5/12/25, 11:41 AM brew(1) – The Missing Package Manager for macOS (or Linux) — Homebrew Documentation

Homebrew Documentation
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brew(1) – The Missing Package Manager for macOS

(or Linux)
SYNOPSIS
brew --version
brew command [--verbose|-v] [options] [formula] …

DESCRIPTION
Homebrew is the easiest and most flexible way to install the UNIX tools Apple didn’t include with macOS. It
can also install software not packaged for your Linux distribution without requiring sudo.
TERMINOLOGY
formula
Homebrew package definition that builds from upstream sources
cask
Homebrew package definition that installs macOS native applications
prefix
path in which Homebrew is installed, e.g. /opt/homebrew or /home/linuxbrew/.linuxbrew
keg
installation destination directory of a given formula version, e.g. /opt/homebrew/Cellar/foo/0.1
rack
directory containing one or more versioned kegs, e.g. /opt/homebrew/Cellar/foo
keg-only
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a formula is keg-only if it is not symlinked into Homebrew’s prefix
opt prefix
a symlink to the active version of a keg, e.g. /opt/homebrew/opt/foo
Cellar
directory containing one or more named racks, e.g. /opt/homebrew/Cellar
Caskroom
directory containing one or more named casks, e.g. /opt/homebrew/Caskroom
external command
brew subcommand defined outside of the Homebrew/brew GitHub repository

tap
directory (and usually Git repository) of formulae, casks and/or external commands
bottle
pre-built keg poured into a rack of the Cellar instead of building from upstream sources
ESSENTIAL COMMANDS
For the full command list, see the COMMANDS section.
With --verbose or --debug, many commands print extra debugging information. Note that these options should
only appear after a command.
Some command behaviour can be customised with environment variables; see the ENVIRONMENT section.
install formula

Install formula.
formula is usually the name of the formula to install, but it has other syntaxes which are listed in the
SPECIFYING FORMULAE section.
uninstall formula

Uninstall formula.
list

List all installed formulae.

search [text|/text/]

Perform a substring search of cask tokens and formula names for text. If text is flanked by slashes, it is
interpreted as a regular expression. The search for text is extended online to homebrew/core and
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homebrew/cask. If no search term is provided, all locally available formulae are listed.

COMMANDS
alias [alias … | alias=command]

Show existing aliases. If no aliases are given, print the whole list.
--edit

Edit aliases in a text editor. Either one or all aliases may be opened at once. If the given alias doesn’t exist
it’ll be pre-populated with a template.
analytics [subcommand]

Control Homebrew’s anonymous aggregate user behaviour analytics. Read more at

https://docs.brew.sh/Analytics.
brew analytics [state]

Display the current state of Homebrew’s analytics.

brew analytics (on|off)

Turn Homebrew’s analytics on or off respectively.

autoremove [--dry-run]

Uninstall formulae that were only installed as a dependency of another formula and are now no longer needed.
-n, --dry-run

List what would be uninstalled, but do not actually uninstall anything.

bundle [subcommand]

Bundler for non-Ruby dependencies from Homebrew, Homebrew Cask, Mac App Store, Whalebrew and Visual
Studio Code (and forks/variants).
brew bundle [install]

Install and upgrade (by default) all dependencies from the Brewfile.
You can specify the Brewfile location using --file or by setting the $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_FILE environment
variable.
You can skip the installation of dependencies by adding space-separated values to one or more of the following
environment variables: $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_BREW_SKIP, $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_CASK_SKIP,
$HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_MAS_SKIP, $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_WHALEBREW_SKIP, $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_TAP_SKIP.

brew bundle upgrade

Shorthand for brew bundle install --upgrade.

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brew bundle dump

Write all installed casks/formulae/images/taps into a Brewfile in the current directory or to a custom file
specified with the --file option.
brew bundle cleanup

Uninstall all dependencies not present in the Brewfile.

This workflow is useful for maintainers or testers who regularly install lots of formulae.
Unless --force is passed, this returns a 1 exit code if anything would be removed.
brew bundle check

Check if all dependencies present in the Brewfile are installed.

This provides a successful exit code if everything is up-to-date, making it useful for scripting.
brew bundle list

List all dependencies present in the Brewfile.

By default, only Homebrew formula dependencies are listed.
brew bundle edit

Edit the Brewfile in your editor.

brew bundle add name […]

Add entries to your Brewfile. Adds formulae by default. Use --cask, --tap, --whalebrew or --vscode
to add the corresponding entry instead.
brew bundle remove name […]

Remove entries that match name from your Brewfile. Use --formula, --cask, --tap, --mas, --
whalebrew or --vscode to remove only entries of the corresponding type. Passing --formula also
removes matches against formula aliases and old formula names.
brew bundle exec [–check] command

Run an external command in an isolated build environment based on the Brewfile dependencies.
This sanitized build environment ignores unrequested dependencies, which makes sure that things you didn’t
specify in your Brewfile won’t get picked up by commands like bundle install, npm install, etc. It will
also add compiler flags which will help with finding keg-only dependencies like openssl, icu4c, etc.
brew bundle sh [–check]

Run your shell in a brew bundle exec environment.

brew bundle env [–check]

Print the environment variables that would be set in a brew bundle exec environment.
--file
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Read from or write to the Brewfile from this location. Use --file=- to pipe to stdin/stdout.
--global

Read from or write to the Brewfile from $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_FILE_GLOBAL (if set),

${XDG_CONFIG_HOME}/homebrew/Brewfile (if $XDG_CONFIG_HOME is set), ~/.homebrew/Brewfile or
~/.Brewfile otherwise.

-v, --verbose

install prints output from commands as they are run. check lists all missing dependencies.

--no-upgrade

install does not run brew upgrade on outdated dependencies. check does not check for outdated
dependencies. Note they may still be upgraded by brew install if needed. This is enabled by default if
$HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_NO_UPGRADE is set.

--upgrade

install runs brew upgrade on outdated dependencies, even if $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_NO_UPGRADE is set.

--upgrade-formulae

install runs brew upgrade on any of these comma-separated formulae, even if

$HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_NO_UPGRADE is set.

--install

Run install before continuing to other operations e.g. exec.

--services

Temporarily start services while running the exec or sh command. This is enabled by default if
$HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_SERVICES is set.

-f, --force

install runs with --force/--overwrite. dump overwrites an existing Brewfile. cleanup actually
performs its cleanup operations.
--cleanup

install performs cleanup operation, same as running cleanup --force. This is enabled by default if
$HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_INSTALL_CLEANUP is set and --global is passed.

--all

list all dependencies.

--formula

list or dump Homebrew formula dependencies.

--cask

list or dump Homebrew cask dependencies.

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--tap

list or dump Homebrew tap dependencies.

--mas

list or dump Mac App Store dependencies.

--whalebrew

list or dump Whalebrew dependencies.

--vscode

list or dump VSCode (and forks/variants) extensions.

--no-vscode

dump without VSCode (and forks/variants) extensions. This is enabled by default if

$HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_DUMP_NO_VSCODE is set.

--describe

dump adds a description comment above each line, unless the dependency does not have a description. This
is enabled by default if $HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_DUMP_DESCRIBE is set.
--no-restart

dump does not add restart_service to formula lines.

--zap

cleanup casks using the zap command instead of uninstall.

--check

Check that all dependencies in the Brewfile are installed before running exec, sh, or env.
casks

List all locally installable casks including short names.

cleanup [options] [formula|cask …]

Remove stale lock files and outdated downloads for all formulae and casks, and remove old versions of installed
formulae. If arguments are specified, only do this for the given formulae and casks. Removes all downloads
more than 120 days old. This can be adjusted with $HOMEBREW_CLEANUP_MAX_AGE_DAYS.
--prune

Remove all cache files older than specified days. If you want to remove everything, use --prune=all.
-n, --dry-run

Show what would be removed, but do not actually remove anything.

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-s, --scrub

Scrub the cache, including downloads for even the latest versions. Note that downloads for any installed
formulae or casks will still not be deleted. If you want to delete those too: rm -rf "$(brew --cache)"
--prune-prefix

Only prune the symlinks and directories from the prefix and remove no other files.
command command […]

Display the path to the file being used when invoking brew cmd.
commands [--quiet] [--include-aliases]

Show lists of built-in and external commands.

-q, --quiet

List only the names of commands without category headers.

--include-aliases

Include aliases of internal commands.

completions [subcommand]

Control whether Homebrew automatically links external tap shell completion files. Read more at
https://docs.brew.sh/Shell-Completion.
brew completions [state]

Display the current state of Homebrew’s completions.

brew completions (link|unlink)

Link or unlink Homebrew’s completions.

config, --config

Show Homebrew and system configuration info useful for debugging. If you file a bug report, you will be
required to provide this information.
deps [options] [formula|cask …]

Show dependencies for formula. When given multiple formula arguments, show the intersection of
dependencies for each formula. By default, deps shows all required and recommended dependencies.
If any version of each formula argument is installed and no other options are passed, this command displays their
actual runtime dependencies (similar to brew linkage), which may differ from the current versions’ stated
dependencies if the installed versions are outdated.
Note: --missing and --skip-recommended have precedence over --include-*.
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-n, --topological

Sort dependencies in topological order.

-1, --direct

Show only the direct dependencies declared in the formula.

--union

Show the union of dependencies for multiple formula, instead of the intersection.
--full-name

List dependencies by their full name.

--include-implicit

Include implicit dependencies used to download and unpack source files.

--include-build

Include :build dependencies for formula.

--include-optional

Include :optional dependencies for formula.

--include-test

Include :test dependencies for formula (non-recursive).

--skip-recommended

Skip :recommended dependencies for formula.

--include-requirements

Include requirements in addition to dependencies for formula.

--tree

Show dependencies as a tree. When given multiple formula arguments, show individual trees for each
formula.
--graph

Show dependencies as a directed graph.

--dot

Show text-based graph description in DOT format.

--annotate

Mark any build, test, implicit, optional, or recommended dependencies as such in the output.
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--installed

List dependencies for formulae that are currently installed. If formula is specified, list only its
dependencies that are currently installed.
--missing

Show only missing dependencies.

--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to list their dependencies.
--for-each

Switch into the mode used by the --eval-all option, but only list dependencies for each provided
formula, one formula per line. This is used for debugging the --installed/--eval-all display mode.

--HEAD

Show dependencies for HEAD version instead of stable version.

--os

Show dependencies for the given operating system.

--arch

Show dependencies for the given CPU architecture.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

desc [options] formula|cask|text|/regex/ […]

Display formula’s name and one-line description. The cache is created on the first search, making that search
slower than subsequent ones.
-s, --search

Search both names and descriptions for text. If text is flanked by slashes, it is interpreted as a regular
expression.
-n, --name

Search just names for text. If text is flanked by slashes, it is interpreted as a regular expression.
-d, --description

Search just descriptions for text. If text is flanked by slashes, it is interpreted as a regular expression.

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--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to search their descriptions. Implied if
$HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL is set.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

developer [subcommand]

Control Homebrew’s developer mode. When developer mode is enabled, brew update will update Homebrew to
the latest commit on the master branch instead of the latest stable version along with some other behaviour
changes.
brew developer [state]

Display the current state of Homebrew’s developer mode.

brew developer (on|off)

Turn Homebrew’s developer mode on or off respectively.

docs

Open Homebrew’s online documentation at https://docs.brew.sh in a browser.

doctor, dr [--list-checks] [--audit-debug] [diagnostic_check …]

Check your system for potential problems. Will exit with a non-zero status if any potential problems are found.
Please note that these warnings are just used to help the Homebrew maintainers with debugging if you file an
issue. If everything you use Homebrew for is working fine: please don’t worry or file an issue; just ignore this.
--list-checks

List all audit methods, which can be run individually if provided as arguments.
-D, --audit-debug

Enable debugging and profiling of audit methods.

fetch [options] formula|cask […]

Download a bottle (if available) or source packages for formulae and binaries for casks. For files, also print
SHA-256 checksums.
--os

Download for the given operating system. (Pass all to download for all operating systems.)
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--arch

Download for the given CPU architecture. (Pass all to download for all architectures.)
--bottle-tag

Download a bottle for given tag.

--HEAD

Fetch HEAD version instead of stable version.

-f, --force

Remove a previously cached version and re-fetch.

-v, --verbose

Do a verbose VCS checkout, if the URL represents a VCS. This is useful for seeing if an existing VCS
cache has been updated.
--retry

Retry if downloading fails or re-download if the checksum of a previously cached version no longer
matches. Tries at most 5 times with exponential backoff.
--deps

Also download dependencies for any listed formula.

-s, --build-from-source

Download source packages rather than a bottle.

--build-bottle

Download source packages (for eventual bottling) rather than a bottle.

--force-bottle

Download a bottle if it exists for the current or newest version of macOS, even if it would not be used
during installation.
--[no-]quarantine

Disable/enable quarantining of downloads (default: enabled).

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

formulae

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List all locally installable formulae including short names.
gist-logs [options] formula

Upload logs for a failed build of formula to a new Gist. Presents an error message if no logs are found.
--with-hostname

Include the hostname in the Gist.

-n, --new-issue

Automatically create a new issue in the appropriate GitHub repository after creating the Gist.
-p, --private

The Gist will be marked private and will not appear in listings but will be accessible with its link.
help [command …]

Outputs the usage instructions for brew command. Equivalent to brew --help command.

home, homepage [--formula] [--cask] [formula|cask …]

Open a formula or cask’s homepage in a browser, or open Homebrew’s own homepage if no argument is
provided.
--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

info, abv [options] [formula|cask …]

Display brief statistics for your Homebrew installation. If a formula or cask is provided, show summary of
information about it.
--analytics

List global Homebrew analytics data or, if specified, installation and build error data for formula
(provided neither $HOMEBREW_NO_ANALYTICS nor $HOMEBREW_NO_GITHUB_API are set).
--days

How many days of analytics data to retrieve. The value for days must be 30, 90 or 365. The default is 30.
--category

Which type of analytics data to retrieve. The value for category must be install, install-on-request
or build-error; cask-install or os-version may be specified if formula is not. The default is
install.

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--github

Open the GitHub source page for formula and cask in a browser. To view the history locally: brew log -
p formula or cask

--fetch-manifest

Fetch GitHub Packages manifest for extra information when formula is not installed.
--json

Print a JSON representation. Currently the default value for version is v1 for formula. For formula and
cask use v2. See the docs for examples of using the JSON output: https://docs.brew.sh/Querying-Brew

--installed

Print JSON of formulae that are currently installed.

--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to print their JSON. Implied if
$HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL is set.

--variations

Include the variations hash in each formula’s JSON output.

-v, --verbose

Show more verbose analytics data for formula.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

install [options] formula|cask […]

Install a formula or cask. Additional options specific to a formula may be appended to the command.
Unless $HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALLED_DEPENDENTS_CHECK is set, brew upgrade or brew reinstall will be run for
outdated dependents and dependents with broken linkage, respectively.
Unless $HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_CLEANUP is set, brew cleanup will then be run for the installed formulae or,
every 30 days, for all formulae.
Unless $HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_UPGRADE is set, brew install formula will upgrade formula if it is already
installed but outdated.
-d, --debug

If brewing fails, open an interactive debugging session with access to IRB or a shell inside the temporary
build directory.
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--display-times

Print install times for each package at the end of the run.
-f, --force

Install formulae without checking for previously installed keg-only or non-migrated versions. When
installing casks, overwrite existing files (binaries and symlinks are excluded, unless originally from the
same cask).
-v, --verbose

Print the verification and post-install steps.

-n, --dry-run

Show what would be installed, but do not actually install anything.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--ignore-dependencies

An unsupported Homebrew development option to skip installing any dependencies of any kind. If the
dependencies are not already present, the formula will have issues. If you’re not developing Homebrew,
consider adjusting your PATH rather than using this option.
--only-dependencies

Install the dependencies with specified options but do not install the formula itself.
--cc

Attempt to compile using the specified compiler, which should be the name of the compiler’s executable,
e.g. gcc-9 for GCC 9. In order to use LLVM’s clang, specify llvm_clang. To use the Apple-provided
clang, specify clang. This option will only accept compilers that are provided by Homebrew or bundled
with macOS. Please do not file issues if you encounter errors while using this option.
-s, --build-from-source

Compile formula from source even if a bottle is provided. Dependencies will still be installed from bottles
if they are available.
--force-bottle

Install from a bottle if it exists for the current or newest version of macOS, even if it would not normally
be used for installation.
--include-test

Install testing dependencies required to run brew test formula.

--HEAD

If formula defines it, install the HEAD version, aka. main, trunk, unstable, master.
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--fetch-HEAD

Fetch the upstream repository to detect if the HEAD installation of the formula is outdated. Otherwise, the
repository’s HEAD will only be checked for updates when a new stable or development version has been
released.
--keep-tmp

Retain the temporary files created during installation.

--debug-symbols

Generate debug symbols on build. Source will be retained in a cache directory.

--build-bottle

Prepare the formula for eventual bottling during installation, skipping any post-install steps.
--skip-post-install

Install but skip any post-install steps.

--skip-link

Install but skip linking the keg into the prefix.

--as-dependency

Install but mark as installed as a dependency and not installed on request.

--bottle-arch

Optimise bottles for the specified architecture rather than the oldest architecture supported by the version
of macOS the bottles are built on.
-i, --interactive

Download and patch formula, then open a shell. This allows the user to run ./configure --help and
otherwise determine how to turn the software package into a Homebrew package.
-g, --git

Create a Git repository, useful for creating patches to the software.

--overwrite

Delete files that already exist in the prefix while linking.

--ask

Ask for confirmation before downloading and installing formulae. Print bottles and dependencies
download size and install size.
--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

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--[no-]binaries

Disable/enable linking of helper executables (default: enabled).

--require-sha

Require all casks to have a checksum.

--[no-]quarantine

Disable/enable quarantining of downloads (default: enabled).

--adopt

Adopt existing artifacts in the destination that are identical to those being installed. Cannot be combined
with --force.
--skip-cask-deps

Skip installing cask dependencies.

--zap

For use with brew reinstall --cask. Remove all files associated with a cask. May remove files which
are shared between applications.
leaves [--installed-on-request] [--installed-as-dependency]

List installed formulae that are not dependencies of another installed formula or cask.
-r, --installed-on-request

Only list leaves that were manually installed.

-p, --installed-as-dependency

Only list leaves that were installed as dependencies.

link, ln [options] installed_formula […]

Symlink all of formula’s installed files into Homebrew’s prefix. This is done automatically when you install
formulae but can be useful for manual installations.
--overwrite

Delete files that already exist in the prefix while linking.

-n, --dry-run

List files which would be linked or deleted by brew link --overwrite without actually linking or
deleting any files.
-f, --force

Allow keg-only formulae to be linked.

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--HEAD

Link the HEAD version of the formula if it is installed.

list, ls [options] [installed_formula|installed_cask …]

List all installed formulae and casks. If formula is provided, summarise the paths within its current keg. If cask
is provided, list its artifacts.
--formula

List only formulae, or treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

List only casks, or treat all named arguments as casks.

--full-name

Print formulae with fully-qualified names. Unless --full-name, --versions or --pinned are passed,
other options (i.e. -1, -l, -r and -t) are passed to ls(1) which produces the actual output.
--versions

Show the version number for installed formulae, or only the specified formulae if formula are provided.
--multiple

Only show formulae with multiple versions installed.

--pinned

List only pinned formulae, or only the specified (pinned) formulae if formula are provided. See also pin,
unpin.

--installed-on-request

List the formulae installed on request.

--installed-as-dependency

List the formulae installed as dependencies.

--poured-from-bottle

List the formulae installed from a bottle.

--built-from-source

List the formulae compiled from source.

-1

Force output to be one entry per line. This is the default when output is not to a terminal.
-l

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List formulae and/or casks in long format. Has no effect when a formula or cask name is passed as an
argument.
-r

Reverse the order of the formulae and/or casks sort to list the oldest entries first. Has no effect when a
formula or cask name is passed as an argument.
-t

Sort formulae and/or casks by time modified, listing most recently modified first. Has no effect when a
formula or cask name is passed as an argument.
log [options] [formula|cask]

Show the git log for formula or cask, or show the log for the Homebrew repository if no formula or cask is
provided.
-p, --patch

Also print patch from commit.

--stat

Also print diffstat from commit.

--oneline

Print only one line per commit.

-1

Print only one commit.

-n, --max-count

Print only a specified number of commits.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

migrate [options] installed_formula|installed_cask […]

Migrate renamed packages to new names, where formula are old names of packages.
-f, --force

Treat installed formula and provided formula as if they are from the same taps and migrate them anyway.
-n, --dry-run

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Show what would be migrated, but do not actually migrate anything.
--formula

Only migrate formulae.

--cask

Only migrate casks.

missing [--hide=] [formula …]

Check the given formula kegs for missing dependencies. If no formula are provided, check all kegs. Will exit
with a non-zero status if any kegs are found to be missing dependencies.
--hide

Act as if none of the specified hidden are installed. hidden should be a comma-separated list of formulae.
nodenv-sync

Create symlinks for Homebrew’s installed NodeJS versions in ~/.nodenv/versions.

Note that older version symlinks will also be created so e.g. NodeJS 19.1.0 will also be symlinked to 19.0.0.
options [options] [formula …]

Show install options specific to formula.

--compact

Show all options on a single line separated by spaces.

--installed

Show options for formulae that are currently installed.

--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to show their options.
--command

Show options for the specified command.

outdated [options] [formula|cask …]

List installed casks and formulae that have an updated version available. By default, version information is
displayed in interactive shells and suppressed otherwise.
-q, --quiet

List only the names of outdated kegs (takes precedence over --verbose).
-v, --verbose
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Include detailed version information.
--formula

List only outdated formulae.

--cask

List only outdated casks.

--json

Print output in JSON format. There are two versions: v1 and v2. v1 is deprecated and is currently the
default if no version is specified. v2 prints outdated formulae and casks.
--fetch-HEAD

Fetch the upstream repository to detect if the HEAD installation of the formula is outdated. Otherwise, the
repository’s HEAD will only be checked for updates when a new stable or development version has been
released.
-g, --greedy

Also include outdated casks with auto_updates true or version :latest.

--greedy-latest

Also include outdated casks including those with version :latest.

--greedy-auto-updates

Also include outdated casks including those with auto_updates true.

pin installed_formula […]

Pin the specified formula, preventing them from being upgraded when issuing the brew upgrade formula
command. See also unpin.
Note: Other packages which depend on newer versions of a pinned formula might not install or run correctly.
postinstall, post_install installed_formula […]

Rerun the post-install steps for formula.

pyenv-sync

Create symlinks for Homebrew’s installed Python versions in ~/.pyenv/versions.

Note that older patch version symlinks will be created and linked to the minor version so e.g. Python 3.11.0 will
also be symlinked to 3.11.3.
rbenv-sync

Create symlinks for Homebrew’s installed Ruby versions in ~/.rbenv/versions.

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Note that older version symlinks will also be created so e.g. Ruby 3.2.1 will also be symlinked to 3.2.0.
readall [options] [tap …]

Import all items from the specified tap, or from all installed taps if none is provided. This can be useful for
debugging issues across all items when making significant changes to formula.rb, testing the performance of
loading all items or checking if any current formulae/casks have Ruby issues.
--os

Read using the given operating system. (Pass all to simulate all operating systems.)
--arch

Read using the given CPU architecture. (Pass all to simulate all architectures.)
--aliases

Verify any alias symlinks in each tap.

--syntax

Syntax-check all of Homebrew’s Ruby files (if no tap is passed).

--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not. Implied if $HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL is set.
--no-simulate

Don’t simulate other system configurations when checking formulae and casks.
reinstall [options] formula|cask […]

Uninstall and then reinstall a formula or cask using the same options it was originally installed with, plus any
appended options specific to a formula.
Unless $HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALLED_DEPENDENTS_CHECK is set, brew upgrade or brew reinstall will be run for
outdated dependents and dependents with broken linkage, respectively.
Unless $HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_CLEANUP is set, brew cleanup will then be run for the reinstalled formulae or,
every 30 days, for all formulae.
-d, --debug

If brewing fails, open an interactive debugging session with access to IRB or a shell inside the temporary
build directory.
--display-times

Print install times for each package at the end of the run.
-f, --force

Install without checking for previously installed keg-only or non-migrated versions.

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-v, --verbose

Print the verification and post-install steps.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

-s, --build-from-source

Compile formula from source even if a bottle is available.

-i, --interactive

Download and patch formula, then open a shell. This allows the user to run ./configure --help and
otherwise determine how to turn the software package into a Homebrew package.
--force-bottle

Install from a bottle if it exists for the current or newest version of macOS, even if it would not normally
be used for installation.
--keep-tmp

Retain the temporary files created during installation.

--debug-symbols

Generate debug symbols on build. Source will be retained in a cache directory.

-g, --git

Create a Git repository, useful for creating patches to the software.

--ask

Ask for confirmation before downloading and upgrading formulae. Print bottles and dependencies
download size, install and net install size.
--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

--[no-]binaries

Disable/enable linking of helper executables (default: enabled).

--require-sha

Require all casks to have a checksum.

--[no-]quarantine

Disable/enable quarantining of downloads (default: enabled).

--adopt

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Adopt existing artifacts in the destination that are identical to those being installed. Cannot be combined
with --force.
--skip-cask-deps

Skip installing cask dependencies.

--zap

For use with brew reinstall --cask. Remove all files associated with a cask. May remove files which
are shared between applications.
search, -S [options] text|/regex/ […]

Perform a substring search of cask tokens and formula names for text. If text is flanked by slashes, it is
interpreted as a regular expression.
--formula

Search for formulae.

--cask

Search for casks.

--desc

Search for formulae with a description matching text and casks with a name or description matching
text.

--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to search their descriptions. Implied if
$HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL is set.

--pull-request

Search for GitHub pull requests containing text.

--open

Search for only open GitHub pull requests.

--closed

Search for only closed GitHub pull requests.

--repology

Search for text in the given database.

--macports

Search for text in the given database.

--fink

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Search for text in the given database.
--opensuse

Search for text in the given database.

--fedora

Search for text in the given database.

--archlinux

Search for text in the given database.

--debian

Search for text in the given database.

--ubuntu

Search for text in the given database.

services [subcommand]

Manage background services with macOS’ launchctl(1) daemon manager or Linux’s systemctl(1) service
manager.
If sudo is passed, operate on /Library/LaunchDaemons or /usr/lib/systemd/system (started at boot).
Otherwise, operate on ~/Library/LaunchAgents or ~/.config/systemd/user (started at login).
[sudo] brew services [list] (--json) (--debug)
List information about all managed services for the current user (or root). Provides more output from
Homebrew and launchctl(1) or systemctl(1) if run with --debug.
[sudo] brew services info (formula|--all|--json)
List all managed services for the current user (or root).
[sudo] brew services run (formula|--all|--file=)
Run the service formula without registering to launch at login (or boot).
[sudo] brew services start (formula|--all|--file=)
Start the service formula immediately and register it to launch at login (or boot).
[sudo] brew services stop (--keep) (--no-wait|--max-wait=) (formula|--all)
Stop the service formula immediately and unregister it from launching at login (or boot), unless --keep is
specified.
[sudo] brew services kill (formula|--all)
Stop the service formula immediately but keep it registered to launch at login (or boot).

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[sudo] brew services restart (formula|--all|--file=)
Stop (if necessary) and start the service formula immediately and register it to launch at login (or boot).
[sudo] brew services cleanup
Remove all unused services.
--file

Use the service file from this location to start the service.
--sudo-service-user

When run as root on macOS, run the service(s) as this user.

--max-wait

Wait at most this many seconds for stop to finish stopping a service. Omit this flag or set this to zero (0)
seconds to wait indefinitely.
--all

Run subcommand on all services.

--json

Output as JSON.
--no-wait

Don’t wait for stop to finish stopping the service.

--keep

When stopped, don’t unregister the service from launching at login (or boot).
setup-ruby [command …]

Installs and configures Homebrew’s Ruby. If command is passed, it will only run Bundler if necessary for that
command.
shellenv [shell …]

Valid shells: bash|csh|fish|pwsh|sh|tcsh|zsh

Print export statements. When run in a shell, this installation of Homebrew will be added to your PATH, MANPATH,
and INFOPATH.
The variables $HOMEBREW_PREFIX, $HOMEBREW_CELLAR and $HOMEBREW_REPOSITORY are also exported to avoid
querying them multiple times. To help guarantee idempotence, this command produces no output when
Homebrew’s bin and sbin directories are first and second respectively in your PATH. Consider adding evaluation
of this command’s output to your dotfiles (e.g. ~/.bash_profile or ~/.zprofile on macOS and ~/.bashrc or
~/.zshrc on Linux) with: eval “$(brew shellenv)”`

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The shell can be specified explicitly with a supported shell name parameter. Unknown shells will output POSIX
exports.
tab [options] installed_formula|installed_cask […]

Edit tab information for installed formulae or casks.

This can be useful when you want to control whether an installed formula should be removed by brew
autoremove. To prevent removal, mark the formula as installed on request; to allow removal, mark the formula
as not installed on request.
--installed-on-request

Mark installed_formula or installed_cask as installed on request.

--no-installed-on-request

Mark installed_formula or installed_cask as not installed on request.

--formula

Only mark formulae.

--cask

Only mark casks.

tap [options] [user/repo] [URL]

Tap a formula repository. If no arguments are provided, list all installed taps.
With URL unspecified, tap a formula repository from GitHub using HTTPS. Since so many taps are hosted on
GitHub, this command is a shortcut for brew tap user/repo https://github.com/user/homebrew-repo.
With URL specified, tap a formula repository from anywhere, using any transport protocol that git(1) handles.
The one-argument form of tap simplifies but also limits. This two-argument command makes no assumptions,
so taps can be cloned from places other than GitHub and using protocols other than HTTPS, e.g. SSH, git,
HTTP, FTP(S), rsync.
--custom-remote

Install or change a tap with a custom remote. Useful for mirrors.

--repair

Add missing symlinks to tap manpages and shell completions. Correct git remote refs for any taps where
upstream HEAD branch has been renamed.
--eval-all

Evaluate all the formulae, casks and aliases in the new tap to check validity. Implied if
$HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL is set.

-f, --force

Force install core taps even under API mode.

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tap-info [--installed] [--json] [tap …]

Show detailed information about one or more taps. If no tap names are provided, display brief statistics for all
installed taps.
--installed

Show information on each installed tap.

--json

Print a JSON representation of tap. Currently the default and only accepted value for version is v1. See
the docs for examples of using the JSON output: https://docs.brew.sh/Querying-Brew
unalias alias […]

Remove aliases.
uninstall, remove, rm [options] installed_formula|installed_cask […]

Uninstall a formula or cask.

-f, --force

Delete all installed versions of formula. Uninstall even if cask is not installed, overwrite existing files and
ignore errors when removing files.
--zap

Remove all files associated with a cask. May remove files which are shared between applications.
--ignore-dependencies

Don’t fail uninstall, even if formula is a dependency of any installed formulae.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

unlink [--dry-run] installed_formula […]

Remove symlinks for formula from Homebrew’s prefix. This can be useful for temporarily disabling a formula:
brew unlink formula && commands && brew link formula

-n, --dry-run

List files which would be unlinked without actually unlinking or deleting any files.
unpin installed_formula […]

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Unpin formula, allowing them to be upgraded by brew upgrade formula. See also pin.

untap [--force] tap […]

Remove a tapped formula repository.

-f, --force

Untap even if formulae or casks from this tap are currently installed.
update, up [options]

Fetch the newest version of Homebrew and all formulae from GitHub using git(1) and perform any necessary
migrations.
--merge

Use git merge to apply updates (rather than git rebase).

--auto-update

Run on auto-updates (e.g. before brew install). Skips some slower steps.

-f, --force

Always do a slower, full update check (even if unnecessary).

-v, --verbose

Print the directories checked and git operations performed.

-d, --debug

Display a trace of all shell commands as they are executed.

update-if-needed

Runs brew update --auto-update only if needed. This is a good replacement for brew update in scripts
where you want the no-op case to be both possible and really fast.
update-reset [repository …]

Fetch and reset Homebrew and all tap repositories (or any specified repository) using git(1) to their latest
origin/HEAD.

Note: this will destroy all your uncommitted or committed changes.

upgrade [options] [installed_formula|installed_cask …]

Upgrade outdated casks and outdated, unpinned formulae using the same options they were originally installed
with, plus any appended brew formula options. If cask or formula are specified, upgrade only the given cask or
formula kegs (unless they are pinned; see pin, unpin).

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Unless $HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALLED_DEPENDENTS_CHECK is set, brew upgrade or brew reinstall will be run for
outdated dependents and dependents with broken linkage, respectively.
Unless $HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_CLEANUP is set, brew cleanup will then be run for the upgraded formulae or,
every 30 days, for all formulae.
-d, --debug

If brewing fails, open an interactive debugging session with access to IRB or a shell inside the temporary
build directory.
--display-times

Print install times for each package at the end of the run.
-f, --force

Install formulae without checking for previously installed keg-only or non-migrated versions. When
installing casks, overwrite existing files (binaries and symlinks are excluded, unless originally from the
same cask).
-v, --verbose

Print the verification and post-install steps.

-n, --dry-run

Show what would be upgraded, but do not actually upgrade anything.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae. If no named arguments are specified, upgrade only outdated
formulae.
-s, --build-from-source

Compile formula from source even if a bottle is available.

-i, --interactive

Download and patch formula, then open a shell. This allows the user to run ./configure --help and
otherwise determine how to turn the software package into a Homebrew package.
--force-bottle

Install from a bottle if it exists for the current or newest version of macOS, even if it would not normally
be used for installation.
--fetch-HEAD

Fetch the upstream repository to detect if the HEAD installation of the formula is outdated. Otherwise, the
repository’s HEAD will only be checked for updates when a new stable or development version has been
released.
--keep-tmp

Retain the temporary files created during installation.

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--debug-symbols

Generate debug symbols on build. Source will be retained in a cache directory.

--overwrite

Delete files that already exist in the prefix while linking.

--ask

Ask for confirmation before downloading and upgrading formulae. Print bottles and dependencies
download size, install and net install size.
--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks. If no named arguments are specified, upgrade only outdated casks.
--skip-cask-deps

Skip installing cask dependencies.

-g, --greedy

Also include casks with auto_updates true or version :latest.

--greedy-latest

Also include casks with version :latest.

--greedy-auto-updates

Also include casks with auto_updates true.

--[no-]binaries

Disable/enable linking of helper executables (default: enabled).

--require-sha

Require all casks to have a checksum.

--[no-]quarantine

Disable/enable quarantining of downloads (default: enabled).

uses [options] formula […]

Show formulae and casks that specify formula as a dependency; that is, show dependents of formula. When
given multiple formula arguments, show the intersection of formulae that use formula. By default, uses shows
all formulae and casks that specify formula as a required or recommended dependency for their stable builds.
Note: --missing and --skip-recommended have precedence over --include-*.
--recursive

Resolve more than one level of dependencies.

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--installed

Only list formulae and casks that are currently installed.

--missing

Only list formulae and casks that are not currently installed.
--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to show their dependents.
--include-implicit

Include formulae that have formula as an implicit dependency for downloading and unpacking source
files.
--include-build

Include formulae that specify formula as a :build dependency.

--include-test

Include formulae that specify formula as a :test dependency.

--include-optional

Include formulae that specify formula as an :optional dependency.

--skip-recommended

Skip all formulae that specify formula as a :recommended dependency.

--formula

Include only formulae.

--cask

Include only casks.

--cache [options] [formula|cask …]

Display Homebrew’s download cache. See also $HOMEBREW_CACHE.

If a formula or cask is provided, display the file or directory used to cache it.
--os

Show cache file for the given operating system. (Pass all to show cache files for all operating systems.)
--arch

Show cache file for the given CPU architecture. (Pass all to show cache files for all architectures.)
-s, --build-from-source

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Show the cache file used when building from source.
--force-bottle

Show the cache file used when pouring a bottle.

--bottle-tag

Show the cache file used when pouring a bottle for the given tag.
--HEAD

Show the cache file used when building from HEAD.

--formula

Only show cache files for formulae.

--cask

Only show cache files for casks.

--caskroom [cask …]

Display Homebrew’s Caskroom path.

If cask is provided, display the location in the Caskroom where cask would be installed, without any sort of
versioned directory as the last path.
--cellar [formula …]

Display Homebrew’s Cellar path. Default: $(brew --prefix)/Cellar, or if that directory doesn’t exist, $(brew
--repository)/Cellar.

If formula is provided, display the location in the Cellar where formula would be installed, without any sort of
versioned directory as the last path.
--env, environment [--shell=] [--plain] [formula …]

Summarise Homebrew’s build environment as a plain list.

If the command’s output is sent through a pipe and no shell is specified, the list is formatted for export to
bash(1) unless --plain is passed.

--shell

Generate a list of environment variables for the specified shell, or --shell=auto to detect the current
shell.
--plain

Generate plain output even when piped.

--prefix [--unbrewed] [--installed] [formula …]

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Display Homebrew’s install path. Default:
macOS ARM: /opt/homebrew
macOS Intel: /usr/local
Linux: /home/linuxbrew/.linuxbrew
If formula is provided, display the location where formula is or would be installed.
--unbrewed

List files in Homebrew’s prefix not installed by Homebrew.

--installed

Outputs nothing and returns a failing status code if formula is not installed.
--repository, --repo [tap …]

Display where Homebrew’s Git repository is located.

If user/repo are provided, display where tap user/repo’s directory is located.
--version, -v

Print the version numbers of Homebrew, Homebrew/homebrew-core and Homebrew/homebrew-cask (if tapped)
to standard output.
DEVELOPER COMMANDS
audit [options] [formula|cask …]

Check formula or cask for Homebrew coding style violations. This should be run before submitting a new
formula or cask. If no formula or cask are provided, check all locally available formulae and casks and skip
style checks. Will exit with a non-zero status if any errors are found.
--os

Audit the given operating system. (Pass all to audit all operating systems.)
--arch

Audit the given CPU architecture. (Pass all to audit all architectures.)
--strict

Run additional, stricter style checks.

--git

Run additional, slower style checks that navigate the Git repository.
--online

Run additional, slower style checks that require a network connection.

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--installed

Only check formulae and casks that are currently installed.

--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to audit them. Implied if
HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL is set.

--new

Run various additional style checks to determine if a new formula or cask is eligible for Homebrew. This
should be used when creating new formulae or casks and implies --strict and --online.
--[no-]signing

Audit for app signatures, which are required by macOS on ARM.

--token-conflicts

Audit for token conflicts.

--tap

Check formulae and casks within the given tap, specified as user/repo.
--fix

Fix style violations automatically using RuboCop’s auto-correct feature.

--display-filename

Prefix every line of output with the file or formula name being audited, to make output easy to grep.
--skip-style

Skip running non-RuboCop style checks. Useful if you plan on running brew style separately. Enabled
by default unless a formula is specified by name.
-D, --audit-debug

Enable debugging and profiling of audit methods.

--only

Specify a comma-separated method list to only run the methods named audit_method.
--except

Specify a comma-separated method list to skip running the methods named audit_method.
--only-cops

Specify a comma-separated cops list to check for violations of only the listed RuboCop cops.
--except-cops

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Specify a comma-separated cops list to skip checking for violations of the listed RuboCop cops.
--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

bottle [options] installed_formula|file […]

Generate a bottle (binary package) from a formula that was installed with --build-bottle. If the formula
specifies a rebuild version, it will be incremented in the generated DSL. Passing --keep-old will attempt to
keep it at its original value, while --no-rebuild will remove it.
--skip-relocation

Do not check if the bottle can be marked as relocatable.

--force-core-tap

Build a bottle even if formula is not in homebrew/core or any installed taps.

--no-rebuild

If the formula specifies a rebuild version, remove it from the generated DSL.
--keep-old

If the formula specifies a rebuild version, attempt to preserve its value in the generated DSL.
--json

Write bottle information to a JSON file, which can be used as the value for --merge.
--merge

Generate an updated bottle block for a formula and optionally merge it into the formula file. Instead of a
formula name, requires the path to a JSON file generated with brew bottle --json formula.
--write

Write changes to the formula file. A new commit will be generated unless --no-commit is passed.
--no-commit

When passed with --write, a new commit will not generated after writing changes to the formula file.
--only-json-tab

When passed with --json, the tab will be written to the JSON file but not the bottle.
--no-all-checks

Don’t try to create an all bottle or stop a no-change upload.

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--committer

Specify a committer name and email in git’s standard author format.

--root-url

Use the specified URL as the root of the bottle’s URL instead of Homebrew’s default.
--root-url-using

Use the specified download strategy class for downloading the bottle’s URL instead of Homebrew’s
default.
bump [options] [formula|cask …]

Displays out-of-date packages and the latest version available. If the returned current and livecheck versions
differ or when querying specific packages, also displays whether a pull request has been opened with the URL.
--full-name

Print formulae/casks with fully-qualified names.

--no-pull-requests

Do not retrieve pull requests from GitHub.

--no-autobump

Ignore formulae/casks in autobump list (official repositories only).

--formula

Check only formulae.

--cask

Check only casks.

--eval-all

Evaluate all formulae and casks.

--repology

Use Repology to check for outdated packages.

--tap

Check formulae and casks within the given tap, specified as user/repo.
--installed

Check formulae and casks that are currently installed.

--no-fork

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Don’t try to fork the repository.
--open-pr

Open a pull request for the new version if none have been opened yet.
--start-with

Letter or word that the list of package results should alphabetically follow.
--bump-synced

Bump additional formulae marked as synced with the given formulae.

bump-cask-pr [options] cask

Create a pull request to update cask with a new version.

A best effort to determine the SHA-256 will be made if the value is not supplied by the user.
-n, --dry-run

Print what would be done rather than doing it.

--write-only

Make the expected file modifications without taking any Git actions.
--commit

When passed with --write-only, generate a new commit after writing changes to the cask file.
--no-audit

Don’t run brew audit before opening the PR.

--no-style

Don’t run brew style --fix before opening the PR.

--no-browse

Print the pull request URL instead of opening in a browser.

--no-fork

Don’t try to fork the repository.

--version

Specify the new version for the cask.

--version-arm

Specify the new cask version for the ARM architecture.

--version-intel
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Specify the new cask version for the Intel architecture.
--message

Prepend message to the default pull request message.

--url

Specify the URL for the new download.

--sha256

Specify the SHA-256 checksum of the new download.

--fork-org

Use the specified GitHub organization for forking.

bump-formula-pr [options] [formula]

Create a pull request to update formula with a new URL or a new tag.
If a URL is specified, the SHA-256 checksum of the new download should also be specified. A best effort to
determine the SHA-256 will be made if not supplied by the user.
If a tag is specified, the Git commit revision corresponding to that tag should also be specified. A best effort to
determine the revision will be made if the value is not supplied by the user.
If a version is specified, a best effort to determine the URL and SHA-256 or the tag and revision will be made if
both values are not supplied by the user.
Note: this command cannot be used to transition a formula from a URL-and-SHA-256 style specification into a
tag-and-revision style specification, nor vice versa. It must use whichever style specification the formula already
uses.
-n, --dry-run

Print what would be done rather than doing it.

--write-only

Make the expected file modifications without taking any Git actions.
--commit

When passed with --write-only, generate a new commit after writing changes to the formula file.
--no-audit

Don’t run brew audit before opening the PR.

--strict

Run brew audit --strict before opening the PR.

--online

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Run brew audit --online before opening the PR.

--no-browse

Print the pull request URL instead of opening in a browser.

--no-fork

Don’t try to fork the repository.

--mirror

Use the specified URL as a mirror URL. If URL is a comma-separated list of URLs, multiple mirrors will be
added.
--fork-org

Use the specified GitHub organization for forking.

--version

Use the specified version to override the value parsed from the URL or tag. Note that --version=0 can
be used to delete an existing version override from a formula if it has become redundant.
--message

Prepend message to the default pull request message.

--url

Specify the URL for the new download. If a URL is specified, the SHA-256 checksum of the new download
should also be specified.
--sha256

Specify the SHA-256 checksum of the new download.

--tag

Specify the new git commit tag for the formula.

--revision

Specify the new commit revision corresponding to the specified git tag or specified version.
-f, --force

Remove all mirrors if --mirror was not specified.

--install-dependencies

Install missing dependencies required to update resources.

--python-package-name

Use the specified package-name when finding Python resources for formula. If no package name is
specified, it will be inferred from the formula’s stable URL.
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--python-extra-packages

Include these additional Python packages when finding resources.

--python-exclude-packages

Exclude these Python packages when finding resources.

bump-revision [options] formula […]

Create a commit to increment the revision of formula. If no revision is present, “revision 1” will be added.
-n, --dry-run

Print what would be done rather than doing it.

--remove-bottle-block

Remove the bottle block in addition to bumping the revision.

--write-only

Make the expected file modifications without taking any Git actions.
--message

Append message to the default commit message.

bump-unversioned-casks [options] cask|tap […]

Check all casks with unversioned URLs in a given tap for updates.
-n, --dry-run

Do everything except caching state and opening pull requests.

--limit

Maximum runtime in minutes.

--state-file

File for caching state.

cat [--formula] [--cask] formula|cask […]

Display the source of a formula or cask.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

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contributions [–user=email|username] [--repositories=] [--csv]

Summarise contributions to Homebrew repositories.

--repositories

Specify a comma-separated list of repositories to search. Supported repositories: brew, core, cask,
command-not-found and test-bot. Omitting this flag, or specifying --repositories=primary, searches
only the main repositories: brew,core,cask. Specifying --repositories=all, searches all repositories.
--from

Date (ISO-8601 format) to start searching contributions. Omitting this flag searches the last year.
--to

Date (ISO-8601 format) to stop searching contributions.

--user

Specify a comma-separated list of GitHub usernames or email addresses to find contributions from.
Omitting this flag searches maintainers.
--csv

Print a CSV of contributions across repositories over the time period.

create [options] URL

Generate a formula or, with --cask, a cask for the downloadable file at URL and open it in the editor. Homebrew
will attempt to automatically derive the formula name and version, but if it fails, you’ll have to make your own
template. The wget formula serves as a simple example. For the complete API, see:
https://rubydoc.brew.sh/Formula
--autotools

Create a basic template for an Autotools-style build.

--cask

Create a basic template for a cask.

--cmake

Create a basic template for a CMake-style build.

--crystal

Create a basic template for a Crystal build.

--go

Create a basic template for a Go build.

--meson

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Create a basic template for a Meson-style build.
--node

Create a basic template for a Node build.

--perl

Create a basic template for a Perl build.

--python

Create a basic template for a Python build.

--ruby

Create a basic template for a Ruby build.

--rust

Create a basic template for a Rust build.

--zig

Create a basic template for a Zig build.

--no-fetch

Homebrew will not download URL to the cache and will thus not add its SHA-256 to the formula for you,
nor will it check the GitHub API for GitHub projects (to fill out its description and homepage).
--HEAD

Indicate that URL points to the package’s repository rather than a file.
--set-name

Explicitly set the name of the new formula or cask.

--set-version

Explicitly set the version of the new formula or cask.

--set-license

Explicitly set the license of the new formula.

--tap

Generate the new formula within the given tap, specified as user/repo.
-f, --force

Ignore errors for disallowed formula names and names that shadow aliases.
debugger [--open] command […]

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Run the specified Homebrew command in debug mode.
To pass flags to the command, use -- to separate them from the brew flags. For example: brew debugger --
list --formula.

-O, --open

Start remote debugging over a Unix socket.

dispatch-build-bottle [options] formula […]

Build bottles for these formulae with GitHub Actions.

--tap

Target tap repository (default: homebrew/core).

--timeout

Build timeout (in minutes, default: 60).

--issue

If specified, post a comment to this issue number if the job fails.

--macos

macOS version (or comma-separated list of versions) the bottle should be built for.
--workflow

Dispatch specified workflow (default: dispatch-build-bottle.yml).

--upload

Upload built bottles.

--linux

Dispatch bottle for Linux x86_64 (using GitHub runners).

--linux-arm64

Dispatch bottle for Linux arm64 (using GitHub runners).

--linux-self-hosted

Dispatch bottle for Linux x86_64 (using self-hosted runner).

--linux-wheezy

Use Debian Wheezy container for building the bottle on Linux.

edit [options] [formula|cask|tap …]

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Open a formula, cask or tap in the editor set by EDITOR or HOMEBREW_EDITOR, or open the Homebrew
repository for editing if no argument is provided.
--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

--print-path

Print the file path to be edited, without opening an editor.

extract [--version=] [--git-revision=] [--force] formula tap

Look through repository history to find the most recent version of formula and create a copy in tap.
Specifically, the command will create the new formula file at tap/Formula/[email protected]. If the tap is
not installed yet, attempt to install/clone the tap before continuing. To extract a formula from a tap that is not
homebrew/core use its fully-qualified form of user/repo/formula.

--git-revision

Search for the specified version of formula starting at revision instead of HEAD.
--version

Extract the specified version of formula instead of the most recent.

-f, --force

Overwrite the destination formula if it already exists.

formula formula […]

Display the path where formula is located.

formula-analytics

Query Homebrew’s analytics.

--days-ago

Query from the specified days ago until the present. The default is 30 days.
--install

Output the number of specifically requested installations or installation as dependencies of the formula.
This is the default.
--cask-install

Output the number of installations of casks.

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--install-on-request

Output the number of specifically requested installations of the formula.

--build-error

Output the number of build errors for the formulae.

--os-version

Output OS versions.
--homebrew-devcmdrun-developer

Output devcmdrun/HOMEBREW_DEVELOPER.
--homebrew-os-arch-ci

Output OS/Architecture/CI.
--homebrew-prefixes

Output Homebrew prefixes.

--homebrew-versions

Output Homebrew versions.

--brew-command-run

Output brew commands run.

--brew-command-run-options

Output brew commands run with options.

--brew-test-bot-test

Output brew test-bot steps run.

--json

Output JSON. This is required: plain text support has been removed.
--all-core-formulae-json

Output a different JSON format containing the JSON data for all Homebrew/homebrew-core formulae.
--setup

Install the necessary gems, require them and exit without running a query.
generate-analytics-api

Generates analytics API data files for formulae.brew.sh.

The generated files are written to the current directory.
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generate-cask-api [--dry-run]

Generate homebrew/cask API data files for https://formulae.brew.sh. The generated files are written to the
current directory.
-n, --dry-run

Generate API data without writing it to files.

generate-formula-api [--dry-run]

Generate homebrew/core API data files for https://formulae.brew.sh. The generated files are written to the
current directory.
-n, --dry-run

Generate API data without writing it to files.

generate-man-completions

Generate Homebrew’s manpages and shell completions.

install-bundler-gems [--groups=] [--add-groups=]

Install Homebrew’s Bundler gems.

--groups

Installs the specified comma-separated list of gem groups (default: last used). Replaces any previously
installed groups.
--add-groups

Installs the specified comma-separated list of gem groups, in addition to those already installed.
irb [--examples] [--pry]

Enter the interactive Homebrew Ruby shell.

--examples

Show several examples.

--pry

Use Pry instead of IRB. Implied if HOMEBREW_PRY is set.

linkage [options] [installed_formula …]

Check the library links from the given formula kegs. If no formula are provided, check all kegs. Raises an error
if run on uninstalled formulae.
--test

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Show only missing libraries and exit with a non-zero status if any missing libraries are found.
--strict

Exit with a non-zero status if any undeclared dependencies with linkage are found.
--reverse

For every library that a keg references, print its dylib path followed by the binaries that link to it.
--cached

Print the cached linkage values stored in HOMEBREW_CACHE, set by a previous brew linkage run.

livecheck, lc [options] [formula|cask …]

Check for newer versions of formulae and/or casks from upstream. If no formula or cask argument is passed, the
list of formulae and casks to check is taken from HOMEBREW_LIVECHECK_WATCHLIST or
~/.homebrew/livecheck_watchlist.txt.

--full-name

Print formulae and casks with fully-qualified names.

--tap

Check formulae and casks within the given tap, specified as user/repo.
--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to check them.
--installed

Check formulae and casks that are currently installed.

--newer-only

Show the latest version only if it’s newer than the formula/cask.
--json

Output information in JSON format.

-r, --resources

Also check resources for formulae.

-q, --quiet

Suppress warnings, don’t print a progress bar for JSON output.

--formula

Only check formulae.

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--cask

Only check casks.

--extract-plist

Enable checking multiple casks with ExtractPlist strategy.

--autobump

Include packages that are autobumped by BrewTestBot. By default these are skipped.
pr-automerge [options]

Find pull requests that can be automatically merged using brew pr-publish.

--tap

Target tap repository (default: homebrew/core).

--workflow

Workflow file to use with brew pr-publish.

--with-label

Pull requests must have this label.

--without-labels

Pull requests must not have these labels (default: do not merge, new formula, automerge-skip, pre-
release, CI-published-bottle-commits).

--without-approval

Pull requests do not require approval to be merged.

--publish

Run brew pr-publish on matching pull requests.

--autosquash

Instruct brew pr-publish to automatically reformat and reword commits in the pull request to the
preferred format.
--ignore-failures

Include pull requests that have failing status checks.

pr-publish [options] pull_request […]

Publish bottles for a pull request with GitHub Actions. Requires write access to the repository.
--autosquash

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If supported on the target tap, automatically reformat and reword commits to our preferred format.
--large-runner

Run the upload job on a large runner.

--branch

Branch to use the workflow from (default: master).

--message

Message to include when autosquashing revision bumps, deletions and rebuilds.

--tap

Target tap repository (default: homebrew/core).

--workflow

Target workflow filename (default: publish-commit-bottles.yml).

pr-pull [options] pull_request […]

Download and publish bottles and apply the bottle commit from a pull request with artifacts generated by
GitHub Actions. Requires write access to the repository.
--no-upload

Download the bottles but don’t upload them.

--no-commit

Do not generate a new commit before uploading.

--no-cherry-pick

Do not cherry-pick commits from the pull request branch.

-n, --dry-run

Print what would be done rather than doing it.

--clean

Do not amend the commits from pull requests.

--keep-old

If the formula specifies a rebuild version, attempt to preserve its value in the generated DSL.
--autosquash

Automatically reformat and reword commits in the pull request to our preferred format.
--branch-okay

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Do not warn if pulling to a branch besides the repository default (useful for testing).
--resolve

When a patch fails to apply, leave in progress and allow user to resolve, instead of aborting.
--warn-on-upload-failure

Warn instead of raising an error if the bottle upload fails. Useful for repairing bottle uploads that
previously failed.
--retain-bottle-dir

Does not clean up the tmp directory for the bottle so it can be used later.
--committer

Specify a committer name and email in git’s standard author format.

--message

Message to include when autosquashing revision bumps, deletions and rebuilds.

--artifact-pattern

Download artifacts with the specified pattern (default: bottles{,_*}).

--tap

Target tap repository (default: homebrew/core).

--root-url

Use the specified URL as the root of the bottle’s URL instead of Homebrew’s default.
--root-url-using

Use the specified download strategy class for downloading the bottle’s URL instead of Homebrew’s
default.
--workflows

Retrieve artifacts from the specified workflow (default: tests.yml). Can be a comma-separated list to
include multiple workflows.
--ignore-missing-artifacts

Comma-separated list of workflows which can be ignored if they have not been run.
pr-upload [options]

Apply the bottle commit and publish bottles to a host.

--keep-old

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If the formula specifies a rebuild version, attempt to preserve its value in the generated DSL. When using
GitHub Packages, this also appends the manifest to the existing list.
-n, --dry-run

Print what would be done rather than doing it.

--no-commit

Do not generate a new commit before uploading.

--warn-on-upload-failure

Warn instead of raising an error if the bottle upload fails. Useful for repairing bottle uploads that
previously failed.
--upload-only

Skip running brew bottle before uploading.

--committer

Specify a committer name and email in git’s standard author format.

--root-url

Use the specified URL as the root of the bottle’s URL instead of Homebrew’s default.
--root-url-using

Use the specified download strategy class for downloading the bottle’s URL instead of Homebrew’s
default.
prof [--stackprof] [--vernier] command […]

Run Homebrew with a Ruby profiler. For example, brew prof readall.

--stackprof

Use stackprof instead of ruby-prof (the default).

--vernier

Use vernier instead of ruby-prof (the default).

release [--major] [--minor]

Create a new draft Homebrew/brew release with the appropriate version number and release notes.
By default, brew release will bump the patch version number. Pass --major or --minor to bump the major or
minor version numbers, respectively. The command will fail if the previous major or minor release was made
less than one month ago.
Note: Requires write access to the Homebrew/brew repository.
--major
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Create a major release.
--minor

Create a minor release.

rubocop

Installs, configures and runs Homebrew’s rubocop.

ruby [options] (-e text|file)

Run a Ruby instance with Homebrew’s libraries loaded. For example, brew ruby -e "puts :gcc.f.deps" or
brew ruby script.rb.

Run e.g. brew ruby -- --version to pass arbitrary arguments to ruby.

-r

Load a library using require.

-e

Execute the given text string as a script.

rubydoc [--only-public] [--open]

Generate Homebrew’s RubyDoc documentation.

--only-public

Only generate public API documentation.

--open

Open generated documentation in a browser.

sh [--env=] [--cmd=] [file]

Enter an interactive shell for Homebrew’s build environment. Use years-battle-hardened build logic to help your
./configure && make && make install and even your gem install succeed. Especially handy if you run
Homebrew in an Xcode-only configuration since it adds tools like make to your PATH which build systems would
not find otherwise.
--env

Use the standard PATH instead of superenv’s when std is passed.

-c, --cmd

Execute commands in a non-interactive shell.

style [options] [file|tap|formula|cask …]

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Check formulae or files for conformance to Homebrew style guidelines.
Lists of file, tap and formula may not be combined. If none are provided, style will run style checks on the
whole Homebrew library, including core code and all formulae.
--fix

Fix style violations automatically using RuboCop’s auto-correct feature.

--reset-cache

Reset the RuboCop cache.

--formula

Treat all named arguments as formulae.

--cask

Treat all named arguments as casks.

--only-cops

Specify a comma-separated cops list to check for violations of only the listed RuboCop cops.
--except-cops

Specify a comma-separated cops list to skip checking for violations of the listed RuboCop cops.
tap-new [options] user/repo

Generate the template files for a new tap.

--no-git

Don’t initialize a Git repository for the tap.

--pull-label

Label name for pull requests ready to be pulled (default: pr-pull).

--branch

Initialize Git repository and setup GitHub Actions workflows with the specified branch name (default:
main).

--github-packages

Upload bottles to GitHub Packages.

test [options] installed_formula […]

Run the test method provided by an installed formula. There is no standard output or return code, but generally it
should notify the user if something is wrong with the installed formula.
Example: brew install jruby && brew test jruby
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-f, --force

Test formulae even if they are unlinked.

--HEAD

Test the HEAD version of a formula.

--keep-tmp

Retain the temporary files created for the test.

--retry

Retry if a testing fails.

tests [options]

Run Homebrew’s unit and integration tests.

--coverage

Generate code coverage reports.

--generic

Run only OS-agnostic tests.

--online

Include tests that use the GitHub API and tests that use any of the taps for official external commands.
--debug

Enable debugging using ruby/debug, or surface the standard odebug output.

--changed

Only runs tests on files that were changed from the master branch.
--fail-fast

Exit early on the first failing test.

--only

Run only <test_script>_spec.rb. Appending :<line_number> will start at a specific line.

--profile

Run the test suite serially to find the n slowest tests.

--seed

Randomise tests with the specified value instead of a random seed.

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typecheck, tc [options] [tap …]

Check for typechecking errors using Sorbet.

--fix

Automatically fix type errors.

-q, --quiet

Silence all non-critical errors.

--update

Update RBI files.

--update-all

Update all RBI files rather than just updated gems.

--suggest-typed

Try upgrading typed sigils.

--lsp

Start the Sorbet LSP server.

--dir

Typecheck all files in a specific directory.

--file

Typecheck a single file.

--ignore

Ignores input files that contain the given string in their paths (relative to the input path passed to Sorbet).
unbottled [options] [formula …]

Show the unbottled dependents of formulae.

--tag

Use the specified bottle tag (e.g. big_sur) instead of the current OS.
--dependents

Skip getting analytics data and sort by number of dependents instead.

--total

Print the number of unbottled and total formulae.

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--lost

Print the homebrew/core commits where bottles were lost in the last week.
--eval-all

Evaluate all available formulae and casks, whether installed or not, to check them. Implied if
HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL is set.

unpack [options] formula […]

Unpack the source files for formula into subdirectories of the current working directory.
--destdir

Create subdirectories in the directory named by path instead.

--patch

Patches for formula will be applied to the unpacked source.

-g, --git

Initialise a Git repository in the unpacked source. This is useful for creating patches for the software.
-f, --force

Overwrite the destination directory if it already exists.

update-license-data

Update SPDX license data in the Homebrew repository.

update-maintainers

Update the list of maintainers in the Homebrew/brew README.

update-python-resources [options] formula […]

Update versions for PyPI resource blocks in formula.

-p, --print-only

Print the updated resource blocks instead of changing formula.

-s, --silent

Suppress any output.

--ignore-errors

Record all discovered resources, even those that can’t be resolved successfully. This option is ignored for
homebrew/core formulae.
--ignore-non-pypi-packages
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Don’t fail if formula is not a PyPI package.
--install-dependencies

Install missing dependencies required to update resources.

--version

Use the specified version when finding resources for formula. If no version is specified, the current
version for formula will be used.
--package-name

Use the specified package-name when finding resources for formula. If no package name is specified, it
will be inferred from the formula’s stable URL.
--extra-packages

Include these additional packages when finding resources.

--exclude-packages

Exclude these packages when finding resources.

update-sponsors

Update the list of GitHub Sponsors in the Homebrew/brew README.

update-test [options]

Run a test of brew update with a new repository clone. If no options are passed, use origin/master as the start
commit.
--to-tag

Set HOMEBREW_UPDATE_TO_TAG to test updating between tags.

--keep-tmp

Retain the temporary directory containing the new repository clone.

--commit

Use the specified commit as the start commit.

--before

Use the commit at the specified date as the start commit.

vendor-gems [--update=] [--no-commit]

Install and commit Homebrew’s vendored gems.

--update

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Update the specified list of vendored gems to the latest version.
--no-commit

Do not generate a new commit upon completion.

verify [options] formula […]

Verify the build provenance of bottles using GitHub’s attestation tools. This is done by first fetching the given
bottles and then verifying their provenance.
Note that this command depends on the GitHub CLI. Run brew install gh.
--os

Download for the given operating system.(Pass all to download for all operating systems.)
--arch

Download for the given CPU architecture.(Pass all to download for all architectures.)
--bottle-tag

Download a bottle for given tag.

--deps

Also download dependencies for any listed formula.

-f, --force

Remove a previously cached version and re-fetch.

-j, --json

Return JSON for the attestation data for each bottle.

GLOBAL CASK OPTIONS
These options are applicable to the install, reinstall and upgrade subcommands with the --cask switch.
--appdir

Target location for Applications (default: /Applications).

--keyboard-layoutdir

Target location for Keyboard Layouts (default: /Library/Keyboard Layouts).

--colorpickerdir

Target location for Color Pickers (default: ~/Library/ColorPickers).

--prefpanedir

Target location for Preference Panes (default: ~/Library/PreferencePanes).

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--qlplugindir

Target location for Quick Look Plugins (default: ~/Library/QuickLook).

--mdimporterdir

Target location for Spotlight Plugins (default: ~/Library/Spotlight).

--dictionarydir

Target location for Dictionaries (default: ~/Library/Dictionaries).

--fontdir

Target location for Fonts (default: ~/Library/Fonts).

--servicedir

Target location for Services (default: ~/Library/Services).

--input-methoddir

Target location for Input Methods (default: ~/Library/Input Methods).

--internet-plugindir

Target location for Internet Plugins (default: ~/Library/Internet Plug-Ins).

--audio-unit-plugindir

Target location for Audio Unit Plugins (default: ~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components).

--vst-plugindir

Target location for VST Plugins (default: ~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST).

--vst3-plugindir

Target location for VST3 Plugins (default: ~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3).

--screen-saverdir

Target location for Screen Savers (default: ~/Library/Screen Savers).

--language

Comma-separated list of language codes to prefer for cask installation. The first matching language is
used, otherwise it reverts to the cask’s default language. The default value is the language of your system.
GLOBAL OPTIONS
These options are applicable across multiple subcommands.
-d, --debug

Display any debugging information.

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-q, --quiet

Make some output more quiet.

-v, --verbose

Make some output more verbose.

-h, --help

Show this message.

OFFICIAL EXTERNAL COMMANDS
command-not-found-init

Print instructions for setting up the command-not-found hook for your shell. If the output is not to a tty, print the
appropriate handler script for your shell.
test-bot [options] [formula]

Tests the full lifecycle of a Homebrew change to a tap (Git repository). For example, for a GitHub Actions pull
request that changes a formula brew test-bot will ensure the system is cleaned and set up to test the formula,
install the formula, run various tests and checks on it, bottle (package) the binaries and test formulae that depend
on it to ensure they aren’t broken by these changes.
Only supports GitHub Actions as a CI provider. This is because Homebrew uses GitHub Actions and it’s freely
available for public and private use with macOS and Linux workers.
--dry-run

Print what would be done rather than doing it.

--cleanup

Clean all state from the Homebrew directory. Use with care!
--skip-setup

Don’t check if the local system is set up correctly.

--build-from-source

Build from source rather than building bottles.

--build-dependents-from-source

Build dependents from source rather than testing bottles.

--junit

generate a JUnit XML test results file.

--keep-old

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Run brew bottle --keep-old to build new bottles for a single platform.

--skip-relocation

Run brew bottle --skip-relocation to build new bottles that don’t require relocation.

--only-json-tab

Run brew bottle --only-json-tab to build new bottles that do not contain a tab.

--local

Ask Homebrew to write verbose logs under ./logs/ and set $HOME to ./home/
--tap

Use the Git repository of the given tap. Defaults to the core tap for syntax checking.
--fail-fast

Immediately exit on a failing step.

-v, --verbose

Print test step output in real time. Has the side effect of passing output as raw bytes instead of re-encoding
in UTF-8.
--test-default-formula

Use a default testing formula when not building a tap and no other formulae are specified.
--root-url

Use the specified URL as the root of the bottle’s URL instead of Homebrew’s default.
--git-name

Set the Git author/committer names to the given name.

--git-email

Set the Git author/committer email to the given email.

--publish

Publish the uploaded bottles.

--skip-online-checks

Don’t pass --online to brew audit and skip brew livecheck.

--skip-new

Don’t pass --new to brew audit for new formulae.

--skip-new-strict

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Don’t pass --strict to brew audit for new formulae.

--skip-dependents

Don’t test any dependents.

--skip-livecheck

Don’t test livecheck.

--skip-recursive-dependents

Only test the direct dependents.

--skip-checksum-only-audit

Don’t audit checksum-only changes.

--skip-stable-version-audit

Don’t audit the stable version.

--skip-revision-audit

Don’t audit the revision.

--only-cleanup-before

Only run the pre-cleanup step. Needs --cleanup.

--only-setup

Only run the local system setup check step.

--only-tap-syntax

Only run the tap syntax check step.

--stable

Only run the tap syntax checks needed on stable brew.

--only-formulae

Only run the formulae steps.

--only-formulae-detect

Only run the formulae detection steps.

--only-formulae-dependents

Only run the formulae dependents steps.

--only-bottles-fetch

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Only run the bottles fetch steps. This optional post-upload test checks that all the bottles were uploaded
correctly. It is not run unless requested and only needs to be run on a single machine. The bottle commit to
be tested must be on the tested branch.
--only-cleanup-after

Only run the post-cleanup step. Needs --cleanup.

--testing-formulae

Use these testing formulae rather than running the formulae detection steps.
--added-formulae

Use these added formulae rather than running the formulae detection steps.
--deleted-formulae

Use these deleted formulae rather than running the formulae detection steps.
--skipped-or-failed-formulae

Use these skipped or failed formulae from formulae steps for a formulae dependents step.
--tested-formulae

Use these tested formulae from formulae steps for a formulae dependents step.
which-formula [--explain] command […]

Show which formula(e) provides the given command.

--explain

Output explanation of how to get command by installing one of the providing formulae.
which-update [options] [database]

Database update for brew which-formula.

--stats

Print statistics about the database contents (number of commands and formulae, list of missing formulae).
--commit

Commit the changes using git.

--update-existing

Update database entries with outdated formula versions.

--install-missing

Install and update formulae that are missing from the database and don’t have bottles.
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--eval-all

Evaluate all installed taps, rather than just the core tap.
--max-downloads

Specify a maximum number of formulae to download and update.

CUSTOM EXTERNAL COMMANDS
Homebrew, like git(1), supports external commands. These are executable scripts that reside somewhere in the
PATH, named brew-cmdname or brew-cmdname.rb, which can be invoked like brew cmdname. This allows you to
create your own commands without modifying Homebrew’s internals.
Instructions for creating your own commands can be found in the docs: https://docs.brew.sh/External-Commands
SPECIFYING FORMULAE
Many Homebrew commands accept one or more formula arguments. These arguments can take several different
forms:
The name of a formula: e.g. git, node, wget.
The fully-qualified name of a tapped formula: Sometimes a formula from a tapped repository may conflict
with one in homebrew/core. You can still access these formulae by using a special syntax, e.g.
homebrew/dupes/vim or homebrew/versions/node4.

An arbitrary file: Homebrew can install formulae from a local path. It can point to either a formula file or a
bottle. Prefix relative paths with ./ to prevent them from being interpreted as a formula or tap name.
SPECIFYING CASKS
Many Homebrew Cask commands accept one or more cask arguments. These can be specified the same way as
the formula arguments described in SPECIFYING FORMULAE above.
ENVIRONMENT
Note that environment variables must have a value set to be detected. For example, run export
HOMEBREW_NO_INSECURE_REDIRECT=1 rather than just export HOMEBREW_NO_INSECURE_REDIRECT.

HOMEBREW_* environment variables can also be set in Homebrew’s environment files:

/etc/homebrew/brew.env (system-wide)

${HOMEBREW_PREFIX}/etc/homebrew/brew.env (prefix-specific)

$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/homebrew/brew.env if $XDG_CONFIG_HOME is set or ~/.homebrew/brew.env

otherwise (user-specific)
User-specific environment files take precedence over prefix-specific files and prefix-specific files take
precedence over system-wide files (unless HOMEBREW_SYSTEM_ENV_TAKES_PRIORITY is set, see below).
Note that these files do not support shell variable expansion e.g. $HOME or command execution e.g. $(cat file).
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HOMEBREW_ALLOWED_TAPS

A space-separated list of taps. Homebrew will refuse to install a formula unless it and all of its
dependencies are in an official tap or in a tap on this list.
HOMEBREW_API_AUTO_UPDATE_SECS

Check Homebrew’s API for new formulae or cask data every $HOMEBREW_API_AUTO_UPDATE_SECS
seconds. Alternatively, disable API auto-update checks entirely with $HOMEBREW_NO_AUTO_UPDATE.
Default: 450.
HOMEBREW_API_DOMAIN

Use this URL as the download mirror for Homebrew JSON API. If metadata files at that URL are
temporarily unavailable, the default API domain will be used as a fallback mirror.
Default: https://formulae.brew.sh/api.
HOMEBREW_ARCH

Linux only: Pass this value to a type name representing the compiler’s -march option.
Default: native.
HOMEBREW_ARTIFACT_DOMAIN

Prefix all download URLs, including those for bottles, with this value. For example, export
HOMEBREW_ARTIFACT_DOMAIN=http://localhost:8080 will cause a formula with the URL
https://example.com/foo.tar.gz to instead download from
http://localhost:8080/https://example.com/foo.tar.gz. Bottle URLs however, have their domain
replaced with this prefix. This results in e.g.
https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core/gettext/manifests/0.21 to instead be downloaded from
http://localhost:8080/v2/homebrew/core/gettext/manifests/0.21

HOMEBREW_ARTIFACT_DOMAIN_NO_FALLBACK

When $HOMEBREW_ARTIFACT_DOMAIN and $HOMEBREW_ARTIFACT_DOMAIN_NO_FALLBACK are both set, if the

request to $HOMEBREW_ARTIFACT_DOMAIN fails then Homebrew will error rather than trying any
other/default URLs.
HOMEBREW_ASK

If set, pass --askto all formulae brew install, brew upgrade and brew reinstall commands.

HOMEBREW_AUTO_UPDATE_SECS

Run brew update once every $HOMEBREW_AUTO_UPDATE_SECS seconds before some commands, e.g. brew
install, brew upgrade and brew tap. Alternatively, disable auto-update entirely with
$HOMEBREW_NO_AUTO_UPDATE.

Default: 86400 (24 hours), 3600 (1 hour) if a developer command has been run or 300 (5 minutes) if
$HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_FROM_API is set.

HOMEBREW_BAT

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If set, use bat for the brew cat command.

HOMEBREW_BAT_CONFIG_PATH

Use this as the bat configuration file.

Default: $BAT_CONFIG_PATH.
HOMEBREW_BAT_THEME

Use this as the bat theme for syntax highlighting.

Default: $BAT_THEME.
HOMEBREW_BOTTLE_DOMAIN

Use this URL as the download mirror for bottles. If bottles at that URL are temporarily unavailable, the
default bottle domain will be used as a fallback mirror. For example, export
HOMEBREW_BOTTLE_DOMAIN=http://localhost:8080 will cause all bottles to download from the prefix
http://localhost:8080/. If bottles are not available at $HOMEBREW_BOTTLE_DOMAIN they will be
downloaded from the default bottle domain.
Default: https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core.
HOMEBREW_BREW_GIT_REMOTE

Use this URL as the Homebrew/brew git(1) remote.

Default: https://github.com/Homebrew/brew.
HOMEBREW_BREW_WRAPPER

If set, use wrapper to call brew rather than auto-detecting it.

HOMEBREW_BROWSER

Use this as the browser when opening project homepages.

Default: $BROWSER or the OS’s default browser.
HOMEBREW_BUNDLE_USER_CACHE

If set, use this directory as the bundle(1) user cache.

HOMEBREW_CACHE

Use this directory as the download cache.

Default: macOS: ~/Library/Caches/Homebrew, Linux: $XDG_CACHE_HOME/Homebrew or
~/.cache/Homebrew.

HOMEBREW_CASK_OPTS

Append these options to all cask commands. All --*dir options, --language, --require-sha, --no-
quarantine and --no-binaries are supported. For example, you might add something like the following
to your ~/.profile, ~/.bash_profile, or ~/.zshenv:
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export HOMEBREW_CASK_OPTS="--appdir=${HOME}/Applications --fontdir=/Library/Fonts"
HOMEBREW_CLEANUP_MAX_AGE_DAYS

Cleanup all cached files older than this many days.

Default: 120.
HOMEBREW_CLEANUP_PERIODIC_FULL_DAYS

If set, brew install, brew upgrade and brew reinstall will cleanup all formulae when this number of
days has passed.
Default: 30.
HOMEBREW_COLOR

If set, force colour output on non-TTY outputs.

HOMEBREW_CORE_GIT_REMOTE

Use this URL as the Homebrew/homebrew-core git(1) remote.

Default: https://github.com/Homebrew/homebrew-core.
HOMEBREW_CURLRC

If set to an absolute path (i.e. beginning with /), pass it with --config when invoking curl(1). If set but
not a valid path, do not pass --disable, which disables the use of .curlrc.
HOMEBREW_CURL_PATH

Linux only: Set this value to a new enough curl executable for Homebrew to use.
Default: curl.
HOMEBREW_CURL_RETRIES

Pass the given retry count to --retry when invoking curl(1).

Default: 3.
HOMEBREW_CURL_VERBOSE

If set, pass --verbose when invoking curl(1).

HOMEBREW_DEBUG

If set, always assume --debug when running commands.

HOMEBREW_DEVELOPER

If set, tweak behaviour to be more relevant for Homebrew developers (active or budding) by e.g. turning
warnings into errors.
HOMEBREW_DISABLE_DEBREW

If set, the interactive formula debugger available via --debug will be disabled.
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HOMEBREW_DISABLE_LOAD_FORMULA

If set, refuse to load formulae. This is useful when formulae are not trusted (such as in pull requests).
HOMEBREW_DISPLAY

Use this X11 display when opening a page in a browser, for example with brew home. Primarily useful on
Linux.
Default: $DISPLAY.
HOMEBREW_DISPLAY_INSTALL_TIMES

If set, print install times for each formula at the end of the run.
HOMEBREW_DOCKER_REGISTRY_BASIC_AUTH_TOKEN

Use this base64 encoded username and password for authenticating with a Docker registry proxying
GitHub Packages. If $HOMEBREW_DOCKER_REGISTRY_TOKEN is set, it will be used instead.
HOMEBREW_DOCKER_REGISTRY_TOKEN

Use this bearer token for authenticating with a Docker registry proxying GitHub Packages. Preferred over
$HOMEBREW_DOCKER_REGISTRY_BASIC_AUTH_TOKEN.

HOMEBREW_EDITOR

Use this editor when editing a single formula, or several formulae in the same directory.
Note: brew edit will open all of Homebrew as discontinuous files and directories. Visual Studio Code
can handle this correctly in project mode, but many editors will do strange things in this case.
Default: $EDITOR or $VISUAL.
HOMEBREW_ENV_SYNC_STRICT

If set, brew *env-sync will only sync the exact installed versions of formulae.

HOMEBREW_EVAL_ALL

If set, brew commands evaluate all formulae and casks, executing their arbitrary code, by default without
requiring --eval-all. Required to cache formula and cask descriptions.
HOMEBREW_FAIL_LOG_LINES

Output this many lines of output on formula system failures.

Default: 15.
HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_CASKS

A space-separated list of casks. Homebrew will refuse to install a cask if it or any of its dependencies is on
this list.
HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_FORMULAE

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A space-separated list of formulae. Homebrew will refuse to install a formula or cask if it or any of its
dependencies is on this list.
HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_LICENSES

A space-separated list of SPDX license identifiers. Homebrew will refuse to install a formula if it or any of
its dependencies has a license on this list.
HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_OWNER

The person who has set any $HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_* variables.

Default: you.
HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_OWNER_CONTACT

How to contact the $HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_OWNER, if set and necessary.

HOMEBREW_FORBIDDEN_TAPS

A space-separated list of taps. Homebrew will refuse to install a formula if it or any of its dependencies is
in a tap on this list.
HOMEBREW_FORBID_CASKS

If set, Homebrew will refuse to install any casks.

HOMEBREW_FORBID_PACKAGES_FROM_PATHS

If set, Homebrew will refuse to read formulae or casks provided from file paths, e.g. brew install
./package.rb.

HOMEBREW_FORCE_API_AUTO_UPDATE

If set, update the Homebrew API formula or cask data even if $HOMEBREW_NO_AUTO_UPDATE is set.
HOMEBREW_FORCE_BREWED_CA_CERTIFICATES

If set, always use a Homebrew-installed ca-certificates rather than the system version. Automatically
set if the system version is too old.
HOMEBREW_FORCE_BREWED_CURL

If set, always use a Homebrew-installed curl(1) rather than the system version. Automatically set if the
system version of curl is too old.
HOMEBREW_FORCE_BREWED_GIT

If set, always use a Homebrew-installed git(1) rather than the system version. Automatically set if the
system version of git is too old.
HOMEBREW_FORCE_BREW_WRAPPER

If set, require $HOMEBREW_BREW_WRAPPER to be set to the same value as $HOMEBREW_FORCE_BREW_WRAPPER

for non-trivial brew commands.
HOMEBREW_FORCE_VENDOR_RUBY
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If set, always use Homebrew’s vendored, relocatable Ruby version even if the system version of Ruby is
new enough.
HOMEBREW_FORMULA_BUILD_NETWORK

If set, controls network access to the sandbox for formulae builds. Overrides any controls set through DSL
usage inside formulae. Must be allow or deny. If no value is set through this environment variable or DSL
usage, the default behavior is allow.
HOMEBREW_FORMULA_POSTINSTALL_NETWORK

If set, controls network access to the sandbox for formulae postinstall. Overrides any controls set through
DSL usage inside formulae. Must be allow or deny. If no value is set through this environment variable or
DSL usage, the default behavior is allow.
HOMEBREW_FORMULA_TEST_NETWORK

If set, controls network access to the sandbox for formulae test. Overrides any controls set through DSL
usage inside formulae. Must be allow or deny. If no value is set through this environment variable or DSL
usage, the default behavior is allow.
HOMEBREW_GITHUB_API_TOKEN

Use this personal access token for the GitHub API, for features such as brew search. You can create one
at https://github.com/settings/tokens. If set, GitHub will allow you a greater number of API requests. For
more information, see: https://docs.github.com/en/rest/overview/rate-limits-for-the-rest-api
Note: Homebrew doesn’t require permissions for any of the scopes, but some developer commands may
require additional permissions.
HOMEBREW_GITHUB_PACKAGES_TOKEN

Use this GitHub personal access token when accessing the GitHub Packages Registry (where bottles may
be stored).
HOMEBREW_GITHUB_PACKAGES_USER

Use this username when accessing the GitHub Packages Registry (where bottles may be stored).
HOMEBREW_GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL

Set the Git committer email to this value.

HOMEBREW_GIT_COMMITTER_NAME

Set the Git committer name to this value.

HOMEBREW_GIT_EMAIL

Set the Git author name and, if $HOMEBREW_GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL is unset, committer email to this value.
HOMEBREW_GIT_NAME

Set the Git author name and, if $HOMEBREW_GIT_COMMITTER_NAME is unset, committer name to this value.
HOMEBREW_GIT_PATH

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Linux only: Set this value to a new enough git executable for Homebrew to use.
Default: git.
HOMEBREW_INSTALL_BADGE

Print this text before the installation summary of each successful build.
Default: The “Beer Mug” emoji.
HOMEBREW_LIVECHECK_AUTOBUMP

If set, brew livecheck will include data for packages that are autobumped by BrewTestBot.

HOMEBREW_LIVECHECK_WATCHLIST

Consult this file for the list of formulae to check by default when no formula argument is passed to brew
livecheck.

Default: ${XDG_CONFIG_HOME}/homebrew/livecheck_watchlist.txt if $XDG_CONFIG_HOME is set or

~/.homebrew/livecheck_watchlist.txt otherwise.

HOMEBREW_LOCK_CONTEXT

If set, Homebrew will add this output as additional context for locking errors. This is useful when running
brew in the background.

HOMEBREW_LOGS

Use this directory to store log files.

Default: macOS: ~/Library/Logs/Homebrew, Linux: ${XDG_CACHE_HOME}/Homebrew/Logs or
~/.cache/Homebrew/Logs.

HOMEBREW_MAKE_JOBS

Use this value as the number of parallel jobs to run when building with make(1).
Default: The number of available CPU cores.
HOMEBREW_NO_ANALYTICS

If set, do not send analytics. Google Analytics were destroyed. For more information, see:
https://docs.brew.sh/Analytics
HOMEBREW_NO_AUTOREMOVE

If set, calls to brew cleanup and brew uninstall will not automatically remove unused formula
dependents.
HOMEBREW_NO_AUTO_UPDATE

If set, do not automatically update before running some commands, e.g. brew install, brew upgrade
and brew tap. Preferably, run this less often by setting $HOMEBREW_AUTO_UPDATE_SECS to a value higher
than the default. Note that setting this and e.g. tapping new taps may result in a broken configuration.
Please ensure you always run brew update before reporting any issues.
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HOMEBREW_NO_BOOTSNAP

If set, do not use Bootsnap to speed up repeated brew calls.

HOMEBREW_NO_CLEANUP_FORMULAE

A comma-separated list of formulae. Homebrew will refuse to clean up or autoremove a formula if it

appears on this list.
HOMEBREW_NO_COLOR

If set, do not print text with colour added.

Default: $NO_COLOR.
HOMEBREW_NO_EMOJI

If set, do not print $HOMEBREW_INSTALL_BADGE on a successful build.

HOMEBREW_NO_ENV_HINTS

If set, do not print any hints about changing Homebrew’s behaviour with environment variables.
HOMEBREW_NO_FORCE_BREW_WRAPPER

If set, disables $HOMEBREW_FORCE_BREW_WRAPPER behaviour, even if set.

HOMEBREW_NO_GITHUB_API

If set, do not use the GitHub API, e.g. for searches or fetching relevant issues after a failed install.
HOMEBREW_NO_INSECURE_REDIRECT

If set, forbid redirects from secure HTTPS to insecure HTTP.

Note: while ensuring your downloads are fully secure, this is likely to cause from-source SourceForge,
some GNU & GNOME-hosted formulae to fail to download.
HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALLED_DEPENDENTS_CHECK

If set, do not check for broken linkage of dependents or outdated dependents after installing, upgrading or
reinstalling formulae. This will result in fewer dependents (and their dependencies) being upgraded or
reinstalled but may result in more breakage from running brew install formula or brew upgrade
formula.

HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_CLEANUP

If set, brew install, brew upgrade and brew reinstall will never automatically cleanup
installed/upgraded/reinstalled formulae or all formulae every $HOMEBREW_CLEANUP_PERIODIC_FULL_DAYS
days. Alternatively, $HOMEBREW_NO_CLEANUP_FORMULAE allows specifying specific formulae to not clean
up.
HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_FROM_API

If set, do not install formulae and casks in homebrew/core and homebrew/cask taps using Homebrew’s
API and instead use (large, slow) local checkouts of these repositories.
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HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_UPGRADE

If set, brew install formula|cask will not upgrade formula|cask if it is installed but outdated.

HOMEBREW_NO_UPDATE_REPORT_NEW

If set, brew update will not show the list of newly added formulae/casks.

HOMEBREW_NO_VERIFY_ATTESTATIONS

If set, Homebrew will not verify cryptographic attestations of build provenance for bottles from
homebrew-core.
HOMEBREW_PIP_INDEX_URL

If set, brew install formula will use this URL to download PyPI package resources.
Default: https://pypi.org/simple.
HOMEBREW_PRY

If set, use Pry for the brew irb command.

HOMEBREW_SIMULATE_MACOS_ON_LINUX

If set, running Homebrew on Linux will simulate certain macOS code paths. This is useful when auditing
macOS formulae while on Linux.
HOMEBREW_SKIP_OR_LATER_BOTTLES

If set along with $HOMEBREW_DEVELOPER, do not use bottles from older versions of macOS. This is useful
in development on new macOS versions.
HOMEBREW_SORBET_RUNTIME

If set, enable runtime typechecking using Sorbet. Set by default for $HOMEBREW_DEVELOPER or when
running some developer commands.
HOMEBREW_SSH_CONFIG_PATH

If set, Homebrew will use the given config file instead of ~/.ssh/config when fetching Git repositories
over SSH.
Default: ~/.ssh/config
HOMEBREW_SUDO_THROUGH_SUDO_USER

If set, Homebrew will use the SUDO_USER environment variable to define the user to sudo(8) through when
running sudo(8).
HOMEBREW_SVN

Use this as the svn(1) binary.

Default: A Homebrew-built Subversion (if installed), or the system-provided binary.
HOMEBREW_SYSTEM_ENV_TAKES_PRIORITY
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If set in Homebrew’s system-wide environment file (/etc/homebrew/brew.env), the system-wide
environment file will be loaded last to override any prefix or user settings.
HOMEBREW_TEMP

Use this path as the temporary directory for building packages. Changing this may be needed if your
system temporary directory and Homebrew prefix are on different volumes, as macOS has trouble moving
symlinks across volumes when the target does not yet exist. This issue typically occurs when using
FileVault or custom SSD configurations.
Default: macOS: /private/tmp, Linux: /var/tmp.
HOMEBREW_UPDATE_TO_TAG

If set, always use the latest stable tag (even if developer commands have been run).
HOMEBREW_UPGRADE_GREEDY

If set, pass --greedy to all cask upgrade commands.

HOMEBREW_UPGRADE_GREEDY_CASKS

A space-separated list of casks. Homebrew will act as if --greedy was passed when upgrading any cask
on this list.
HOMEBREW_VERBOSE

If set, always assume --verbose when running commands.

HOMEBREW_VERBOSE_USING_DOTS

If set, verbose output will print a . no more than once a minute. This can be useful to avoid long-running
Homebrew commands being killed due to no output.
HOMEBREW_VERIFY_ATTESTATIONS

If set, Homebrew will use the gh tool to verify cryptographic attestations of build provenance for bottles
from homebrew-core.
SUDO_ASKPASS

If set, pass the -A option when calling sudo(8).

all_proxy

Use this SOCKS5 proxy for curl(1), git(1) and svn(1) when downloading through Homebrew.
ftp_proxy

Use this FTP proxy for curl(1), git(1) and svn(1) when downloading through Homebrew.
http_proxy

Use this HTTP proxy for curl(1), git(1) and svn(1) when downloading through Homebrew.
https_proxy

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Use this HTTPS proxy for curl(1), git(1) and svn(1) when downloading through Homebrew.
no_proxy

A comma-separated list of hostnames and domain names excluded from proxying by curl(1), git(1) and
svn(1) when downloading through Homebrew.

USING HOMEBREW BEHIND A PROXY

Set the http_proxy, https_proxy, all_proxy, ftp_proxy and/or no_proxy environment variables documented
above.
For example, to use an unauthenticated HTTP or SOCKS5 proxy:
export http_proxy=http://$HOST:$PORT
export all_proxy=socks5://$HOST:$PORT

And for an authenticated HTTP proxy:

export http_proxy=http://$USER:$PASSWORD@$HOST:$PORT

SEE ALSO
Homebrew Documentation: https://docs.brew.sh
Homebrew API: https://rubydoc.brew.sh
git(1), git-log(1)

AUTHORS
Homebrew’s Project Leader is Mike McQuaid.
Homebrew’s Project Leadership Committee is Colin Dean, Michka Popoff, Mike McQuaid, Patrick Linnane and
Vanessa Gennarelli.
Homebrew’s Technical Steering Committee is Bo Anderson, FX Coudert, Mike McQuaid and Rylan Polster.
Homebrew’s maintainers are Alexander Bayandin, Bevan Kay, Bo Anderson, Branch Vincent, Caleb Xu, Carlo
Cabrera, Daeho Ro, Douglas Eichelberger, Dustin Rodrigues, Eric Knibbe, FX Coudert, Issy Long, Justin
Krehel, Klaus Hipp, Markus Reiter, Michael Cho, Michka Popoff, Mike McQuaid, Nanda H Krishna, Patrick
Linnane, Rui Chen, Ruoyu Zhong, Rylan Polster, Sam Ford, Sean Molenaar, Štefan Baebler, Thierry Moisan,
Timothy Sutton and William Woodruff.
Former maintainers with significant contributions include Miccal Matthews, Misty De Méo, Shaun Jackman,
Vítor Galvão, Claudia Pellegrino, Seeker, Jan Viljanen, JCount, commitay, Dominyk Tiller, Tim Smith, Baptiste
Fontaine, Xu Cheng, Martin Afanasjew, Brett Koonce, Charlie Sharpsteen, Jack Nagel, Adam Vandenberg,
Andrew Janke, Alex Dunn, neutric, Tomasz Pajor, Uladzislau Shablinski, Alyssa Ross, ilovezfs, Chongyu Zhu
and Homebrew’s creator: Max Howell.
BUGS
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See our issues on GitHub:
Homebrew/brew
https://github.com/Homebrew/brew/issues
Homebrew/homebrew-core
https://github.com/Homebrew/homebrew-core/issues
Homebrew/homebrew-cask
https://github.com/Homebrew/homebrew-cask/issues

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