# Install bnd with Homebrew, apt Swiss Army Knife for OSGi bundles. Version 7.3.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-03. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:bnd ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install bnd ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata ### Linux - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install bnd ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: bnd from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:bnd - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 7.3.0 - **Source summary:** Swiss Army Knife for OSGi bundles - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** Apache-2.0 OR EPL-2.0 - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-06-03T09:56:14Z - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - bnd (cli) - bnd (alias) ## Dependencies - openjdk ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on all ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 7.3.0 - Package-manager updated: 2026-06-03 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://bnd.bndtools.org/ - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage bnd is OSGi bundle tooling for Java: a command-line tool and library used to generate manifests, wrap JARs, resolve bundles, and support OSGi builds through Eclipse, Maven, and Gradle integrations. ### Project history bnd grew out of the OSGi tooling world around Peter Kriens and aQute. The Bndtools about page describes how Richard Hall, the Apache Felix developer, and Peter Kriens worked together on a Maven plugin with bnd for Apache Felix. The project expanded from manifest generation into a broader toolchain: Bnd/Bndtools now advertises tooling for OSGi bundles including Eclipse, Maven, and Gradle plugins. ### Adoption history bnd became important because OSGi metadata is precise and tedious. Maven and Gradle users adopted bnd-derived plugins to turn ordinary Java artifacts into OSGi bundles without hand-writing every manifest header. It also became the foundation for Bndtools, the Eclipse-based OSGi development environment, giving the same underlying model a GUI, workspace conventions, and repository tooling. ### How it is used Developers use bnd files such as bnd.bnd and cnf/build.bnd to describe bundle metadata, exports, imports, baselining, repositories, and launch/run configurations. The CLI is also used to inspect, build, wrap, and resolve bundles. In build systems, bnd commonly appears indirectly through Maven Bundle Plugin, Gradle bnd plugins, or Bndtools projects rather than as a manually invoked command. ### Why package nerds care bnd is package-nerd-significant because it turns Java packaging metadata into a first-class build artifact. OSGi bundles are still JARs, but their manifests encode module boundaries, version ranges, capabilities, and wiring expectations. For maintainers, bnd is the difference between a JAR that happens to load and a bundle that declares what it exports, imports, requires, and promises. That makes it a key tool in the long-running Java modularity story beside Maven, Gradle, Felix, Equinox, and later JPMS. ### Timeline - 2000s: bnd emerges in the OSGi ecosystem around Peter Kriens/aQute and Apache Felix-related tooling. - 2000s: bnd is used in a Maven plugin for Apache Felix, helping make OSGi manifest generation easier for Maven users. - 2010s: Bndtools builds an Eclipse OSGi development environment on top of bnd. - 2020s: The GitHub project presents Bnd/Bndtools as OSGi bundle tooling with Eclipse, Maven, and Gradle plugins. ### Related projects - Bndtools: Eclipse-based OSGi development tools built on bnd. - Apache Felix and Eclipse Equinox: OSGi framework implementations in the same ecosystem. - Maven Bundle Plugin and Gradle bnd plugins: build-system integrations that expose bnd functionality. - OSGi specifications: the modular Java component model whose metadata bnd generates and validates. ### Sources - - - - - - source_facts.description ## Security Notes narrow executable package without higher-risk signals. - **Geiger risk:** green / low - narrow executable package without higher-risk signals ## Configuration and credential file locations These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval. ## Configuration files - Unix: cnf/build.bnd, cnf/ext/*.bnd, bnd.bnd, *.bnd ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** bnd - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - bnd - 5.0.1-5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: bnd from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | tool to create and diagnose OSGi bundles | http://bnd.bndtools.org/ - Ubuntu apt - bnd - 5.0.1-5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: bnd from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | tool to create and diagnose OSGi bundles | http://bnd.bndtools.org/ ## Related links - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Text processing packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/text-processing-tools/) - Matched text, document, or structured-data processing metadata. - [Developer build packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/developer-build-tools/) - Matched build, compiler, generator, or developer workflow metadata. - [Language runtime packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/language-runtime-packages/) - Matched language runtime, compiler, or interpreter metadata. - [openjdk](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openjdk/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [amdatu-bootstrap](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/amdatu-bootstrap/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java, osgi. - [pax-runner](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/pax-runner/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java, osgi. - [byteman](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/byteman/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java. - [cfr-decompiler](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cfr-decompiler/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java. - [checkstyle](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/checkstyle/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java. - [fastjar](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/fastjar/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java. - [gcviewer](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gcviewer/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java. - [helidon](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/helidon/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, java. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/bnd.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/bnd.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated configuration and credential file locations - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph