install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install avro-tools

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#avro-tools

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/av/avro-tools/package.nix · source: api.github.com

Windows

Scoopverified · 92%

scoop install main/avro-tools

Scoop official bucket manifest trees · bucket/avro-tools.json · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

Avro command-line tools and utilities

Project links

Commands and aliases

avro-tools

history

Project history and usage

Avro Tools is the Java command-line utility package for Apache Avro. It is the package users reach for when they want to inspect schemas, convert data, generate code, or manipulate Avro object container files from a terminal.

Project history

Apache Avro's 1.0.0 release was announced in July 2010. The project defined a compact binary data format, a JSON-based schema system, object container files, and RPC support, then shipped language implementations from a single Apache-managed source tree.

The tools package grew naturally out of Avro's Java implementation: once a format has schemas, container files, IDL, and generated code, it needs a portable command-line utility. The Homebrew avro-tools formula packages that Java-oriented CLI separately from native C and C++ formulas.

Adoption history

Avro's adoption is tied to data-platform workflows where schema evolution and compact record serialization matter. Apache's project site now explicitly calls Avro a leading serialization format for record data and a first choice for streaming data pipelines.

The avro-tools jar became the everyday operator interface for that ecosystem. Even users who do not write Java often keep avro-tools around because it can inspect and transform Avro files without having to compile a language binding into a one-off program.

How it is used

Common avro-tools usage includes printing or validating schemas, converting between JSON and Avro container files, compiling schemas or IDL to generated language code, and debugging records in data pipelines. Package managers usually expose this as an avro-tools command wrapping the upstream jar.

Avro Tools has no documented per-user config file or credential file. Inputs are schemas, Avro files, IDL/protocol files, and command-line options.

Why package nerds care

For package nerds, avro-tools is the canonical example of a data-format CLI shipped as a Java artifact but consumed like a Unix tool. The formula is less about libraries and more about making a jar feel like a normal executable in scripts.

It also anchors the split packaging story for Avro: avro-tools for the Java CLI, avro-c for native C utilities, and avro-cpp for generated C++ bindings, all backed by one upstream release stream.

Timeline

2010: Apache Avro 1.0.0 announced as the first Avro release.
2021: Avro 1.11.0 released with 120 JIRA issues addressed.
2024: Avro 1.12.0 released by the Apache Avro community.
2025: Avro 1.12.1 listed as the latest Apache Avro release.

Related projects

avro-c and avro-cpp package native parts of the same Apache Avro source tree.
Apache Avro language bindings and the Avro specification define the data files that avro-tools reads and writes.
Data platforms that store or stream Avro records often use avro-tools for local inspection and pipeline debugging.

Sources

https://avro.apache.org/
https://avro.apache.org/blog/2010/07/15/avro-1.0.0/
https://avro.apache.org/blog/releases/
https://avro.apache.org/docs/
https://avro.apache.org/docs/1.12.0/api/java/org/apache/avro/tool/package-summary.html
https://github.com/apache/avro
source_facts.description
source_facts.executables

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 1 platform targets.
Installs with 1 runtime dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`avro-tools`	cli	global executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08

manager version1.12.1

manager updated

local dataok

upstreamnot checked

latest detectednot detected

https://avro.apache.org/

infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://avro.apache.org/none confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:avro-tools
Version	1.12.1
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/avro-tools
Homepage	https://avro.apache.org/
Repository	https://github.com/apache/avro
Upstream docs	https://avro.apache.org/docs
License	Apache-2.0
Source archive	https://www.apache.org/dyn/closer.lua?path=avro/avro-1.12.1/java/avro-tools-1.12.1.jar
Dependencies	openjdk
Bottle	available (on all)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	avro-tools
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Nix95%

avro-tools

nix profile install nixpkgs#avro-tools

normalized package name match
Matched by: Avro Tools

nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/av/avro-tools/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

Scoop95%

main/avro-tools

scoop install main/avro-tools

normalized package name match
Matched by: Avro Tools

Scoop official bucket manifest trees · api.github.com · Scoop official bucket manifest trees: bucket/avro-tools.json from https://api.github.com/repos/ScoopInstaller/Main/git/trees/master?recursive=1

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/avro-tools.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
Nucleus package database
av.db category and tag curation
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated package history
external package-manager database matches
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment

Install avro-tools with Homebrew, Nix, scoop