macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install nblocal Homebrew formula metadata
MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install nbMacPorts ports tree · office/nb/Portfile · source: api.github.com
brew
Install nb with Homebrew, apk, MacPorts, Nix
Command-line and local web note-taking, bookmarking, and archiving. Version 7.25.4 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-14.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add nbAlpine Linux edge package indexes · nb · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#nbnixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/nb/nb/package.nix · source: api.github.com
overview
Package summary
Command-line and local web note-taking, bookmarking, and archiving
Project links
Commands and aliases
- bookmark
- nb
history
Project history and usage
nb is a shell-script personal knowledge tool: notes, bookmarks, archives, todos, wiki-style links, search, encryption, Git-backed version history, and sync wrapped in one command-line and local-web interface.
Project history
The GitHub repository was created on 2016-01-12. The project presents itself as a portable, vendor-independent Unix tool rather than a hosted notes service: data lives in plain text formats such as Markdown, Org, LaTeX, and AsciiDoc, and the implementation is deliberately packaged as a single portable script with optional enhancements.
Its design grew around composability with existing command-line habits. The README emphasizes use with Vim, Emacs, VS Code, Sublime Text, Helix, micro, terminal browsers, GUI browsers, Git, Pandoc, OpenSSL/GPG encryption, and standard Unix environments including macOS and Windows via WSL, MSYS, and Cygwin.
Adoption history
GitHub API data retrieved on 2026-07-01 showed 8,266 stars and 252 forks. Homebrew Formulae data for the same retrieval showed version 7.25.4 and 2,815 installs over the prior 365 days. The npm package nb.sh was created on 2020-06-17 and the npm downloads API reported 1,450 downloads for 2026-05-30 through 2026-06-28.
The package sits in the command-line PKM and plain-text productivity niche: large enough to be packaged by common package managers and discussed by terminal-tool users, but still most useful to people who already want their notes and bookmarks as files rather than SaaS records.
How it is used
Package nerds use nb as a local-first notebook and bookmark database: add notes from the terminal, save URLs as cleaned Markdown, search cached page text with regular expressions, tag and pin items, and let Git record revisions and synchronize notebooks.
A typical setup is intentionally boring: install nb, keep ~/.nbrc for preferences, point it at an editor, and optionally add Pandoc, ripgrep/ag/grep, browser helpers, GPG/OpenSSL, and remote Git sync as the workflow grows.
Why package nerds care
nb is interesting because it is not a new storage backend. It packages a familiar Unix stack into a cohesive notes/bookmarks/archive workflow while keeping the escape hatch obvious: the data remains ordinary files under Git.
Timeline
- 2016-01-12: xwmx/nb repository created on GitHub.
- 2020-06-17: nb.sh package created on npm.
- 2026-04-28: nb 7.25.4 release published on GitHub.
- 2026-07-01: Homebrew Formulae reported stable version 7.25.4.
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 1 platform targets.
- Installs with 6 runtime dependencies.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
local files
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
Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.
- Unix
~/.nbrc
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
bookmark | cli | global executable | |
nb | 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 generated2026-07-08
manager version7.25.4
manager updated2026-06-14
local dataok
upstreamcurrent
latest detected7.25.4
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:nb |
|---|---|
| Version | 7.25.4 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/nb |
| Homepage | https://xwmx.github.io/nb |
| Repository | https://github.com/xwmx/nb |
| Upstream docs | https://github.com/xwmx/nb#readme |
| License | AGPL-3.0-or-later |
| Source archive | https://github.com/xwmx/nb/archive/refs/tags/7.25.4.tar.gz |
| Last updated | 2026-06-14T05:08:25Z |
| Pulse | updated |
| Dependencies | bat, nmap, pandoc, ripgrep, tig, w3m |
| Bottle | available (on all) |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew formula API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/core |
| Full Name | nb |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Head Version | HEAD |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
Nix95%
nb
nix profile install nixpkgs#nb- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
apk95%
nb 7.24.1-r0
Command line note-taking, bookmarking, archiving, and knowledge base application
sudo apk add nb- License: AGPL-3.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: nb
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
apk95%
nb-bash-completion 7.24.1-r0
Bash completions for nb
sudo apk add nb-bash-completion- License: AGPL-3.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: nb
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
apk95%
nb-doc 7.24.1-r0
Command line note-taking, bookmarking, archiving, and knowledge base application (documentation)
sudo apk add nb-doc- License: AGPL-3.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: nb
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
apk95%
nb-fish-completion 7.24.1-r0
Fish completions for nb
sudo apk add nb-fish-completion- License: AGPL-3.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: nb
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
apk95%
nb-full 7.24.1-r0
More utilities that integrate with nb
sudo apk add nb-full- License: AGPL-3.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: nb
- 1 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
apk95%
nb-zsh-completion 7.24.1-r0
Zsh completions for nb
sudo apk add nb-zsh-completion- License: AGPL-3.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: nb
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
MacPorts95%
nb
sudo port install nb- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Nb
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 configuration and credential file locations
- curated package history
- external package-manager database matches
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment