Automic VaultAutomic Vault

brew

Install ocamlbuild with Homebrew, apk, apt, pacman

Generic build tool for OCaml. Version 0.16.1 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install ocamlbuild

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add ocaml-ocamlbuild

Alpine Linux edge package indexes · ocaml-ocamlbuild · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org

Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install ocamlbuild

Debian stable package indexes · ocamlbuild · source: deb.debian.org

Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S ocamlbuild

Arch Linux sync databases · ocamlbuild · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com

overview

Package summary

Generic build tool for OCaml

Commands and aliases

  • ocamlbuild
  • ocamlbuild.byte
  • ocamlbuild.native

history

Project history and usage

ocamlbuild is the legacy OCaml build manager: a rule-based tool that automates compilation of OCaml libraries and programs with minimal project metadata. It predates Dune's dominance and remains packaged for older projects, tutorials, and build systems that still invoke ocamlbuild.

Project history

ocamlbuild was included in the OCaml compiler distribution from OCaml 3.10.0 in May 2007 through OCaml 4.02.3 in July 2015, according to the project's Changes file. OCaml 4.03 split ocamlbuild out as an independent project hosted at github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild, part of a broader effort to move tools out of the compiler distribution.

Adoption history

For years, ocamlbuild was the standard bundled answer for medium-sized OCaml projects that needed more automation than raw Makefiles. The upstream README documents the later ecosystem shift: between January and June 2019, 77 newly released public OCaml packages used ocamlbuild while 544 used Dune.

How it is used

Developers use ocamlbuild by asking it to build targets such as native executables, bytecode executables, or libraries; it infers dependencies and applies built-in OCaml compilation rules. More complex projects customize behavior with small text files and OCaml plugin code.

Why package nerds care

ocamlbuild is significant because it shows the OCaml toolchain's unbundling path. A tool that used to ship with the compiler became an opam and distro package, so package managers had to make explicit what older compiler installations provided implicitly.

Timeline

  • 2007-05: OCaml 3.10.0 began shipping ocamlbuild in the compiler distribution.
  • 2015-07: OCaml 4.02.3 was the last compiler release in the bundled ocamlbuild period documented by the ocamlbuild Changes file.
  • 2016: OCaml 4.03 split ocamlbuild into an independent project.
  • 2019-01 to 2019-06: The ocamlbuild README recorded 77 new public packages using ocamlbuild versus 544 using Dune.
  • 2025-02-13: The GitHub releases page lists OCamlbuild 0.16.1.

Related projects

  • Dune is the successor build system recommended by the ocamlbuild README for new projects. ocamlfind/findlib integrates with ocamlbuild-era projects by supplying package flags, while opam installs ocamlbuild as a separate package for compiler switches that need it.

security posture

Risk level: yellow

generalized runtime or code generation signal.

Risk classifier

yellow risk · medium confidence · runtime

Why

  • generalized runtime or code generation signal

Signals

  • text:build tool

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
  • Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 8 platform targets.
  • Installs with 1 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.

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
ocamlbuildcliglobal executable
ocamlbuild.bytecliglobal executable
ocamlbuild.nativecliglobal 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 version0.16.1
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamcurrent
latest detected0.16.1

https://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild

  • infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:ocamlbuild
Version0.16.1
Package managerHomebrew
Package manager pagehttps://formulae.brew.sh/formula/ocamlbuild
Homepagehttps://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild
Repositoryhttps://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild
Upstream docshttps://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild#readme
LicenseLGPL-2.0-only WITH OCaml-LGPL-linking-exception
Source archivehttps://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild/archive/refs/tags/0.16.1.tar.gz
Dependenciesocaml
Bottleavailable (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, sonoma, ventura, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-installnot defined
Servicenone declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source DatabaseHomebrew formula API
Taphomebrew/core
Full Nameocamlbuild
Version Scheme0
Revision0
Head VersionHEAD
Bottle Stable Root URLhttps://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecatedno
Disabledno
Keg Onlyno
URL Keys
  • head
  • stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Debian apt95%

ocamlbuild 0.16.1-1+b1

Build tool for building OCaml libraries and programs

https://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild/

sudo apt install ocamlbuild
  • Section: ocaml
  • Architecture: amd64
  • Source Package: ocamlbuild
  • 3 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ocamlbuild
Debian stable package indexes · deb.debian.org · Debian stable package indexes: ocamlbuild from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz
Ubuntu apt95%

ocamlbuild 0.14.3-1

Build tool for building OCaml libraries and programs

https://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild/

sudo apt install ocamlbuild
  • Section: universe/ocaml
  • Architecture: amd64
  • 3 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ocamlbuild
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · archive.ubuntu.com · Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: ocamlbuild from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz
apk95%

ocaml-ocamlbuild 0.14.1-r5

Generic build tool with built-in rules for building OCaml library and programs (library & development files)

https://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild

sudo apk add ocaml-ocamlbuild
  • License: LGPL-2.0-or-later WITH OCaml-LGPL-linking-exception
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: ocamlbuild
  • 1 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ocamlbuild
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: ocaml-ocamlbuild from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
apk95%

ocamlbuild 0.14.1-r5

Generic build tool with built-in rules for building OCaml library and programs

https://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild

sudo apk add ocamlbuild
  • License: LGPL-2.0-or-later WITH OCaml-LGPL-linking-exception
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: ocamlbuild
  • 1 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ocamlbuild
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: ocamlbuild from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
apk95%

ocamlbuild-doc 0.14.1-r5

Generic build tool with built-in rules for building OCaml library and programs (documentation)

https://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild

sudo apk add ocamlbuild-doc
  • License: LGPL-2.0-or-later WITH OCaml-LGPL-linking-exception
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: ocamlbuild
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ocamlbuild
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: ocamlbuild-doc from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
pacman95%

ocamlbuild 0.16.1-5

Build tool that has built-in rules for building OCaml libraries and programs

https://github.com/ocaml/ocamlbuild

sudo pacman -S ocamlbuild
  • License: GPL-2.0-only
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • 2 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ocamlbuild
Arch Linux sync databases · geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com · Arch Linux sync databases: ocamlbuild from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

Related tools

  • ocamlRuntime dependency declared by Homebrew.

Same workflow

  • antShares av.db curated category or tags: build-tool, build-tools, cli, developer-tools.
  • bmakeShares av.db curated category or tags: build-system, build-tools, cli, developer-tools.
  • cmakeShares av.db curated category or tags: build-system, build-tools, cli, developer-tools.
  • dubShares av.db curated category or tags: build-tool, build-tools, cli, developer-tools.
  • fobisShares av.db curated category or tags: build-tool, build-tools, cli, developer-tools.
  • fpmShares av.db curated category or tags: build-system, build-tools, cli, developer-tools.

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.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • Nucleus package database
  • av.db category and tag curation
  • cross-ecosystem install command graph
  • curated package history
  • external package-manager database matches
  • package relationship graph
  • package version freshness
  • package-page enrichment