Comfy-Org/ComfyUI-Manager

What is ComfyUI‑Manager?

ComfyUI‑Manager is an extension for the open‑source visual programming tool ComfyUI (a UI for building Stable‑Diffusion image‑generation pipelines). The manager adds a graphical “Manager” panel that lets users install, update, enable/disable, and remove custom node packages and model files without leaving the UI.

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Why it matters

• Custom‑node ecosystem – ComfyUI’s power comes from community‑made “nodes” (Python plug‑ins) that implement new image‑processing steps. Keeping track of dozens of node repositories can be tedious; the manager centralises discovery and installation.
• One‑click install – Users can browse a curated list (pulled from the official registry at https://registry.comfy.org/ or a local cache) and click Install or Try Install to clone the node’s repo, install its Python dependencies, and make it immediately available in the UI.
• Model handling – The same UI also supports downloading large model files (e.g., checkpoint weights) and placing them in the correct folder.
• Safety & reproducibility – Snapshots record the exact set of installed nodes/models, allowing a user to restore a known working environment later.
• CLI tool (cm‑cli) – Power users can script the same actions from the command line, useful for automated setups or head‑less servers.

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Core features (as described in the README)

Feature	What it does
Install / Remove / Enable / Disable custom nodes	Pulls node repositories, runs optional install.py/requirements.txt, and registers them with ComfyUI.
Model installer	Downloads model files (e.g., .ckpt, .safetensors) to a configurable directory.
Hub / Channel system	Three database modes – Channel (1‑day cache), Local, and Channel (remote) – control where the node list is sourced from and how fresh it is.
Snapshot manager	Saves the current set of installed nodes/models to a snapshot file; can later restore that snapshot on the next ComfyUI launch.
Share workflow	One‑click sharing of the current workflow to external sites such as comfyworkflows.com, openart.ai, youml.com, or via Matrix.
Component sharing	Copy‑&‑paste or drag‑&‑drop of reusable node groups ("components") as JSON or .pack files.
Missing‑node helper	Detects nodes referenced in a workflow that are not installed and offers to install the required custom nodes.
Configurable behaviour	config.ini lets you set git path, choose pip vs. uv, security level, network mode (public/private/offline), custom pip overrides/blacklists, and more.
CLI (cm-cli)	Provides the same install/update functionality without launching the UI.
Security patch (v3.38)	Manager data now lives under a protected user‑directory (<USER_DIRECTORY>/__manager/) to avoid accidental tampering.
Environment‑variable overrides	COMFYUI_PATH, GITHUB_ENDPOINT, HF_ENDPOINT let you point the manager at mirrors or custom installations.

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How you use it

1. Install the extension – clone the repo into ComfyUI/custom_nodes/comfyui-manager (or use the provided portable‑installer scripts or the comfy-cli helper). Restart ComfyUI.
2. Open the Manager – a new “Manager” button appears in the top‑menu bar.
3. Browse nodes/models – pick a channel mode, then click Install or Try Install on any entry.
4. Take snapshots – after setting up a workflow, click Save snapshot; later you can Restore that snapshot to roll back changes.
5. Share – click the Share button to push the workflow to an external site or copy a JSON pack.
6. CLI – run cm-cli <command> (see docs/en/cm-cli.md) for scripted installs or batch updates.

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Who is it for?

• Artists & hobbyists building image‑generation pipelines with ComfyUI who want a simple UI for adding community nodes.
• Developers of custom nodes – they can submit their node metadata (custom-node-list.json) to be listed in the manager.
• Power users / sysadmins – the CLI and snapshot features make it easy to provision identical environments across machines or CI pipelines.

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Limitations / Caveats

• The manager only works with ComfyUI versions ≥ 0.3.76 (or older versions with a fallback path). Older ComfyUI releases need manual placement of the extension.
• Dependency installation relies on the host’s Python environment; network‑restricted settings (network_mode=offline) will only use cached data.
• Snapshot restoration does not fully cover custom nodes that are not Git‑tracked – those may need manual re‑installation.

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Quick start checklist

1. Ensure you have a working ComfyUI installation (Python 3, Git).
2. Clone the manager:

   cd path/to/ComfyUI/custom_nodes
   git clone https://github.com/ltdrdata/ComfyUI-Manager comfyui-manager
   

3. Restart ComfyUI → click Manager → explore the node list.
4. (Optional) Set use_uv = true in config.ini if you prefer the faster uv installer.
5. (Optional) Adjust channels.list or create a private channel for internal node repositories.

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In a nutshell: ComfyUI‑Manager is a feature‑rich, security‑aware extension that turns the otherwise manual process of finding, installing, and managing community‑built nodes and model files into a smooth, click‑driven experience, with extra tools for sharing, snapshotting, and command‑line automation.