Zi is a high-performance plugin manager and toolkit for Zsh. Rather than simply sourcing a list of plugins, it provides a declarative layer for describing how each dependency should be obtained, prepared and loaded. This makes Zi well suited to customised shell setups where startup time, loading order, update behaviour and integration need careful control.
It can handle anything from a small collection of plugins to a much broader Zsh environment while keeping the configuration in the user’s shell startup files. Zi was formerly known as zplugin and zinit.
This is free and open source software.
Key Features
- Turbo mode can defer plugin work until after the first prompt, helping keep interactive startup responsive.
- Loads Git repositories, standalone scripts, completions, themes, Oh My Zsh and Prezto snippets, and release artefacts.
- Ice modifiers provide fine-grained control over downloading, building, selecting files, loading and updating dependencies.
- Can install command-line tools and packages without root privileges and expose them through the shell environment.
- Supports build steps and other actions needed to prepare a dependency before it is loaded.
- Light mode loads plugins without the extra tracking and reporting overhead used by fuller loading modes.
- Annexes extend Zi with focused capabilities without forcing those features into the core.
- Supports manual installation as well as a minimal installer that can add the required setup to .zshrc.
- Provides commands for maintenance and management of installed plugins, snippets and other managed items.
- Includes documentation covering custom paths, configuration, ice modifiers, commands and the wider Z-Shell ecosystem.
Website: github.com/z-shell/zi
Support:
Developer: Salvydas Lukosius & Z-Shell ZI Community
License: MIT License
Related Software
| Zsh Configuration Frameworks | |
|---|---|
| Oh My Zsh | Hugely popular community-driven framework |
| Oh My Posh | Prompt theme engine for any shell |
| Prezto | Enrichs the command line interface environment |
| Zim | Useful modules, themes, and customizability |
| Znap | Easy-to-use tools for Zsh |
| Zi | Swiss Army Knife for Zsh |
| slimzsh | Small, usable configuration for Zsh |
| Zephyr | Lightweight, modular framework for building a fast Zsh setup |
| AX-ZSH | Flexible modular configuration system for managing a tailored Zsh environment |
Read our verdict in the software roundup.
| Zsh Plugin Managers | |
|---|---|
| Zinit | Flexible and fast Zsh plugin manager |
| zplug | Plugin manager |
| Zi | Swiss Army Knife for Zsh |
| Antidote | Zsh implementation of the legacy Antibody plugin manager |
| sheldon | Fast, configurable shell plugin manager |
| ZSH Quickstart Kit | Lightweight and fast plugin manager for Zsh |
| zgenom | Simple ZSH quickstart for using ZSH, zgenom, oh-my-zsh, and more |
| Zap | Minimal zsh plugin manager |
| Zpm | Combines the imperative and declarative approach |
| Antigen | Small set of functions that help you easily manage your shell (zsh) plugins |
| Rat Zsh | TOML-configured plugin manager with parallel synchronisation |
| zgen | Lightweight plugin manager for Zsh |
| ZPico | Small Zsh package manager written entirely in Zsh |
Read our verdict in the software roundup.
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