macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install borgbackuplocal Homebrew formula metadata
MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install borgbackupMacPorts ports tree · sysutils/borgbackup/Portfile · source: api.github.com
brew
Install borgbackup with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper
Deduplicating archiver with compression and authenticated encryption. Version 1.4.4 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add borgbackupAlpine Linux edge package indexes · borgbackup · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org
Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install borgbackupDebian stable package indexes · borgbackup · source: deb.debian.org
Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install borgbackupFedora Rawhide package metadata · borgbackup · source: dl.fedoraproject.org
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#borgbackupnixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/bo/borgbackup/package.nix · source: api.github.com
Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S borgArch Linux sync databases · borg · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com
openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install borgbackupopenSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · borgbackup · source: download.opensuse.org
overview
Package summary
Deduplicating archiver with compression and authenticated encryption
Project links
Commands and aliases
- borg
- borgfs
history
Project history and usage
BorgBackup is a deduplicating backup program with optional compression and authenticated encryption. It is one of the most important Unix-style backup CLIs in modern package repositories because it combines content-defined chunking, encrypted remote repositories over SSH, and scriptable command-line operation.
Project history
Borg began publicly as a fork of Attic. The project's first GitHub issue, opened May 13, 2015, states that the fork was made to allow different approaches to development, goals, and policy, with emphasis on openness, accepting good pull requests, discussing changes publicly, and avoiding accidental compatibility breaks.
The official documentation describes Borg's core design: split files into variable-length chunks, store only chunks not already present in the repository, optionally compress data, and protect data with client-side authenticated encryption. Borg's SSH-friendly repository model made it practical for daily off-site backups to hosts that were not fully trusted.
Borg reached 1.0.0 on March 5, 2016. The current stable documentation is for Borg 1.4.4, while the master README warns that Borg 2 is in beta and should not be used for production backups, showing an active but compatibility-conscious split between stable backup users and future repository-format work.
Adoption history
Borg's adoption grew among Linux, macOS, and BSD users who wanted a command-line alternative to rsync-style mirror backups and tarball rotation. The package-manager data in the input shows broad distribution coverage across Alpine, Homebrew, Debian, DNF, MacPorts, Nix, Arch, Ubuntu, and openSUSE, matching its role as infrastructure software rather than an application-specific tool.
The docs also call out JSON output for frontends, which helped a small ecosystem of wrappers and graphical tools build on the CLI instead of a Python API. That front-end contract matters because backup tools need automation, monitoring, and restore UX without weakening the reliability of the core command.
How it is used
Typical use starts by creating a repository with encryption, then running `borg create` repeatedly so only new chunks are stored. Users commonly set `BORG_REPO`, back up to a local path or SSH remote, prune old archives, mount archives as file systems for browsing, and use JSON/log output in automation.
Borg's key workflows are daily encrypted off-site backups, space-efficient backups of large changing files such as VM images, multi-machine repositories where chunk deduplication crosses archive boundaries, and disaster-recovery restores from append-only or otherwise protected storage.
Why package nerds care
BorgBackup is package-nerd significant because it is a backup tool where packaging quality directly affects data safety: users care about reproducible binaries, FUSE support for mounting archives, Python/Cython extension compatibility, OpenSSL or crypto backend behavior, and careful upgrade notes. Its package name also preserves the full project name while the CLI is simply `borg`.
It is also a canonical example of a serious CLI exposing machine-readable output for frontends while refusing to promise a stable internal Python API. That boundary is exactly the kind of packaging and integration decision that distribution maintainers and backup-tool operators notice.
Timeline
- 2015: Borg fork goals issue opened, documenting the fork from Attic and project policy goals.
- 2015: 0.26.x through 0.29.x release series published before 1.0.
- 2016: Borg 1.0.0 published.
- 2025: Borg 2.0 beta releases continue for testing only.
- 2026: Borg 1.4.4 stable release published.
Related projects
- Related projects include Attic, the project Borg forked from, plus command-line backup tools such as restic, duplicity, rsync-based backup systems, and Borg frontends that consume the documented CLI JSON output.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: blue
broad file, network, media, or database tool signal.
Risk classifier
blue risk · medium confidence · tool
Why
- broad file, network, media, or database tool signal
Signals
- text:backup,archive,compress,encrypt
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
- Installs with 6 runtime dependencies.
- Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
local files
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
Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.
- Unix
<repository>/config~/.cache/borg/<repository-id>/config
Credential files
Credential-bearing paths to review before unattended agent runs.
- Linux
~/.config/borg/keys/- macOS
~/Library/Application Support/borg/keys/- Windows
C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Roaming\borg\keys\
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
borg | cli | global executable | |
borgfs | 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 version1.4.4
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
- infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://www.borgbackup.org/none confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:borgbackup |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.4.4 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/borgbackup |
| Homepage | https://www.borgbackup.org/ |
| Repository | https://github.com/borgbackup/borg |
| Upstream docs | https://borgbackup.readthedocs.io/en/stable |
| License | BSD-3-Clause |
| Source archive | https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/eb/38/7fc8c8c7d9dba455f0e29f2ab5b77109313f4e58fe5014d0e1b7855de3cd/borgbackup-1.4.4.tar.gz |
| Dependencies | libb2, lz4, openssl@3, python@3.14, xxhash, zstd |
| Build dependencies | pkgconf |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux) |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew formula API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/core |
| Full Name | borgbackup |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Head Version | HEAD |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
Debian apt95%
borgbackup 1.4.0-5
deduplicating and compressing backup program
https://borgbackup.github.io/borgbackup/
sudo apt install borgbackup- Section: admin
- Architecture: amd64
- 9 dependencies
- 3 optional deps
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
Debian apt95%
borgbackup-doc 1.4.0-5
deduplicating and compressing backup program (documentation)
https://borgbackup.github.io/borgbackup/
sudo apt install borgbackup-doc- Section: doc
- Architecture: all
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 4 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
Nix95%
borgbackup
nix profile install nixpkgs#borgbackup- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
Ubuntu apt95%
borgbackup 1.2.8-1
deduplicating and compressing backup program
https://borgbackup.github.io/borgbackup/
sudo apt install borgbackup- Section: universe/admin
- Architecture: amd64
- 10 dependencies
- 3 optional deps
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
Ubuntu apt95%
borgbackup-doc 1.2.8-1
deduplicating and compressing backup program (documentation)
https://borgbackup.github.io/borgbackup/
sudo apt install borgbackup-doc- Section: universe/doc
- Architecture: all
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 4 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
apk95%
borgbackup 1.4.4-r1
Deduplicating backup program
sudo apk add borgbackup- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
apk95%
borgbackup-bash-completion 1.4.4-r1
Bash completions for borgbackup
sudo apk add borgbackup-bash-completion- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
apk95%
borgbackup-doc 1.4.4-r1
Deduplicating backup program (documentation)
sudo apk add borgbackup-doc- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
apk95%
borgbackup-fish-completion 1.4.4-r1
Fish completions for borgbackup
sudo apk add borgbackup-fish-completion- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
apk95%
borgbackup-fuse 1.4.4-r1
Deduplicating backup program (FUSE support)
sudo apk add borgbackup-fuse- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 1 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
apk95%
borgbackup-pyc 1.4.4-r1
Precompiled Python bytecode for borgbackup
sudo apk add borgbackup-pyc- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 1 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
apk95%
borgbackup-zsh-completion 1.4.4-r1
Zsh completions for borgbackup
sudo apk add borgbackup-zsh-completion- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
dnf95%
borgbackup 1.4.4-2.fc45
A deduplicating backup program with compression and authenticated encryption
https://borgbackup.readthedocs.org
sudo dnf install borgbackup- License: BSD-3-clause AND zlib AND Apache-2.0 AND PSF-2.0
- Category: Unspecified
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 12 dependencies
- 3 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
pacman95%
borg 1.4.4-1
Deduplicating backup program with compression and authenticated encryption
sudo pacman -S borg- License: BSD
- Architecture: x86_64
- 9 dependencies
- 1 provides
- 2 optional deps
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
zypper95%
borgbackup 1.4.1-6.3
Deduplicating backup program with compression and authenticated encryption
https://github.com/borgbackup/borg
sudo zypper install borgbackup- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Category: Productivity/Archiving/Backup
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 10 dependencies
- 3 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
zypper95%
borgbackup-bash-completion 1.4.1-6.3
Bash Completion for borgbackup
https://github.com/borgbackup/borg
sudo zypper install borgbackup-bash-completion- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Category: Productivity/Archiving/Backup
- Architecture: noarch
- Source Package: borgbackup
- 2 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Borgbackup
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.
Used sources
- Geiger risk classifier
- Nucleus package database
- av.db category and tag curation
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated configuration and credential file locations
- curated package history
- external package-manager database matches
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment