# Install help2man with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper Automatically generate simple man pages. Version 1.49.3 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-22. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:help2man ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install help2man ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install help2man ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: textproc/help2man/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add help2man ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: help2man from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/main/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install help2man ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: help2man from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install help2man ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: help2man from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#help2man ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/he/help2man/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - pacman (92%): ```sh sudo pacman -S help2man ``` Evidence: Arch Linux sync databases: help2man from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz - zypper (92%): ```sh sudo zypper install help2man ``` Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: help2man from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:help2man - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 1.49.3 - **Source summary:** Automatically generate simple man pages - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** GPL-3.0-or-later - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-06-22T14:03:42-07:00 - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - help2man (cli) - help2man (alias) ## Dependencies - gettext ## Uses from macOS - perl ## 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: 1.49.3 - Package-manager updated: 2026-06-22 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/ - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage GNU help2man generates simple manual pages from a program's `--help` and `--version` output. It exists for the Unix packaging gap where a program has useful command-line help or Texinfo documentation, but distributors and users still expect a traditional section-1 man page. ### Project history help2man was written by Brendan O'Dea. The 1.021 README from April 2000 describes the tool as a script for creating simple man pages from help and version output, and the 1.022 NEWS entry in July 2000 says help2man became an official GNU program. The GNU README explains the historical reason for the tool: much GNU documentation lived in Info format, while man pages remained expected in Unix environments. help2man provided a way to generate placeholder or useful man pages from the executable itself rather than maintaining a separate roff document by hand. Over time the project added options for source/manual headers, localized manual pages, gettext support, Translation Project integration, GPLv3 licensing, reproducible-build date handling through `SOURCE_DATE_EPOCH`, and support for modern version-string patterns. ### Adoption history help2man became common in GNU and distro build systems because it solved a mundane packaging requirement with little maintenance burden. It is packaged across Homebrew, Debian, Fedora, Arch, Alpine, MacPorts, Nix, and other systems, which matches its role as a build-time documentation utility rather than an end-user application. Its adoption is strongly tied to Autotools-era release culture: generated tarballs often include man pages, while maintainers can derive them from command output during release preparation or packaging. ### How it is used The core command is `help2man [OPTION]... EXECUTABLE`; help2man runs the target program's help and version options, parses the output, and emits a manual page. Options customize the NAME paragraph, section, source, manual title, include snippets, locale, and the exact help/version flags. The tool works best for commands whose `--help` output follows GNU-style conventions. For richer pages, maintainers add include files or post-process generated sections rather than writing the whole man page manually. ### Why package nerds care help2man is a classic package-maintainer tool: it turns CLI self-description into a distro-friendly artifact. That makes it important in build recipes, release scripts, and reproducible packaging, even though users rarely invoke it directly after installation. It also reflects a GNU documentation compromise. Texinfo may be the canonical manual format for many GNU tools, but package managers, lint tools, and Unix users still reward having a man page installed in the expected location. ### Timeline - 2000: help2man 1.021 appeared on GNU FTP, and 1.022 became an official GNU program. - 2001: Options were added for source/manual headers and nonstandard help/version flags. - 2003: Localized manual-page support was added. - 2009: The project updated to GPLv3 and expanded translation support. - 2015: `SOURCE_DATE_EPOCH` support was added for reproducible generated pages. - 2022: Version 1.49 documented continued maintenance of parsing, translation, and encoding behavior. ### Related projects - GNU Texinfo is the documentation ecosystem help2man complements. - Autoconf, Automake, and other GNU build tools commonly coexist with help2man in release toolchains. - Downstream package managers use help2man as a build-time dependency when upstream projects generate man pages. ### 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:** help2man - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 4 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - help2man - 1.49.3: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: help2man from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Automatic manpage generator - Nix - help2man: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/he/help2man/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - Ubuntu apt - help2man - 1.49.3: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: help2man from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Automatic manpage generator - apk - help2man - 1.49.3-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: help2man from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/main/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Create simple man pages from --help output | https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man - apk - help2man-doc - 1.49.3-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: help2man-doc from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/main/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Create simple man pages from --help output (documentation) | https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man - dnf - help2man - 1.49.3-9.fc44: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: help2man from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Create simple man pages from --help output | https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/ - pacman - help2man - 1.49.3-2: normalized package name match | Arch Linux sync databases: help2man from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz | Conversion tool to create man files | https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/ - zypper - help2man - 1.49.3-1.13: normalized package name match | openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: help2man from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst | Script for generating man pages from --help output | https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/ - zypper - help2man-lang - 1.49.3-1.13: normalized package name match | openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: help2man-lang from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst | Translations for package help2man | https://www.gnu.org/software/help2man/ - MacPorts - help2man: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: textproc/help2man/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. - [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. - [Networking and protocol packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/networking-protocol-tools/) - Matched network, protocol, or remote-service metadata. - [gettext](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gettext/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [fatsort](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/fatsort/) - Popular package that depends on this formula. - [cppman](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cppman/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, manual-pages. - [dashing](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/dashing/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, documentation-generator. - [docbook2x](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/docbook2x/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, manpages. - [gi-docgen](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gi-docgen/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, documentation-generator. - [helm-docs](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/helm-docs/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, documentation-generator. - [jsdoc3](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/jsdoc3/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, documentation-generator. - [naturaldocs](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/naturaldocs/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, documentation-generator. - [protoc-gen-doc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/protoc-gen-doc/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, documentation, documentation-generator. - [texinfo](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/texinfo/) - Local metadata places this package in an adjacent workflow. Shared terms: cli, developer, developer-tools, documentation, gnu. - [enscript](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/enscript/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, developer, developer-tools, gettext, gnu. - [gawk](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gawk/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, developer, developer-tools, gettext, gnu. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/help2man.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/help2man.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