Managing plugins#

This tutorial covers the complete lifecycle of conda plugins in a protected base environment: installing, updating, and removing them.

Prerequisites#

conda-self installed in base (conda install -n base conda-self)
Base environment protected (see Protecting your base environment)

Install a plugin#

Install plugin demo

conda self install conda-index

conda-self runs conda install as a subprocess with --override-frozen, then validates that the installed package is a real conda plugin by checking its entry points. If validation fails, the package is automatically uninstalled.

Multiple plugins at once#

conda self install conda-index conda-auth

Update plugins#

Update demo

Update all plugins and conda itself:

conda self update

Update specific packages:

conda self update conda

Force reinstall everything:

conda self update --force-reinstall

The solver finds the latest compatible versions automatically. No manual version pinning is needed.

Remove a plugin#

Remove demo

conda self remove conda-index

Essential packages (conda, its core dependencies) cannot be removed. If you try, you will see a SpecsCanNotBeRemoved error.

Channel configuration#

conda-self uses your configured channels. Use conda config to add or change channels before installing. To install plugins from a custom channel:

# Add the channel first
conda config --add channels my-channel -n base

# Then install
conda self install my-plugin

Inline channel specs (conda-forge::my-plugin) are not supported and will produce an error. This keeps channel configuration consistent across all operations.

Verify installed plugins#

After installing, you can verify which plugins are registered with conda info:

conda info

The output includes a “plugins” section listing all discovered conda plugins and their versions.

Next steps#

Resetting the base environment – Restore base from a snapshot
Using custom channels – Use custom channels for plugins
CLI reference – Full CLI reference