# Install gwyddion with Homebrew, apt, MacPorts, Nix Scanning Probe Microscopy visualization and analysis tool. Version 2.71 via Homebrew; verified 2026-04-15. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:gwyddion ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install gwyddion ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install gwyddion ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: science/gwyddion/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install gwyddion ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: gwyddion from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#gwyddion ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/gw/gwyddion/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:gwyddion - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 2.71 - **Source summary:** Scanning Probe Microscopy visualization and analysis tool - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** GPL-2.0-or-later - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-04-15T15:24:20Z - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - gwyddion (cli) - gwyddion-thumbnailer (cli) - gwyddion (alias) - gwyddion-thumbnailer (alias) ## Dependencies - at-spi2-core - cairo - fftw - gdk-pixbuf - gettext - glib - gtk+ - harfbuzz - libpng - libxml2 - libzip - pango - zstd ## Build dependencies - autoconf - automake - gtk-doc - libtool - pkgconf ## Uses from macOS - bzip2 ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 2.71 - Package-manager updated: 2026-04-15 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://gwyddion.net/ - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage Gwyddion is a free software application and library set for scanning probe microscopy data visualization and analysis. In package-manager culture it sits in the small but important class of specialist scientific desktop tools that are distributed like Unix software: source tarballs, command-line helpers, man pages, distribution packages, and optional scripting support around a GUI core. ### Project history The project was public by 2004, when its news log records Gwyddion 1.6 and the registration of Gwyddion as a SourceForge project with its CVS repository moved there. Development moved from CVS to Subversion in 2006, and version 2.0 was announced in September 2006 as the start of a new stable series. Gwyddion evolved from a GTK-based SPM data viewer into a broad analysis workbench. The project documentation includes a user guide, Unix manual pages for Gwyddion commands, Python scripting material, and developer API references for libraries such as libgwyddion, libgwyprocess, libgwydraw, libgwydgets, libgwymodule, and libgwyapp. The news archive also shows adjacent tooling such as gwydump and libgwyfile, reflecting a project that treats its native GWY data format and reusable libraries as part of the ecosystem. The 2010s and 2020s brought steady domain-specific growth rather than a rewrite-driven history. The project news highlights support for volume data as a first-class type in 2013, a standalone libgwyfile effort in 2014, continuing file-format support improvements, curve maps, XYZ and volume processing modules, and a 3.x development line focused on GTK and internal modernization. ### Adoption history Gwyddion was packaged early by Unix-like systems used by scientific users. The project news records Gentoo adding it to Portage in 2005 and FreeBSD accepting a science/gwyddion port in 2006. The official download page later documented availability through Ubuntu universe, Gentoo, Arch AUR, OpenSuSE science repositories, MacPorts, Fink, Homebrew, Flatpak, and Windows installers. The supplied package-manager facts show the same cross-distribution footprint from the package index side: Homebrew, Debian, Ubuntu, MacPorts, and Nix all carry packages named gwyddion. That mix is significant because SPM researchers often need the same tool on lab Windows machines, Linux workstations, and macOS laptops. ### How it is used Gwyddion is used to open, inspect, process, measure, and export scanning probe microscopy data such as AFM, STM, MFM, SNOM/NSOM, and related surface-measurement formats. Its package includes the gwyddion GUI and gwyddion-thumbnailer, and its documentation also exposes command manual pages, scripting, plug-in, and library interfaces for automated or extensible workflows. The project is especially practical for package-managed scientific workflows because it supports many vendor and research data formats while keeping analysis reproducible through documented modules, a native GWY format, and supporting tools such as gwydump and libgwyfile. ### Why package nerds care Gwyddion matters to package nerds because it is a niche scientific application with all the classic packaging pressure points: GTK and scientific-library dependencies, GUI and command-line entry points, data files, documentation, scripting hooks, optional platform behavior, and frequent support for new instrument file formats. It is also a useful example of a long-lived SourceForge-hosted scientific project that did not disappear when centralized forge fashion changed. The continued Subversion repository, signed source tarballs, distro package notes, and multi-platform binaries make it a good case study in durable scientific software distribution. ### Timeline - 2004: Gwyddion 1.6 was released and the project was registered on SourceForge with a public CVS repository. - 2005: Gentoo added Gwyddion to Portage; version 1.13 added Mac OS X support. - 2006: Gwyddion moved from CVS to Subversion; version 2.0 began a new stable series; FreeBSD accepted a science/gwyddion port. - 2007: Version 2.7 and Windows executables were distributed through the project site. - 2013: Version 2.32 added volume data as a first-class data type. - 2014: Work started on libgwyfile, a small embeddable library for reading and writing GWY files. - 2022: SourceForge recognized the project with an Open Source Excellence award. - 2024: Version 3.0 was published as a development milestone for GTK and internal modernization. ### Related projects - Gwyddion is related to gwydump, libgwyfile, and Gwyscope in its own project orbit. It also lives alongside microscopy and scientific-analysis packages that appear in distribution science categories, while its GTK, Python scripting, and library documentation connect it to the broader Unix desktop and scientific packaging stack. ### Sources - - - - - ## Security Notes narrow executable package without higher-risk signals. - **Geiger risk:** green / low - narrow executable package without higher-risk signals ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** gwyddion - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Head Version:** HEAD - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** head, stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - gwyddion - 2.67-1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: gwyddion from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Scanning Probe Microscopy visualization and analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Debian apt - gwyddion-common - 2.67-1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: gwyddion-common from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | architecture-independent files for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Debian apt - libgwyddion2-0t64 - 2.67-1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libgwyddion2-0t64 from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | libraries for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Debian apt - libgwyddion20-dev - 2.67-1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libgwyddion20-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | header files for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Debian apt - libgwyddion20-doc - 2.67-1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libgwyddion20-doc from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | HTML library API documentation for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Nix - gwyddion: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/gw/gwyddion/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - Ubuntu apt - gwyddion - 2.64-1.1build3: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: gwyddion from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Scanning Probe Microscopy visualization and analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Ubuntu apt - gwyddion-common - 2.64-1.1build3: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: gwyddion-common from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | architecture-independent files for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Ubuntu apt - libgwyddion2-0t64 - 2.64-1.1build3: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libgwyddion2-0t64 from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | libraries for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Ubuntu apt - libgwyddion20-dev - 2.64-1.1build3: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libgwyddion20-dev from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | header files for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - Ubuntu apt - libgwyddion20-doc - 2.64-1.1build3: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libgwyddion20-doc from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | HTML library API documentation for Gwyddion SPM analysis tool | http://gwyddion.net/ - MacPorts - gwyddion: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: science/gwyddion/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Related links - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Networking and protocol packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/networking-protocol-tools/) - Matched network, protocol, or remote-service metadata. - [Media and graphics packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/media-graphics-tools/) - Matched media, image, audio, video, or graphics metadata. - [Database and data packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/database-data-tools/) - Matched database, SQL, migration, or data-store metadata. - [cairo](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cairo/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [fftw](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/fftw/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [gdk-pixbuf](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gdk-pixbuf/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [gettext](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gettext/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [glib](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/glib/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [gtk+](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gtk/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [harfbuzz](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/harfbuzz/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [autoconf](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/autoconf/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [automake](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/automake/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [gtk-doc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gtk-doc/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [libtool](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/libtool/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [openslide](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openslide/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, microscopy, science. - [gnuastro](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gnuastro/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, data-analysis, science. - [healpix](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/healpix/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, data-analysis, science. - [qsoas](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/qsoas/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, data-analysis, science. - [root](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/root/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, data-analysis, science. - [snakemake](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/snakemake/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, data-analysis, science. - [xlispstat](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/xlispstat/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, data-analysis, science. - [gmt](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gmt/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, data-visualization, science. - [gabedit](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gabedit/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: at-spi2-core, cairo, cli, core, gdk. - [gpredict](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gpredict/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: at-spi2-core, cairo, cli, core, gdk. - [grsync](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/grsync/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: at-spi2-core, cairo, cli, core, gdk. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/gwyddion.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/gwyddion.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - 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