Alternative methods for installing CentralCLI

Installing via `uv` as descibed on the main docs page is the reccomended way to install CentralCLI. Below are some alternative, less preferred methods.

pipx

centralcli can also be installed via pipx, similar to uv pipx will install centralcli in an isolated environment, and expose the cencli command in PATH.

The first section below is for Debian based systems refer to pipx documentation for instructions on other OSs.

# install pipx (Debian)
sudo apt update
sudo apt install pipx
pipx ensurepath

# install central CLI
pipx install centralcli --include-deps

# optional install speedups for centralcli (this pulls in additional optional dependencies, that can improve performance.)  Minimal impact in most scenarios.
pipx install centralcli[speedups] --force  # force if centralcli was already installed and you are just adding speedups

Then to Upgrade centralcli

pip upgrade centralcli

pip (manually install in virtual environment)

The example below is for Debian based systems, where apt is referenced but should be easy to translate to other OSs given you have some familiarity with the package management commands (i.e. dnf). On Windows python should install with pip. The pip commands are still valid.

# (Debian) If you don't have pip
sudo apt update
sudo apt install python3-pip
sudo apt install python3-virtualenv

# create a directory to store the venv in
cd ~                                              # ensure you are in your home dir
mkdir .venvs                                      # creates hidden .venvs dir to store venv in
cd .venvs                                         # change to that directory
export DEB_PYTHON_INSTALL_LAYOUT='deb'            # Just ensures the directory structure for simpler instructions (Ubuntu 22.04 changed the dir layout of venvs without it)
python3 -m virtualenv centralcli --prompt cencli  # prompt is optional
source centralcli/bin/activate                    # activates the venv

# Install centralcli
pip install centralcli

# optional install speedups for centralcli (this pulls in additional optional dependencies, that can improve performance.)  Minimal impact in most scenarios.
pip install centralcli[speedups]

which centralcli # Should return ~/.venvs/centralcli/bin/centralcli

# for BASH shell Update .bashrc to update PATH on login (keep the single quotes)
echo 'export PATH="$PATH:$HOME/.venvs/centralcli/bin"' >> ~/.bashrc

# for zsh or others, do the equivalent... i.e. update .zshrc in a similar manner

Then to upgrade:

~/.venvs/centralcli/bin/pip install -U centralcli

pip (in system python environment)

Requires python3.10 or above and pip.

It’s recommended to use the uv install method above, however if you don’t use a lot of python apps (meaning a dependency conflict with other apps is not a concern). Then simply installing via pip is possible (albeit not recommended).

This method is primarily feasible on Windows, as current versions of many Linux distributions do not allow installing apps in the system python environment.

pip install centralcli

# optional install speedups for centralcli (this pulls in additional optional dependencies, that can improve performance.)  Minimal impact in most scenarios.
pip install centralcli[speedups]