# Install devcontainer with Homebrew, Nix Reference implementation for the Development Containers specification. Version 0.87.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-05-13. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:devcontainer ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install devcontainer ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata ### Linux - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#devcontainer ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/de/devcontainer/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:devcontainer - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 0.87.0 - **Source summary:** Reference implementation for the Development Containers specification - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** MIT - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-05-13T13:00:10Z - **Generated:** 2026-07-09T07:20:21+00:00 ## Executables - devcontainer (cli) - devcontainer (alias) ## Dependencies - node ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on all ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-09 - Package-manager version: 0.87.0 - Package-manager updated: 2026-05-13 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://containers.dev - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage Dev Container CLI is the reference command-line implementation for the Development Containers specification. It reads devcontainer.json metadata and creates, builds, configures, and runs development containers outside a single editor UI. ### Project history The devcontainers/spec repository was created in January 2022, and devcontainers/cli followed in April 2022. The CLI changelog starts with 0.1.0 as the initial version and then quickly adds build, feature, template, metadata, and lifecycle support through the 2022 releases. ### Adoption history The broader dev container format came from the need for structured metadata that tools could share, similar in spirit to the Language Server Protocol. The official supporting-tools page lists editors and services such as VS Code, Visual Studio, IntelliJ IDEA, GitHub Codespaces, and the standalone Dev Container CLI as participants in the ecosystem. ### How it is used Package users install the devcontainer executable, keep devcontainer.json in a project, and run commands such as devcontainer up, build, exec, read-configuration, features, and templates. The CLI README also frames it as useful for CI, where a project's development container can be reused as a build and test environment. ### Why package nerds care For package nerds, devcontainer is important because it turns editor-oriented development-environment metadata into a portable CLI contract. It bridges package managers, Docker or Podman-style container engines, OCI-distributed features, templates, GitHub Actions, Codespaces, and local development workflows. ### Timeline - 2022: devcontainers/spec repository created. - 2022: devcontainers/cli repository created. - 2022: CLI 0.1.0 initial version appears in the changelog. - 2022: CLI 0.12.0 added native feature publishing to OCI registries. - 2026: CLI 0.87.0 made lockfile generation stable by default. ### Related projects - Officially related projects include the Development Containers specification, Dev Container Features and Templates, devcontainers/ci, VS Code Dev Containers, GitHub Codespaces, Docker, Docker Compose, and supporting IDE integrations. ### Sources - - - - - - - - ## Security Notes infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal. - **Geiger risk:** orange / medium - infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal ## 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: .devcontainer/devcontainer.json, .devcontainer.json ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** devcontainer - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Nix - devcontainer: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/de/devcontainer/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Related links - [Cloud CLI packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/cloud-clis/) - Belongs to a cloud or infrastructure command family. - [Secret-risk packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/secret-risk-packages/) - Has protected-tool coverage, approval-gate, or non-low Geiger security signals. - [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. - [node](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/node/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [cdebug](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cdebug/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, docker. - [cekit](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cekit/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, docker. - [dockcheck](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/dockcheck/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, docker. - [docker](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/docker/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, docker. - [docker-buildx](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/docker-buildx/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, docker. - [docker-clean](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/docker-clean/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, docker. - [docker-compose](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/docker-compose/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, development-environments, docker. - [docker-credential-helper](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/docker-credential-helper/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, containers, developer-tools, docker. - [envd](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/envd/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, containers, developer, developer-tools, development. - [dockly](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/dockly/) - Both packages touch the same language runtime or ecosystem. Shared terms: cli, containers, developer, developer-tools, docker. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/devcontainer.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/devcontainer.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