Automic VaultAutomic Vault

brew

Install brew-gem with Homebrew

Install RubyGems as Homebrew formulae. Version 1.3.4 via Homebrew; verified 2026-05-27.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified ยท 100%
brew install brew-gem

local Homebrew formula metadata

overview

Package summary

Install RubyGems as Homebrew formulae

Commands and aliases

  • brew-gem

history

Project history and usage

brew-gem is a small bridge between RubyGems and Homebrew: it generates Homebrew formulae that install Ruby gems as self-contained Cellar packages.

Project history

The sportngin/brew-gem repository was created in February 2014, with early v0.2.x releases following within weeks. The README explains the core idea: generate a stub formula that runs `gem install` into the formula prefix so the resulting package and dependencies live under Homebrew's Cellar.

The project explicitly limits its purpose to standalone Ruby command-line tools, not development libraries. That philosophy made it a pragmatic workaround for Ruby CLI tools that users wanted to manage with `brew list`, `brew upgrade`, and Homebrew-style uninstalls.

Adoption history

brew-gem remained a niche packaging helper but has persisted unusually long for a glue tool. GitHub metadata and Homebrew formula data show current activity and a stable 1.3.x line, while Homebrew analytics reported several thousand installs over the prior year at lookup time.

How it is used

Users run commands such as `brew gem install heroku`, optionally choosing a specific gem version or Homebrew-installed Ruby. Installed gems are listed with a `gem-` prefix, making Ruby CLI tools visible to normal Homebrew workflows.

Why package nerds care

brew-gem matters because it captures a recurring package-manager problem: language package managers are good at libraries, while OS/package managers are good at executable lifecycle management. It is a compact example of turning language-level packages into system-level formulae without maintaining a formula by hand for every gem.

Timeline

  • 2014: Repository created and v0.2.0 released.
  • 2014: v0.3.0 released with early Homebrew integration improvements.
  • 2018: v0.9.0 release addressed compatibility with newer Homebrew behavior.
  • 2026: Homebrew stable version reported as 1.3.4.

Related projects

  • RubyGems supplies the upstream packages that brew-gem wraps.
  • Homebrew supplies the formula and Cellar lifecycle model.
  • Shell completion handling in the README links the tool to bash and zsh completion packaging.

security posture

No protected-tool coverage found yet

No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for brew-gem. Nucleus package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL.

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
  • Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 1 platform targets.

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

CommandKindExposureNote
brew-gemcliglobal 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 version1.3.4
manager updated2026-05-27
local dataok
upstreamcurrent
latest detectedv1.3.4

https://github.com/sportngin/brew-gem

  • okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:brew-gem
Version1.3.4
Package managerHomebrew
Package manager pagehttps://formulae.brew.sh/formula/brew-gem
Homepagehttps://github.com/sportngin/brew-gem
Repositoryhttps://github.com/sportngin/brew-gem
Upstream docshttps://github.com/sportngin/brew-gem#readme
LicenseMIT
Source archivehttps://github.com/sportngin/brew-gem/archive/refs/tags/v1.3.4.tar.gz
Last updated2026-05-27T00:14:05Z
Pulseupdated
Uses from macOSruby
Bottleavailable (on all)
Homebrew post-installnot defined
Servicenone declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source DatabaseHomebrew formula API
Taphomebrew/core
Full Namebrew-gem
Version Scheme0
Revision0
Head VersionHEAD
Bottle Stable Root URLhttps://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecatedno
Disabledno
Keg Onlyno
URL Keys
  • head
  • stable

package graph

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

Related tools

  • brew-php-switcherPackage names and metadata indicate a similar tool family. Shared terms: brew, cli, developer, developer-tools, homebrew.

Same workflow

  • grayskullShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, package-management, packaging.
  • pdmShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, package-management, packaging.
  • poetryShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, package-management, packaging.
  • rattler-buildShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, package-management, packaging.
  • rpmShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, package-management, packaging.
  • twineShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, package-management, packaging.

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.

Used sources

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