Installation Commands

Install, update, and remove skills with Tank CLI

Installation Commands

Installation commands manage skill dependencies in your project or globally.

tank install

Install a skill from the Tank registry.

tank install <name> [version-range]

Examples

# Install latest version
tank install @acme/analytics

# Install specific version range
tank install @acme/analytics@^1.0.0
tank install @acme/analytics@~2.1.0
tank install @acme/analytics@1.2.3

# Install all skills from skills.json
tank install

Installation Flow

1. Resolve version using semver range
2. Fetch skill metadata from registry
3. Verify permission budget (if defined in skills.json)
4. Download tarball from signed URL
5. Verify SHA-512 integrity hash
6. Extract with security filters
7. Update skills.json and skills.lock
8. Link to installed AI agents (if detected)

Example Output

$ tank install @acme/analytics
⠹ Resolving versions...
⠹ Fetching @acme/analytics@1.2.0...
⠹ Downloading @acme/analytics@1.2.0...
⠹ Verifying integrity...
⠹ Extracting @acme/analytics@1.2.0...
ℹ Linked to 2 agent(s)
✓ Installed @acme/analytics@1.2.0

Options

—global

Install skill globally instead of in current project.

tank install @acme/analytics --global

Global skills are stored in ~/.tank/skills/ and available to all agents.

Version Resolution

Tank uses semantic versioning (semver) to resolve versions:

# Caret (^) - Compatible with version (same major)
tank install skill@^1.2.3   # Matches 1.2.3, 1.3.0, 1.9.9 (not 2.0.0)

# Tilde (~) - Approximately equivalent (same minor)
tank install skill@~1.2.3   # Matches 1.2.3, 1.2.4, 1.2.9 (not 1.3.0)

# Exact version
tank install skill@1.2.3    # Only matches 1.2.3

# Latest (default)
tank install skill          # Latest published version
tank install skill@*        # Explicit wildcard

See source: packages/shared/src/resolver.ts

Install from Lockfile

Run tank install without arguments to install all skills from skills.lock:

$ tank install
⠹ Installing from lockfile...
✓ Installed 3 skills from lockfile

This ensures deterministic installs across environments (CI/CD, team members).

Integrity Checks

During installation, Tank verifies tarball integrity:

const hash = crypto.createHash('sha512')
  .update(tarballBuffer)
  .digest('base64');
const computedIntegrity = `sha512-${hash}`;

if (computedIntegrity !== metadata.integrity) {
  throw new Error('Integrity mismatch');
}

See source: apps/cli/src/commands/install.ts:244

If integrity fails:

✗ Integrity mismatch for @acme/analytics@1.2.0
  Expected: sha512-abc123...
  Got: sha512-def456...

This prevents:

• Tampered packages
• Corrupted downloads
• Man-in-the-middle attacks

Security Filters

Tank extracts tarballs with strict security filters:

Rejected Entries

• Absolute paths - /etc/passwd
• Path traversal - ../../etc/passwd
• Symlinks - link -> /etc/passwd
• Hard links - Physical links to other files

See source: apps/cli/src/commands/install.ts:552

Size Limits

• Max uncompressed size: 100 MB
• Enforced during extraction

Permission Budget

If skills.json defines a permission budget, Tank verifies the skill fits within it:

{
  "permissions": {
    "network": {
      "outbound": ["*.example.com"]
    },
    "filesystem": {
      "read": ["./data/**"],
      "write": []
    },
    "subprocess": false
  }
}

If a skill requests permissions outside the budget:

✗ Permission denied: @acme/analytics requests network access to "api.acme.com",
  which is not in the project's permission budget

See source: apps/cli/src/commands/install.ts:592

Audit Score Threshold

Set minimum audit score in skills.json:

{
  "audit": {
    "min_score": 7.0
  }
}

If installed skill’s audit score is below threshold:

✗ Audit score 4.2 for @acme/analytics is below minimum threshold 7.0
  defined in skills.json

See source: apps/cli/src/commands/install.ts:216

tank update

Update one or all skills to the latest compatible version.

# Update single skill
tank update @acme/analytics

# Update all skills
tank update

Update Flow

1. Read version range from skills.json
2. Fetch available versions from registry
3. Resolve latest compatible version
4. Compare with lockfile version
5. If newer version exists, install it

Example Output

$ tank update @acme/analytics
⠹ Resolving versions...
⠹ Fetching @acme/analytics@1.3.0...
✓ Updated @acme/analytics to 1.3.0

$ tank update @acme/analytics
ℹ Already at latest: @acme/analytics@1.3.0

Update All

$ tank update
⠹ Resolving versions...
✓ Updated 2 skills

$ tank update
ℹ All skills up to date

Global Updates

Update globally installed skills:

tank update --global             # Update all global skills
tank update @acme/analytics --global  # Update single global skill

tank remove

Remove a skill from the project.

tank remove <name>

Examples

tank remove @acme/analytics
tank remove @acme/analytics --global

Removal Flow

1. Remove skill from skills.json
2. Remove all matching entries from skills.lock
3. Unlink from installed agents
4. Delete skill directory from .tank/skills/

Example Output

$ tank remove @acme/analytics
ℹ Unlinked from 2 agent(s)
✓ Removed @acme/analytics

Global Removal

$ tank remove @acme/analytics --global
ℹ Unlinked from 3 agent(s)
✓ Removed @acme/analytics (global)

Errors

$ tank remove unknown-skill
✗ Skill "unknown-skill" is not installed (not found in skills.json)

Installation Locations

Project Installation

my-project/
├── skills.json
├── skills.lock
└── .tank/
    ├── skills/
    │   └── @acme/
    │       └── analytics/      # Extracted skill files
    └── agent-skills/
        └── acme-analytics/     # Agent-ready wrapper

Global Installation

~/.tank/
├── config.json
├── skills.lock
├── skills/
│   └── @acme/
│       └── analytics/          # Extracted skill files
└── agent-skills/
    └── acme-analytics/         # Agent-ready wrapper

Agent Linking

After installation, Tank automatically links skills to detected agents:

ℹ Linked to 2 agent(s)

Supported agents:

• OpenCode
• Cursor
• Windsurf
• Cline
• Continue

See Linking Commands for details.

Lockfile Format

The skills.lock file ensures deterministic installs:

{
  "lockfileVersion": 1,
  "skills": {
    "@acme/analytics@1.2.0": {
      "resolved": "https://storage.tank.dev/tarballs/abc123.tgz",
      "integrity": "sha512-abc123...",
      "permissions": {
        "network": { "outbound": ["api.acme.com"] },
        "filesystem": { "read": [], "write": [] },
        "subprocess": false
      },
      "audit_score": 8.5
    }
  }
}

Key Properties

• resolved - Download URL (signed, time-limited)
• integrity - SHA-512 hash for verification
• permissions - Declared permissions from manifest
• audit_score - Security score (0-10, null if pending)

Determinism

• Keys are sorted alphabetically
• Trailing newline enforced
• Consistent indentation (2 spaces)

This ensures lockfile diffs are minimal and git-friendly.

Troubleshooting

Network Errors

✗ Network error fetching versions: ENOTFOUND

Fix: Check internet connection and registry URL in ~/.tank/config.json.

Permission Budget Violation

✗ Permission denied: skill requests subprocess access,
  but project budget does not allow it

Fix: Update permissions.subprocess in skills.json or choose a different skill.

Audit Score Too Low

⚠ Audit score 3.5 for skill is below minimum threshold 7.0

Fix: Lower audit.min_score in skills.json or contact skill author to address security issues.

Skill Not Found

✗ Skill not found or no access: @acme/analytics

Fix:

• Verify skill name is correct
• Run tank login if private skill
• Check organization membership for scoped packages