime lock, then passes commands through to the installed conda executable.

cxz is the offline variant. It carries the locked package archives in the binary so it can bootstrap without network access.

conda-express is the distribution project for the cx and cxz binaries, not an official conda distribution. Custom bootstrap binaries are built with conda-ship.

Release versions follow the conda runtime version in the built-in lock. For example, cx 26.5.2.post3 bootstraps conda 26.5.2.

Install cx#

Homebrew is the recommended install path on macOS and Linux:

brew tap jezdez/conda-express https://github.com/jezdez/conda-express
brew install jezdez/conda-express/cx
cx bootstrap

See Quick start for the first environment workflow. See Guides for using cx alongside Anaconda Distribution, Miniconda, and Miniforge; offline installs; release artifact verification; included plugins; and how cx fits next to Pixi, uv, and Python package managers.

Choose A Path#

Tutorial

Install cx, bootstrap the prefix, create an environment, and activate it.

Quick start
Guides

Compare cx with familiar installers, use offline bootstrap, review included plugins, verify release artifacts, and place it next to project package managers.

Guides
Project Scope

See what conda-express owns and when to use conda-ship instead.

Project scope
Reference

Look up cx bootstrap, status, shell, uninstall, and pass-through behavior.

CLI Reference
Explanation

Understand runtime locks, package exclusions, activation, cxz, and release artifacts.

Features