macOS
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brew install ems-flasherlocal Homebrew formula metadata
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Install ems-flasher with Homebrew
Software for flashing the EMS Gameboy USB cart. Version 0.03 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Software for flashing the EMS Gameboy USB cart
Project links
Commands and aliases
- ems-flasher
history
Project history and usage
ems-flasher is a command-line utility for reading and writing the EMS Game Boy USB cartridge from Mac OS X, Linux, and other libusb-capable systems. It exists because the original cartridge software was Windows-only.
Project history
The official page describes the EMS USB cartridge as useful hardware for Game Boy development and play, then explains the gap: the supplied software only worked on Windows. ems-flasher was created as portable flasher software for Linux, Mac OS X, and similar systems.
The project page shows an old-school workflow: build with make, run the binary directly, browse the gitweb repository, and consult project-hosted documentation and FAQ pages. The homepage was last updated in January 2013, after the small 2011 release series.
Adoption history
Adoption was niche but concrete. The homepage lists testing on Linux, Mac OS X, OpenBSD, and FreeBSD, and notes that FreeBSD carried it in the ports tree as comms/ems-flasher. Credits mention contributors for Mac build help, SRAM reverse engineering, OpenBSD testing, device detection, and FreeBSD port maintenance.
How it is used
Users flash ROMs with a write flag, dump ROM or SRAM contents with read mode, select banks, print ROM headers, and increase output with verbose mode. That made it useful for retro development, save backup, and moving homebrew or test ROMs onto real Game Boy-compatible cartridge hardware.
Why package nerds care
ems-flasher is a classic tiny hardware package: the value is not a big ecosystem, but keeping one specific USB cartridge usable from Unix-like systems. It is exactly the kind of tool package managers preserve for retro-computing and hardware-repair workflows.
Timeline
- 2011-03-21: Version 0.01 released.
- 2011-03-24: Version 0.02 released.
- 2011-08-25: Version 0.03 released and listed as the latest version.
- 2013-01: Official pages show their last update dates.
Related projects
- Related areas include the EMS Game Boy USB cartridge, libusb-based hardware access, the FreeBSD comms/ems-flasher port, and Game Boy homebrew or cartridge backup tooling.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: green
narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.
Risk classifier
green risk · low confidence · appliance
Why
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals
Signals
- metadata:no-higher-risk-signals
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 13 platform targets.
- Installs with 1 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.
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
ems-flasher | 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 generated2026-07-10
manager version0.03
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
https://lacklustre.net/projects/ems-flasher/
- infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://lacklustre.net/projects/ems-flasher/none confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:ems-flasher |
|---|---|
| Version | 0.03 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/ems-flasher |
| Homepage | https://lacklustre.net/projects/ems-flasher/ |
| Repository | https://lacklustre.net/gitweb?p=ems-flasher |
| Upstream docs | https://lacklustre.net/projects/ems-flasher |
| License | MIT |
| Source archive | https://lacklustre.net/projects/ems-flasher/ems-flasher-0.03.tgz |
| Dependencies | libusb |
| Build dependencies | pkgconf |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_big_sur, arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, catalina, monterey, sonoma, ventura, 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 | ems-flasher |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
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 package history
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment