shards

Install dependencies

$ shards install

$ shards update

$ shards add [package-name]

$ shards list

$ shards build

$ shards outdated

$ shards init

$ shards lock

shards command [options] [args]

shards is the official dependency manager for the Crystal programming language, similar to Bundler for Ruby or npm for JavaScript. It reads project dependencies from a shard.yml file that defines package metadata, version constraints, and development dependencies.
Dependencies are resolved from Git repositories, with GitHub being the most common source. The shard.lock file pins exact versions to ensure reproducible builds across environments. The build command compiles Crystal projects and places executables in the bin/ directory, while install and update manage the dependency lifecycle.

install

Install dependencies.

Update dependencies.

Add dependency.

Show installed.

Build project.

Check for updates.

Create shard.yml.

Generate lock file.

Skip dev dependencies.

shard.yml

Project-level configuration file defining name, version, dependencies, and development dependencies.

Lock file pinning exact dependency versions for reproducible builds.

Crystal ecosystem smaller than Ruby. Some dependencies may be unmaintained. Binary compatibility can break.

shards is the official dependency manager for Crystal, the Ruby-like compiled language. It follows conventions familiar to Ruby developers.

crystal(1), bundler(1)