Install faas-cli with Homebrew, chocolatey, Nix, scoop

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• faas
• faas-cli

Project history

The faas-cli repository was created in April 2017 as the OpenFaaS command-line entry point. The project README describes it as the official CLI for OpenFaaS and explains the original core workflow: write a handler, pick a language template, and let the CLI build a Docker image and deploy the function.

As OpenFaaS matured, faas-cli became the stable user-facing tool around a broader platform. Its command set grew from the basic new, build, push, deploy, remove, and invoke lifecycle into template stores, secrets, registry login, multi-arch publishing, and OpenFaaS Pro authentication flows.

The CLI also reflects OpenFaaS's packaging strategy. Official installation docs support a curl installer, Homebrew, Windows binaries, Chocolatey, Scoop, and direct release downloads, so the same tool fits local demos, CI pipelines, and workstation use.

Adoption history

OpenFaaS adoption made faas-cli important because nearly every getting-started path goes through it. The README shows Homebrew installation, a `faas` alias, and commands for creating functions from templates, while the official install docs document cross-platform packaging for macOS, Linux, and Windows.

The CLI's adoption is tied to the OpenFaaS gateway model: developers log in to a gateway, point the CLI at `OPENFAAS_URL` or a gateway flag, then deploy function definitions from YAML. That made it a bridge between local source trees, Docker registries, and Kubernetes or other OpenFaaS providers.

How it is used

Typical use starts with `faas-cli new` to scaffold a function from a language template, then `faas-cli up` as the shorthand for build, push, and deploy. Operators use `faas-cli login`, `secret`, `store`, `invoke`, `remove`, and gateway flags or environment variables to work with local or remote OpenFaaS installations.

The CLI is also a packaging surface for templates. Official docs describe pulling templates from remote Git repositories and using a template store for official, incubator, and community templates, which is why the tool matters beyond simply sending API calls to a gateway.

Why package nerds care

For package people, faas-cli is a clean example of a Go-based cloud CLI distributed through many channels while keeping a curl installer and release binaries as the canonical path. It also carries the familiar package-manager tension noted by its README: Homebrew is updated regularly, but may not always be the newest minor release.

Its command alias matters too. Installing the package gives both `faas-cli` and `faas`, which is the sort of executable naming detail that package formulas, shell completions, and docs all have to keep aligned.

Timeline

• 2017: The faas-cli repository is created as the OpenFaaS CLI.
• 2020: The CLI includes release entries for list output improvements and gateway/provider serialization updates.
• 2021: Release entries add registry-login and secrets whitespace handling.
• 2026: The README continues to document core build, deploy, template, secret, publish, and Pro auth commands.

Related projects

• OpenFaaS is the serverless platform that faas-cli targets.
• openfaas/templates provides the default language templates used by `faas-cli new` and `faas-cli template pull`.

Sources

• https://api.github.com/repos/openfaas/faas-cli
• https://github.com/openfaas/faas-cli
• https://github.com/openfaas/faas-cli/blob/master/README.md
• https://docs.openfaas.com/cli/install
• https://github.com/openfaas/faas-cli/releases