Installation

stacks needs Node.js 20.19 or later. The CLI has no dependencies of its own: it is plain Node, with nothing to build. The generated projects have their own requirements (Yarn 4 through Corepack, Docker, Python 3.14 for py-worker), listed on each template’s page.

npm

Run it once without installing:

npx @aurostack/stacks new nest-api ./api

Or keep the stack command around:

npm install -g @aurostack/stacks
stack --version

Update with npm install -g @aurostack/stacks@latest. The package contains the CLI and the templates, and nothing else.

Claude Code plugin

Inside Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add aurostack-org/stacks
/plugin install stacks@aurostack

The plugin brings the CLI, the templates and two skills:

• /stacks:stack-new scaffolds a project. It asks which template and features you need, runs the CLI, and walks you through the setup the project still needs. It never hand-writes boilerplate the templates already contain.
• /stacks:stack-sync folds changes from a real project back into a template (for maintainers; see Refreshing templates).

You can also just ask for “a new API” or “a worker” and the skill picks it up.

To offer the plugin to everyone who opens a repository, commit this to the repository’s .claude/settings.json:

{
  "extraKnownMarketplaces": {
    "aurostack": {
      "source": { "source": "github", "repo": "aurostack-org/stacks" },
      "autoUpdate": true
    }
  },
  "enabledPlugins": { "stacks@aurostack": true }
}

From a clone

Needed only to maintain the templates (stack extract refuses to run from an npm or plugin install, because the next update would replace its work):

git clone https://github.com/aurostack-org/stacks.git
bash stacks/install.sh

install.sh is safe to re-run. It checks Node, links cli/stack.mjs as stack into ~/.local/bin (or ~/bin; otherwise it prints an alias to add), warns if another stack shadows it on your PATH, runs stack doctor, and prints how to load the plugin from the checkout with claude --plugin-dir <path> so skill edits apply without reinstalling.

Without installing anything, node cli/stack.mjs <command> works from the checkout directly.

One stack on your PATH

If you install from npm and link a clone, whichever stack comes first on your PATH wins. install.sh warns when they disagree; remove one with npm uninstall -g @aurostack/stacks or reorder your PATH.

What each generated project needs

Template	Needs on your machine
nest-api	Node 24, Yarn 4 (corepack enable), Docker (for local Postgres and Redis)
react-app, react-monorepo	Node 24, Yarn 4
node-worker	Node 24, Yarn 4; the API’s Postgres and Redis
py-worker	Python 3.14; the API’s Postgres and Redis

Generation runs yarn install (or creates a Python virtualenv) for you. If a tool is missing, generation still finishes: the install step warns and you run it yourself afterwards. See Your first project.