Homebrew Cheat Sheet Cheatsheet

Installation and Setup

Installation

To install Homebrew, open your terminal and run the following command:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

This script will guide you through the installation process. Follow the prompts, and enter your password if required.

Basic Setup

After installation, it’s important to add Homebrew to your PATH so that you can run brew commands from any terminal location.

Add these lines to your .zshrc or .bashrc file:

export PATH="/opt/homebrew/bin:$PATH"

Then, apply the changes to your current session:

source ~/.zshrc  # or source ~/.bashrc

Alternatively, for interactive setup in zsh, run:

eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)"

Verify Installation

To ensure Homebrew is installed correctly, run:

brew doctor

This command will diagnose common issues and provide solutions.

If any problems are reported, follow the suggested steps to resolve them before proceeding.

Package Management

Installing Packages

`brew install <package_name>`	Installs the specified package. Example: `brew install git`
`brew reinstall <package_name>`	Reinstalls the specified package. Useful for fixing broken installations. Example: `brew reinstall git`
`brew install <formula>@<version>`	Installs a specific version of a formula. Example: `brew install node@16`

Updating Packages

`brew update`	Updates Homebrew’s package list.
`brew upgrade`	Upgrades all outdated packages.
`brew upgrade <package_name>`	Upgrades a specific package. Example: `brew upgrade git`

Removing Packages

`brew uninstall <package_name>`	Uninstalls the specified package. Example: `brew uninstall git`
`brew cleanup`	Removes old versions of packages from the Homebrew cache.
`brew cleanup <package_name>`	Removes old versions of specific packages from the Homebrew cache. Example: `brew cleanup git`

Brew Cask

Installing Applications

`brew install --cask <application_name>`	Installs the specified application using Brew Cask. Example: `brew install --cask firefox`
`brew reinstall --cask <application_name>`	Reinstalls the specified application using Brew Cask. Example: `brew reinstall --cask firefox`

Listing Installed Applications

To list all applications installed via Brew Cask, use the following command:

brew list --cask

Uninstalling Applications

brew uninstall --cask <application_name>

Uninstalls the specified application using Brew Cask.

Example:

brew uninstall --cask firefox

Advanced Usage

Searching for Packages

`brew search <keyword>`	Searches for packages containing the specified keyword. Example: `brew search node`
`brew search /<regex>/`	Searches using a regular expression. Example: `brew search /^node.*/`

Package Information

`brew info <package_name>`	Displays information about a package, including version, dependencies, and caveats. Example: `brew info git`
`brew deps <package_name>`	Lists the dependencies of a package. Example: `brew deps node`

Linking and Unlinking

`brew link <package_name>`	Links a package’s files into `/usr/local`. Example: `brew link git`
`brew unlink <package_name>`	Unlinks a package’s files from `/usr/local`. Example: `brew unlink git`