install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install create-dmg

local Homebrew formula metadata

MacPortsverified · 94%

sudo port install create-dmg

MacPorts ports tree · sysutils/create-dmg/Portfile · source: api.github.com

Linux

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#create-dmg

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/cr/create-dmg/package.nix · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

Shell script to build fancy DMGs

Project links

Commands and aliases

create-dmg

history

Project history and usage

create-dmg is a macOS command-line packaging helper for producing polished disk images from a source folder. It wraps standard macOS disk-image tooling with options for Finder window layout, icons, background images, Applications drop links, encryption, signing, and notarization.

Project history

The project README credits Andrey Tarantsov as the original creator and says Andrew Janke helped substantially with the project in May 2020. The project is maintained as a shell script in a public GitHub repository under the create-dmg organization.

Adoption history

The README documents Homebrew installation as the first installation path, followed by release downloads and cloning the repository. That distribution style made create-dmg convenient for macOS developers who wanted repeatable DMG creation in release scripts without maintaining their own AppleScript and hdiutil wrappers.

How it is used

The normal workflow is to run create-dmg with an output .dmg name and a source folder, then pass options for volume name, icon placement, background art, filesystem format, encryption, codesigning, notarization, and related macOS packaging details.

Why package nerds care

For package maintainers, create-dmg matters because DMG layout is a macOS distribution detail that is easy to get wrong and awkward to reproduce. The tool packages common release-engineering conventions into one script that Homebrew, MacPorts, and Nix can expose as a small CLI dependency.

Timeline

Original project: Created by Andrey Tarantsov
2020-05: README notes substantial help from Andrew Janke
README: Documents Homebrew installation and release-download installation

Related projects

The README lists node-appdmg and dmgbuild as alternatives for building macOS disk images.

Sources

https://github.com/create-dmg/create-dmg#readme

security posture

Risk level: yellow

generalized runtime or code generation signal.

Risk classifier

yellow risk · medium confidence · runtime

Why

generalized runtime or code generation signal

Signals

text:shell

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

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`create-dmg`	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 version1.3.0

manager updated2026-07-02

local dataok

upstreamcurrent

latest detectedv1.3.0

https://github.com/create-dmg/create-dmg

okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:create-dmg
Version	1.3.0
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/create-dmg
Homepage	https://github.com/create-dmg/create-dmg
Repository	https://github.com/create-dmg/create-dmg
Upstream docs	https://github.com/create-dmg/create-dmg#readme
License	MIT
Source archive	https://github.com/create-dmg/create-dmg/archive/refs/tags/v1.3.0.tar.gz
Last updated	2026-07-02T12:12:51Z
Pulse	updated
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	create-dmg
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Requirements	macos
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%

create-dmg

nix profile install nixpkgs#create-dmg

normalized package name match
Matched by: Create Dmg

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

MacPorts95%

create-dmg

sudo port install create-dmg

normalized package name match
Matched by: Create Dmg

MacPorts ports tree · api.github.com · MacPorts ports tree: sysutils/create-dmg/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/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/create-dmg.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 create-dmg with Homebrew, MacPorts, Nix