flash-install

⚡ flash-install

Blazingly fast package installation for Node.js

A fast, drop-in replacement for npm install, focused on drastically speeding up Node.js dependency installation through deterministic caching, parallel operations, and .flashpack archive snapshotting.

Features

• Blazing Fast: Installs dependencies from cache when available, avoiding network requests
• Deterministic Caching: Uses hash-based paths for deduplication and hardlinks to minimize disk usage
• Parallel Operations: Installs packages in parallel using Node.js worker threads
• Snapshot Support: Creates and restores .flashpack archives for instant dependency restoration
• Package Manager Compatibility: Works with npm, yarn, and pnpm projects
• Offline Mode: Install dependencies without internet connection using cache or snapshots
• Checksum Validation: Verifies package integrity against npm registry checksums
• Snapshot Fingerprinting: Auto-invalidates snapshots when lockfiles change
• Sync Command: Efficiently updates dependencies without full reinstallation
• Plugin System: Extensible architecture with lifecycle hooks

Installation

npm install -g flash-install

Usage

Basic Installation

Replace your regular npm install command with flash-install:

flash-install

Creating a Snapshot

Create a .flashpack snapshot of your node_modules directory:

flash-install snapshot

Restoring from a Snapshot

Restore your node_modules from a .flashpack snapshot:

flash-install restore

Cleaning

Remove node_modules and local .flashpack file:

flash-install clean

Clean the global cache:

flash-install clean --global

Sync Dependencies

Efficiently update dependencies without a full reinstall:

flash-install sync

Cache Information

View information about the global cache:

flash-install cache

Verify cache integrity:

flash-install cache --verify

Optimize cache storage:

flash-install cache --optimize

Plugin Management

List installed plugins:

flash-install plugin list

Add a plugin:

flash-install plugin add <path-to-plugin>

Remove a plugin:

flash-install plugin remove <plugin-name>

Options

Installation Options

• -o, --offline: Use offline mode (requires cache or snapshot)
• --no-cache: Disable cache usage
• -c, --concurrency <number>: Number of concurrent installations
• -p, --package-manager <manager>: Package manager to use (npm, yarn, pnpm)
• --no-dev: Skip dev dependencies
• --skip-postinstall: Skip postinstall scripts
• -v, --verbose: Enable verbose logging
• -q, --quiet: Suppress all output except errors

Snapshot Options

• -f, --format <format>: Snapshot format (zip, tar, tar.gz)
• -c, --compression <level>: Compression level (0-9)
• -o, --output <path>: Custom output path for snapshot

Restore Options

• -s, --snapshot <path>: Path to snapshot file

Clean Options

• -g, --global: Clean global cache instead of project
• -a, --all: Clean both project and global cache
• --cache-max-age <days>: Maximum age for cache entries in days

Sync Options

• -f, --force: Force sync even if dependencies are up to date
• --skip-snapshot: Skip creating snapshot after sync
• --skip-cache: Skip using cache during sync

Cache Options

• --verify: Verify cache integrity
• --optimize: Optimize cache storage

Plugin Options

• add <path>: Add a plugin from a path
• remove <name>: Remove a plugin by name
• list: List all installed plugins

How It Works

• Dependency Resolution: Parses lockfiles to determine exact dependencies
• Cache Check: Checks if dependencies are in the global cache
• Snapshot Check: Checks if a valid .flashpack snapshot exists
• Installation: If no cache or snapshot is available, installs dependencies using the package manager
• Caching: Adds newly installed packages to the cache
• Integrity Verification: Validates package checksums against npm registry
• Snapshotting: Creates a .flashpack snapshot with fingerprinting for future use
• Plugin Execution: Runs plugins at various lifecycle hooks

Plugin System

flash-install includes a powerful plugin system that allows extending functionality through lifecycle hooks:

• preInstall: Before installation begins
• postInstall: After installation completes
• preSnapshot: Before creating a snapshot
• postSnapshot: After creating a snapshot
• preRestore: Before restoring from a snapshot
• postRestore: After restoring from a snapshot
• preSync: Before syncing dependencies
• postSync: After syncing dependencies
• preClean: Before cleaning
• postClean: After cleaning

Plugins can be used for tasks like:

• TypeScript declaration generation
• Security scanning
• License compliance checking
• Dependency visualization
• Custom build steps

Performance Comparison

Scenario	npm install	flash-install	Speedup
First install (small project)	30-60s	10-15s	3-4x
First install (large project)	3-5min	1-2min	2-3x
Subsequent install (from cache)	30-60s	5-10s	6-10x
Subsequent install (from snapshot)	30-60s	1-3s	20-30x
CI/CD environment	1-3min	5-15s	10-20x

Benefits

• Time Savings: Dramatically reduces installation time for repeated builds
• Bandwidth Savings: Minimizes network usage by using cached packages
• Disk Space Efficiency: Uses hardlinks to avoid duplicating files
• CI/CD Optimization: Perfect for continuous integration environments
• Developer Experience: Instant dependency restoration when switching branches
• Offline Development: Work without internet connection using cache or snapshots

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

• Fork the repository
• Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
• Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some amazing feature')
• Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
• Open a Pull Request

Publishing

To publish a new version of flash-install to npm:

Method 1: Using the npm script

• Update the version in package.json
• Login to npm: npm login
• Run the publish script: npm run publish-package

Method 2: Manual publishing

• Update the version in package.json
• Build the project: npm run build
• Login to npm: npm login
• Publish the package: npm publish

License

MIT

Acknowledgements

• Inspired by the speed of Bun, the reliability of Yarn, and the efficiency of PNPM
• Thanks to all the open-source projects that made this possible