fix: global install with save set to false

close #2261
PR #2815

.changeset/brown-poems-prove.md

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+"@pnpm/config": patch
+---
+
+During global install, changes should always be saved to the global package.json, even when save is set to false.

packages/config/src/index.ts

@@ -224,6 +224,7 @@ export default async (
     : pnpmConfig['sharedWorkspaceLockfile']
 
   if (cliOptions['global']) {
+    pnpmConfig.save = true
     pnpmConfig.dir = path.join(pnpmConfig.globalDir, LAYOUT_VERSION.toString())
     pnpmConfig.bin = cliOptions['dir']
       ? (

packages/config/test/index.ts

@@ -51,6 +51,21 @@ test('throw error if --link-workspace-packages is used with --global', async (t)
   }
 })
 
+test('"save" should always be true during global installation', async (t) => {
+  const { config } = await getConfig({
+    cliOptions: {
+      global: true,
+      save: false,
+    },
+    packageManager: {
+      name: 'pnpm',
+      version: '1.0.0',
+    },
+  })
+  t.ok(config.save)
+  t.end()
+})
+
 test('throw error if --shared-workspace-lockfile is used with --global', async (t) => {
   try {
     await getConfig({