# Install docutils with Homebrew, Nix, zypper

Text processing system for reStructuredText. Version 0.23 via Homebrew; verified 2026-05-28.

## Install

```sh
sudo av install brew:docutils
```

Additional install commands:

### macOS

- Homebrew (100%):

```sh
brew install docutils
```

  Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata

### Linux

- Nix (92%):

```sh
nix profile install nixpkgs#docutils
```

  Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: docutils from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/master/pkgs/top-level/all-packages.nix

- zypper (92%):

```sh
sudo zypper install python313-docutils
```

  Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: python313-docutils from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst

## Package facts

- **Package key:** brew:docutils
- **Package manager:** Homebrew
- **Package manager page:** <https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/docutils>
- **Version:** 0.23
- **Source summary:** Text processing system for reStructuredText
- **Homepage:** <https://docutils.sourceforge.io>
- **Repository:** <https://sourceforge.net/p/docutils/code/HEAD/tree>
- **Upstream docs:** <https://docutils.sourceforge.io/FAQ.html>
- **License:** LicenseRef-Homebrew-public-domain AND BSD-2-Clause AND GPL-3.0-or-later AND Python-2.0
- **Source archive:** <https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/39/a4/5180d9afc57e8fca05601dd652bdff19604c218814037fe90ffc7625a50a/docutils-0.23.tar.gz>
- **Last updated:** 2026-05-28T18:47:22Z
- **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00

## Executables

- docutils (cli)
- rst2html (cli)
- rst2html4 (cli)
- rst2html5 (cli)
- rst2latex (cli)
- rst2man (cli)
- rst2odt (cli)
- rst2pseudoxml (cli)
- rst2s5 (cli)
- rst2xetex (cli)
- rst2xml (cli)
- docutils (alias)
- rst2html (alias)
- rst2html4 (alias)
- rst2html5 (alias)
- rst2latex (alias)
- rst2man (alias)
- rst2odt (alias)
- rst2pseudoxml (alias)
- rst2s5 (alias)
- rst2xetex (alias)
- rst2xml (alias)

## Dependencies

- python@3.14

## Install behavior

- Post-install hook: not defined
- Bottle: available on all

## Freshness

- Page generated: 2026-07-08
- Package-manager version: 0.23
- Package-manager updated: 2026-05-28
- Local data: ok
- Upstream repository: https://docutils.sourceforge.io
- info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.
## Project history and usage

Docutils is the long-running Python documentation-processing system behind reStructuredText. It provides a Python library, parsers, writers, transforms, and front-end commands such as `rst2html`, `rst2latex`, `rst2man`, and `rst2xml`.

### Project history

The project's roots are in the Python documentation community. reStructuredText was designed by David Goodger as a revision and reinterpretation of StructuredText and Setext, with goals of readable plaintext markup, unambiguous parsing, and conversion into useful structured formats.

Docutils grew out of Python Doc-SIG discussions around docstring processing. Goodger's history notes StructuredText's 1996 origins, his late-1999 encounter with it, a November 2000 first draft of a revised specification, a June 2001 project web site and first release, and the 2002 merger of the reStructuredText and Docstring Processing System projects into Docutils.

### Adoption history

Docutils became the reference implementation for reStructuredText and a foundation for Python documentation tooling. The FAQ describes support for standalone files, PEPs, Python docstrings, and client code such as Sphinx extensions, while Homebrew and PyPI packaging keep the command-line tools widely available.

### How it is used

Users run front-end tools to convert reStructuredText to HTML, LaTeX, man pages, ODT, XML, pseudoxml, and other formats, or call the `docutils` Python package as a library. Configuration can come from system, local, or user-level docutils config files.

### Why package nerds care

Docutils is package-nerd significant because it is infrastructure disguised as a text converter. It links Python docstring conventions, PEP publishing, Sphinx-era documentation, command-line document conversion, and a decades-long release history into one small but foundational package.

### Timeline

- 1996: StructuredText first released in the Zope ecosystem.
- 1999: David Goodger discovered StructuredText while looking for Python module documentation tooling.
- 2000: First reStructuredText draft posted to Python Doc-SIG.
- 2001: Project web site and first release rolled out.
- 2002: reStructuredText and Docstring Processing System projects merged and renamed Docutils.
- 2026: Docutils 0.23 listed in release notes and packaged by Homebrew.

### Related projects

- Docutils is related to StructuredText, Setext, Python PEP tooling, Sphinx, and the wider Python documentation ecosystem. Its FAQ explicitly points to Sphinx as client code using reStructuredText for Python auto-documentation.

### Sources

- <https://docutils.sourceforge.io/FAQ.html>
- <https://docutils.sourceforge.io/docs/ref/rst/introduction.html>
- <https://docutils.sourceforge.io/docs/ref/rst/history.html>
- <https://docutils.sourceforge.io/RELEASE-NOTES.html>
- <https://sourceforge.net/p/docutils/code/HEAD/tree>
- <https://formulae.brew.sh/api/formula/docutils.json>


## 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: /etc/docutils.conf, ./docutils.conf, ~/.docutils
## Source Database Details

- **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API
- **Tap:** homebrew/core
- **Full Name:** docutils
- **Version Scheme:** 0
- **Revision:** 0
- **Bottle Stable Root URL:** <https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core>
- **Deprecated:** no
- **Disabled:** no
- **Keg Only:** no
- **URL Keys:** stable

## Other Package-Manager Records

- Nix - docutils: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: docutils from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/master/pkgs/top-level/all-packages.nix
- zypper - python313-docutils - 0.22.4-1.2: normalized package name match | openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: python313-docutils from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst | Python Documentation Utilities | https://pypi.python.org/pypi/docutils/
- Nix - rst2html5: installed executable or alias match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/rs/rst2html5/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1


## 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.
- [python@3.14](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/python-3-14/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew.
- [rst-lint](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/rst-lint/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, python, restructuredtext.
- [doc8](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/doc8/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, restructuredtext.
- [halibut](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/halibut/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, text-processing.
- [restview](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/restview/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, restructuredtext.
- [txt2tags](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/txt2tags/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, python.
- [xml2rfc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/xml2rfc/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, python.
- [action-docs](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/action-docs/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation.
- [adr-tools](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/adr-tools/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation.
- [xml-coreutils](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/xml-coreutils/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, developer, developer-tools, processing, system.
- [omniorb](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/omniorb/) - Both packages touch the same language runtime or ecosystem. Shared terms: cli, developer, developer-tools, python, python-3-14.

## Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/docutils.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/docutils.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
