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.

Configuration model (important): pnpm settings now 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 10.x, generated at 2026-06-22. It also covers v11 behavior changes (config split, isolated global packages, allowBuilds, pmOnFail, global virtual store) 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 [blocked]
Configuration	pnpm-workspace.yaml settings (camelCase), global config.yaml, packageConfigs, .npmrc auth	core-config [blocked]
Workspaces	Monorepo support: filtering, workspace protocol, shared lockfile, packageConfigs	core-workspaces [blocked]
Store	Content-addressable store, virtual store, node linker modes, frozen/read-only store	core-store [blocked]

Features

Topic	Description	Reference
Catalogs	Centralized dependency versions; catalogMode, catalog: in overrides	features-catalogs [blocked]
Overrides	Force versions (incl. transitive & peer deps); packageExtensions	features-overrides [blocked]
Patches	Modify third-party packages; patchedDependencies in pnpm-workspace.yaml	features-patches [blocked]
Aliases	Install under custom names (npm:) and registry aliases (namedRegistries)	features-aliases [blocked]
Hooks	.pnpmfile.mjs hooks (readPackage, updateConfig, beforePacking), finders, resolvers/fetchers	features-hooks [blocked]
Peer Dependencies	Auto-install, strict mode, rules, dedupePeers, peers check	features-peer-deps [blocked]
Config Dependencies	Share hooks/settings/catalogs/patches across repos via configDependencies	features-config-dependencies [blocked]
Global Virtual Store	Shared node_modules, git-worktree multi-agent setups, isolated global packages	features-global-virtual-store [blocked]
Supply-Chain Security	Build approval (allowBuilds), minimumReleaseAge, trustPolicy, lockfile integrity	features-supply-chain-security [blocked]

Best Practices

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