Parcel CLI reference

Parcel provides a command-line tool that packages Avalonia apps for Windows, macOS, and Linux. It includes app signing and packaging capabilities to simplify distribution of ready-to-install binaries.

Prerequisites

Before using Parcel, ensure you have:

1. Parcel .NET tool installed - Follow the Getting Started guide
2. Valid license key - Set the PARCEL_LICENSE_KEY environment variable or use the --license-key option with a valid license key from the portal

примечание

Parcel CLI is only available with a full Accelerate license

Overview

parcel [command] [options]

Global Options

Option	Description
-?, -h, --help	Show help and usage information
--version	Show version information
--license-key	License key necessary to run Parcel. If unset, falls back to the "PARCEL_LICENSE_KEY" environment variable, or existing app session
--verbosity	Set the verbosity level (quiet, minimal, normal, detailed, diagnostic)

Commands

pack

Builds and packs a project according to pre-defined settings and input parameters.

parcel pack <project> [options]

Arguments:

• <project> - Parcel project file to load config from

Options:

Option	Description	Default
-o, --output	Output directory	<project-dir>\bin\packages
-r, --runtimes	Runtime identifiers to pack application with (can specify multiple)	current platform runtime
-p, --packages	Package formats to output: deb, dmg, nsis, zip (can specify multiple)	current platform package
--no-build	Skip recompiling input project	false

Example:

# Pack for current platform
parcel pack MyApp.parcel.xml

# Pack for multiple platforms and formats
parcel pack MyApp.parcel.xml -r osx-x64 -r linux-x64 -p dmg -p deb

step

Runs a specific step from the packaging process. Useful for debugging or customized packaging workflows.

parcel step [command] <input> <output> [options]

Available Step Commands:

Command	Description	Input	Output
publish	Publishes .NET project for target platform	-unused-	Published application directory
merge-mac	Merges multiple architectures into universal macOS app	Directory with arch subdirectories (osx-x64, osx-arm64)	Universal app directory
bundle-mac	Packages macOS app into single bundle	Application directory	App bundle (.app)
sign-mac	Signs macOS app bundle with credentials	App bundle or flat directory	Signed bundle
notary-mac	Submits app for Apple notarization	Zipped app bundle or DMG	Notarized file (stapled in case of DMG)
sign-win	Signs Windows executable	Application executable or installed	Signed executable or installer
create-zip	Creates zip archive for distribution	Directory or file	Zip archive (.zip)
create-dmg	Creates DMG disk image for macOS	App bundle (.app)	Unsigned DMG image file
create-deb	Creates Debian package for Linux	Application directory	Debian package (.deb)
create-nsis	Creates Windows NSIS installer	Application directory	Unsigned NSIS installer (.exe)

Example:

While these commands don't have a strict order, and can be executed independently, standard approach is following per platform.

Any of these steps can be replaced with your scripts allowing for higher flexibility than standard "parcel pack" command.

Windows

# `parcel step publish ./ ./publish -r win-x64 -p project.parcel` can be used instead
dotnet publish -r win-x64 -o ./publish

# signing, with parameters populated from .parcel config file
parcel step sign-win ./publish ./signed -p project.parcel

# installer
parcel step create-nsis ./signed ./installer.exe -p project.parcel

# or ZIP archive
parcel step create-zip ./signed ./archive.zip -p project.parcel

macOS

mkdir ./publish

# for universal packages, need to publish both archs
dotnet publish -r osx-x64 -o ./publish/osx-x64
dotnet publish -r osx-arm64 -o ./publish/osx-arm64

# merge two archs into a universal one
parcel step merge-mac ./publish ./merged -p project.parcel

# create app bundle
parcel step bundle-mac ./merged ./bundle.app -p project.parcel

# signing, with parameters populated from .parcel config file
parcel step sign-mac ./bundle.app ./signed.app -p project.parcel

# notarization
parcel step notary-mac ./signed.app ./notarized.app -p project.parcel

# DMG package
parcel step create-dmg ./notarized.app ./package.dmg -p project.parcel

# or ZIP archive
parcel step create-zip ./notarized.app ./archive.zip -p project.parcel

примечание

Universal packages are necessary if you aim for native performance on both Intel and Apple Silicon processors, avoiding layer of emulation.

As a downside, universal packages are up to x2 in size of executable binaries.

If you don't need that, merge-mac step can be skipped completely.

Linux

# `parcel step publish ./ ./publish -r linux-x64 -p project.parcel` can be used instead
dotnet publish -r linux-x64 -o ./publish 

# installer
parcel step create-deb ./publish ./installer.deb -p project.parcel

# or ZIP archive
parcel step create-zip ./publish ./archive.zip -p project.parcel

Common Options:

• -p, --project - Parcel project file to load config from
• -w, --overwrite - Overwrite existing output files
• -r, --runtime - Runtime identifier (for publish command)

install-tools

Downloads or updates tool dependencies required for the packaging configuration.

parcel install-tools [options]

Options:

Option	Description
-r, --runtimes	Runtime identifiers (can specify multiple)
-p, --packages	Package formats: deb, dmg, nsis, zip (can specify multiple)

Example:

# Install dependencies for specific platforms and package formats
parcel install-tools -r win-x64 -r osx-x64 -p nsis -p dmg

This specific command will pre-download NSIS and DMG tooling required for Parcel to run.

mcp

Runs a Model Context Protocol server, allowing Parcel commands to be executed from LLM AI sessions.

parcel mcp

See Model Context Protocol for more details on usage.

Environment Variables

• PARCEL_LICENSE_KEY - Default license key used when --license-key option is not provided

Notes

• All packaging options, signing credentials, and visual customizations are defined in the Parcel project file (.parcel)
• When using --no-build, ensure that publish-related settings (trimming, AOT, single-file) match between your build and Parcel configuration