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pixi

pixi is a cross-platform, multi-language package manager and workflow tool built on the foundation of the conda ecosystem pixi Homepage

Available Modules

module load pixi/0.61.0

pixi gives each project its own environment, with packages from conda-forge and PyPI. The packages you ask for are listed in pixi.toml, and the exact version of every package is pinned in pixi.lock. To compare pixi with Conda, uv and containers, see Reproducible Software.

Set the cache directory

By default, pixi keeps its package cache in your home directory. Move it to your project's nobackup directory:

export PIXI_CACHE_DIR=/nesi/nobackup/nesi99991/pixi_cache

Replace nesi99991 with your project code. Add this line to your ~/.bashrc to keep the setting.

Create a project

Make the project in your project directory: its environment, in the .pixi directory, can contain many files.

module purge
module load pixi/0.61.0
cd /nesi/project/nesi99991/my_project
pixi init
pixi add python numpy
pixi run python my_script.py

Replace nesi99991 with your project code. Add PyPI packages with pixi add --pypi PACKAGE_NAME.

To run the project in a batch job:

#!/bin/bash -e

#SBATCH --job-name    pixi-job
#SBATCH --account     nesi99991
#SBATCH --time        01:00:00

module purge
module load pixi/0.61.0

cd /nesi/project/nesi99991/my_project
pixi run python my_script.py

Share an environment

Keep pixi.toml and pixi.lock with your code, for example in Git. Anyone with both files can recreate the environment with pixi install.

A project made on Mahuika only lists the linux-64 platform. To use it on another computer, such as a Mac, add that platform:

pixi workspace platform add osx-arm64

The pixi documentation has more on projects, tasks and multiple environments.