cpan

Spec sheet

Purpose

The cpan script provides a command interface to CPAN and uses CPAN.pm to do the work.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Free plan

YesRead 22 Sep 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

License

The script may be redistributed under the same terms as Perl itself.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Founded

1995Read 28 Sep 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Build and test

The client can make modules, run their tests, clean module directories, and recompile dynamically loaded modules.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Dependency resolution

YesRead 22 Sep 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Install modules

With module names as arguments, cpan installs the specified modules; the install switch is implied by default.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Interactive shell

Running cpan without arguments starts the CPAN.pm shell.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Limits

The dry-run option and warning option are marked unimplemented in the documentation.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Local libraries

The -I option loads local::lib for using local library paths.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Mirrors

Users can specify mirrors for one run, find faster mirrors, or ping configured mirrors for a report.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Module inspection

The client can list installed modules, show out-of-date modules, and display module details and maintainers.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Offline installation

YesRead 22 Sep 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Package formats

Perl modules; Perl distributions,commonly .tar.gz archivesRead 22 Sep 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Risk

The documentation warns that upgrading all installed modules blindly can break things and recommends keeping a backup.Read 11 Oct 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Supported platforms

Linux,macOS,WindowsRead 22 Sep 2026 · perldoc.perl.org

Plans and prices

Every cpan plan and price →

Where Specifiction places it

• Package Managers#49 of 937.8