Publish JFrog CLI Plugins to a Registry

Publish a JFrog CLI plugin to the JFrog CLI Plugins Registry. You run this command from the plugin's directory.

📘
Note
The Go programming language must be installed and on your PATH. The publish command compiles your plugin source into binaries during upload. A JFrog CLI server configuration must exist for your target registry. Run jf config show to confirm. For a private registry, add one with jf config add. Your plugin project must follow the Plugin Developer Guide structure as a Go binary with specific entry points. The JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER environment variable is required for this command. There is no default publish target. You must explicitly specify the destination server.

Synopsis

jf plugin publish <PLUGIN_NAME> <PLUGIN_VERSION> [options]

Aliases: plugin p

Arguments

The following table lists jf plugin publish arguments.

Argument	Required	Description
`<PLUGIN_NAME>`	Yes	Name of the plugin to publish
`<PLUGIN_VERSION>`	Yes	Version of the plugin to publish. Must exactly match the version string declared in your plugin's `App.Version` field, including any `v` prefix (for example, `v1.2.0`)

Options

The following table lists jf plugin publish options.

Flag	Short	Default	Description
`--format`	—	—	Output format. Available from JFrog CLI 2.105.0. Only `json` is supported (`table` is not accepted). With `--format json` the command emits `{"status_code":N,"message":"..."}`. Passing `--format` with no value after the plugin name and version returns `[Error] only the following output formats are supported: json`. The same message appears for an unsupported value (for example, `--format=table`).

Environment Variables

The following table lists environment variables for jf plugin publish. For the complete list of JFrog CLI environment variables, see Environment Variables.

Variable	Default	Required	Description
`JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER`	None	Yes	Configured JFrog Artifactory server identifier to publish the plugin to. Use `jf config show` to list servers.
`JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_REPO`	`jfrog-cli-plugins`	No	Repository name on the target server. Use with `JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER` for a custom registry.

Examples

Show Help

To show publish command help:

Run the following command.
```
jf plugin publish --help
```

Publish a Plugin

To publish a plugin to your configured registry:

Set the target server ID and change to your plugin root directory.
Run:
```
export JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER=<SERVER_ID>
cd <PLUGIN_ROOT_DIRECTORY>
jf plugin publish <PLUGIN_NAME> <PLUGIN_VERSION>
```
Where:
- <SERVER_ID>: JFrog CLI server identifier for the JFrog Artifactory instance that hosts the plugins repository.
- <PLUGIN_ROOT_DIRECTORY>: Path to the root of your plugin source tree.
- <PLUGIN_NAME>: Plugin name. This value must match your project.
- <PLUGIN_VERSION>: Version string matching App.Version, such as v1.2.0.
For example:
```
export JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER=my-server
cd /path/to/my-awesome-plugin
jf plugin publish my-awesome-plugin v1.2.0
```

Expected output:

[Info] Verifying version uniqueness...
[Info] Building plugin for: <os>-<arch>...
[Info] Verifying versions matching...
[Info] Publishing my-awesome-plugin:v1.2.0 to my-server...

Publish to Custom Registry

To publish using a non-default repository name:

Set both environment variables, then publish from the plugin root:
```
export JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER=<SERVER_ID>
export JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_REPO=<REPOSITORY_NAME>
cd <PLUGIN_ROOT_DIRECTORY>
jf plugin publish <PLUGIN_NAME> <PLUGIN_VERSION>
```
Where:
- <SERVER_ID>: JFrog CLI server identifier.
- <REPOSITORY_NAME>: Local generic repository name for plugins on that server.
- <PLUGIN_ROOT_DIRECTORY>: Path to your plugin source root.
- <PLUGIN_NAME>: Plugin name.
- <PLUGIN_VERSION>: Version to publish.
For example:
```
export JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER=my-server
export JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_REPO=my-plugins-repo
cd /path/to/my-awesome-plugin
jf plugin publish my-awesome-plugin v1.2.0
```

When to Use

Use jf plugin publish when you have developed a JFrog CLI plugin and want to share it through the plugins registry or your organization's private registry.

Important Notes

Run this command from the root directory of your plugin source code.
Go is required. JFrog CLI compiles your plugin source into binaries for each target platform during publish. Ensure the go command is installed and on your PATH.
JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER is mandatory. The command fails immediately if this environment variable is not set.
Version must match exactly. The <PLUGIN_VERSION> argument must exactly match the version string declared in your plugin's App.Version field, including any v prefix. When your plugin declares app.Version = "v1.2.0", pass v1.2.0, not 1.2.0.
The plugin must conform to the JFrog CLI plugin structure as a Go binary with specific entry points. For requirements, see the Plugin Developer Guide.
Publishing to the official registry requires the plugin to be accepted into the jfrog-cli-plugins-reg repository.
For private registries, set both JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER and JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_REPO.
After publishing, verify the plugin works by installing it. For more information, see jf plugin install.

Frequently Asked Questions

This section provides answers to frequently asked questions.

plusFAQs

Q: What do I need before publishing a JFrog CLI plugin?

A: The Go programming language installed and on your PATH, a JFrog CLI server configuration for your target registry, and the JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER environment variable set. See Publish a Plugin for the full example.

Q: What happens if I don't set JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER?

A: The command fails immediately. There is no default publish target, so you must explicitly specify the destination server.

Q: What is the difference between the plugin version argument and my plugin's App.Version field?

A: They must match exactly, including any v prefix. If your plugin declares app.Version = "v1.2.0", pass v1.2.0 as the <PLUGIN_VERSION> argument, not 1.2.0.

Q: Can I publish to a private registry instead of the public one?

A: Yes. Set both JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_SERVER and JFROG_CLI_PLUGINS_REPO to publish to your own JFrog Artifactory instance. See Publish to Custom Registry.

Q: How do I make my plugin available in the official JFrog CLI Plugins Registry?

A: Your plugin must conform to the JFrog CLI plugin structure and be accepted into the jfrog-cli-plugins-reg repository.