KiCad Package Server
This application provides you with a dead simple and easy to use server for the KiCad Plugin and Content Manager (PCM). It allows to self-host a centralized repository of plugins, libraries and color themes. It is independent of the official KiCad repository provided by the KiCad Services Corporation.
Getting started
The KiCad Package Server is best served using the Docker based deployment. To run the server first clone this repository and then start using Docker Compose
git clone https://github.com/AislerHQ/kicad-package-server.git && cd kicad-package-server docker compose up
or check the docker-compose.yml file first for details about the deployment. By default, a SQLite3 database will be used, Postgresql is also supported.
The application expects Git repositories accessible via HTTPS. The root directory must contain a file named metadata.json,
it has to comply with the KiCad Package schema described at https://go.kicad.org/pcm/schemas/v1. This schema is validated and
any issues will be provided in the response.
Each directory which should be included in the final plugin must contain a file .kicad_pcm with the destination directory
as content. For example, if the plugin's source is located at src/, the following file is required
echo 'plugins' > src/.kicad_pcm
This helps the application to include the correct sources in the package.
Optionally place a file called icon.png inside the resources directory.
For an example of a supported KiCad Plugin, check our PushForKicad plugin at https://github.com/AislerHQ/PushForKiCad
Publishing a package
To publish a package just send a POST request to the server containing the Git repository
curl -X POST http://localhost:9292/api/push \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"url": "https://github.com/AislerHQ/lovely-library.git"}'
Additionally, a tag can be specified
curl -X POST http://localhost:9292/api/push \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"url": "https://github.com/AislerHQ/lovely-library.git", "tag": "v0.0.1"}'
Adding the repository to KiCad
Open KiCad and select the "Plugin and Content Manager". Click "Manage" and add a new repository using "+". The URL is either localhost:9292
if deployed locally or the actual domain of your deployment, such as https://packages.aisler.net
Enable Plausible tracking
Plausible is a privacy-first web-analytics service hosted in the EU, check https://plausible.io for details. If you want
to have detailed analytics about the usage of the repository and its provided packages, just set the environment variables
PLAUSIBLE_ENABLED to "true" and PLAUSIBLE_DOMAIN to the respective domain.
This is disabled by default.
Environment variables
The following settings can be adjusted
| Variable Name | Default Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
BASE_URL |
http://localhost:9292 |
The base URL for the application server |
REDIRECT_URL |
https://example.com |
URL to redirect users to, if server is requested directly (not by KiCad) |
MAINTAINER_URL |
http://example.com |
URL associated with the repository maintainer |
MAINTAINER_NAME |
Private KiCad Repository |
Display name of the repository maintainer |
REPOSITORY_NAME |
Private KiCad Repository |
Display name of the KiCad repository |
PLAUSIBLE_ENABLED |
false |
Boolean flag to enable/disable Plausible analytics |
PLAUSIBLE_DOMAIN |
false |
Domain configuration for Plausible analytics tracking |
These can be set on the docker-compose.yml file.
License
KiCad Package Server is Copyright © 2025 by AISLER B.V. It is free software, and may be redistributed under the terms specified in the license file.
About AISLER
KiCad Package Server is developed and funded by AISLER B.V.
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