pixi global tree

Show dependency tree for a global environment

The pixi global tree command displays the dependency tree for a specific global environment, showing how packages depend on each other.

Usage

pixi global tree [OPTIONS] --environment <ENVIRONMENT>

Options

Environment Selection

--environment · string · required

The environment to list packages for.

Short flag: -e

pixi global tree --environment python311
pixi global tree -e tools

Filtering

REGEX · string

List only packages matching a regular expression.

Positional argument (optional).

pixi global tree --environment python311 "^numpy"
pixi global tree -e tools "ruff.*"

Inverted Tree

--invert · boolean · default: "false"

Invert tree and show what depends on a given package.

Short flag: -i

Requires a regex argument to specify the package.

pixi global tree --environment python311 numpy --invert
pixi global tree -e tools -i pytest

Behavior

Standard Tree View

Shows packages and their dependencies in a tree structure:

pixi global tree --environment python311

Example output:

python 3.11.8
├── openssl 3.2.0
│   └── ca-certificates 2024.2.2
└── readline 8.2
    └── ncurses 6.4

numpy 1.26.4
├── python 3.11.8
│   ├── openssl 3.2.0
│   │   └── ca-certificates 2024.2.2
│   └── readline 8.2
│       └── ncurses 6.4
└── libblas 3.9.0

Direct Dependencies Highlighted

Packages directly specified in the manifest are highlighted in green.

Direct dependencies (specified in your manifest) are highlighted in green to distinguish them from transitive dependencies.

Inverted Tree View

Shows what depends on a specific package:

pixi global tree --environment python311 numpy --invert

Example output:

numpy 1.26.4
└── pandas 2.2.0
    └── matplotlib 3.8.2

This shows that pandas depends on numpy, and matplotlib depends on pandas.

Examples

Show Full Dependency Tree

pixi global tree --environment python311

Displays all packages and their dependencies.

Filter by Package Name

pixi global tree --environment python311 numpy

Shows only numpy and its dependencies.

Filter with Regex

pixi global tree --environment python311 "^py.*"

Shows packages starting with “py” (python, pytz, etc.).

Show Reverse Dependencies

pixi global tree --environment python311 python --invert

Shows all packages that depend on Python.

Check What Depends on a Library

pixi global tree --environment tools certifi --invert

Shows which packages in your tools environment depend on certifi.

Find Dependency Chain

pixi global tree --environment python311 openssl

Shows how openssl is used in the dependency tree.

Understanding the Output

Tree Structure Symbols

• ├── - Branch connector (more dependencies follow)
• └── - Last branch connector (final dependency)
• │ - Vertical line (continuation)

Package Information

Each line shows:

• Package name
• Version number
• Color coding:
  • Green: Direct dependencies (in your manifest)
  • Default: Transitive dependencies (pulled in by other packages)

Virtual Packages

Packages starting with __ are filtered out (e.g., __glibc, __cuda):

# These don't appear in tree:
__glibc 2.35
__unix 0

Common Use Cases

Debug Dependency Issues

Find why a package is installed:

pixi global tree --environment myenv unexpected-package --invert

Shows what pulled in the unexpected package.

Check Python Dependencies

pixi global tree --environment python311 python --invert

See all packages that require Python.

Find Heavy Dependencies

pixi global tree --environment ml-env

Identify packages with many dependencies.

Verify Environment Contents

pixi global tree --environment tools

Ensure the environment contains expected packages.

Analyze Package Relationships

pixi global tree --environment data scipy

See scipy’s full dependency tree.

Filtering Examples

Python-Related Packages

pixi global tree --environment myenv "^py"

Matches: python, pytz, pyyaml, etc.

Library Dependencies

pixi global tree --environment myenv "lib.*"

Matches: libblas, libcblas, libgfortran, etc.

Specific Version

pixi global tree --environment myenv "numpy.*1\.26"

Matches: numpy 1.26.x

Case-Insensitive Match

pixi global tree --environment myenv "(?i)NUMPY"

Matches numpy regardless of case in the pattern.

Inverted Tree Examples

What Depends on OpenSSL

pixi global tree --environment python311 openssl --invert

Shows the reverse dependency chain.

What Uses NumPy

pixi global tree --environment data-science numpy --invert

Shows all packages that depend on NumPy.

Find Python Dependents

pixi global tree --environment myenv python --invert

Lists everything that requires Python.

Troubleshooting

Environment Not Found

Error: Environment not found

Solution: Check environment name:

pixi global list
pixi global tree --environment correct-name

No Packages Found

Error: No packages found matching pattern

Solution: Adjust regex pattern:

# Too specific
pixi global tree --environment myenv "numpy==1.26.4"

# Better
pixi global tree --environment myenv "numpy"

Invert Requires Regex

Error: --invert requires regex argument

Solution: Provide package name:

pixi global tree --environment myenv --invert  # ❌ Wrong
pixi global tree --environment myenv numpy --invert  # ✅ Correct

Empty Tree

If tree is empty, environment may not be installed:

pixi global sync
pixi global tree --environment myenv

Comparison with Project Tree

Global Tree vs Project Tree

• pixi global tree: Shows dependencies for global environments
• pixi tree: Shows dependencies for workspace project

# Global environment
pixi global tree --environment python311

# Workspace project
pixi tree

Output Formats

The tree output is designed for terminal viewing:

• Color highlighting for direct dependencies
• Unicode tree characters for structure
• Package versions clearly displayed

Redirect to File

pixi global tree --environment myenv > tree.txt

Note: Color codes may appear in the file. Use --no-color if available or process the output.

Performance Notes

For large environments, filtering with regex improves performance and readability.

# Faster - shows only relevant packages
pixi global tree --environment large-env numpy

# Slower - shows entire tree
pixi global tree --environment large-env

Advanced Usage

Combine with Other Tools

# Count dependencies
pixi global tree --environment myenv | wc -l

# Search for specific package
pixi global tree --environment myenv | grep openssl

# Save tree structure
pixi global tree --environment myenv > deps-$(date +%Y%m%d).txt

Audit Dependencies

# Check for security concerns
pixi global tree --environment prod openssl --invert
pixi global tree --environment prod certifi --invert

Compare Environments

pixi global tree --environment env1 > env1-tree.txt
pixi global tree --environment env2 > env2-tree.txt
diff env1-tree.txt env2-tree.txt

See Also

• pixi tree - Show dependency tree for workspace project
• pixi global list - List packages in global environments
• pixi global install - Install global environment
• pixi list - List packages in workspace