Install openssl@3.0 with Homebrew, apk, chocolatey, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, scoop, winget, zypper

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

No executable aliases were found in the local package database.

Project history

OpenSSL traces back to SSLeay, the open-source SSL library by Eric A. Young and Tim J. Hudson. In December 1998, after Young and Hudson moved to RSA and SSLeay's future became uncertain, Mark Cox, Ralf Engelschall, Stephen Henson, Ben Laurie, and Paul Sutton organized a successor project, changed the planned name from OpenTLS to OpenSSL, and released OpenSSL 0.9.1c on December 23, 1998.

For two decades OpenSSL became a central TLS and cryptography dependency for web servers, language runtimes, package managers, mail software, VPNs, databases, and countless command-line workflows. The 2014 Heartbleed vulnerability exposed how much internet infrastructure depended on a small maintenance team and led to governance, funding, and foundation changes around the project.

OpenSSL 3.0, released on September 7, 2021, was a major architectural and licensing reset. The migration guide highlights the switch from the dual OpenSSL/SSLeay licenses to Apache License 2.0, the provider model for algorithm implementations, FIPS provider support, and formal deprecation of many low-level cryptographic APIs in favor of high-level EVP APIs.

Adoption history

OpenSSL 3.0 became the compatibility anchor for the OpenSSL 3 generation because it preserved source compatibility for many 1.1.1 applications while requiring recompilation and, in some cases, API migration. Distributions and package managers adopted it as the route from OpenSSL 1.1.1 into the provider-based OpenSSL architecture.

Homebrew's `openssl@3.0` is keg-only and versioned, which matters for build reproducibility: a formula can link to the 3.0 branch without being silently moved to newer OpenSSL 3 minor releases. The cited Homebrew page lists a 2026-09-07 deprecation date and stable version 3.0.21.

How it is used

Developers use OpenSSL 3.0 through C APIs in libssl/libcrypto, through language bindings that wrap those libraries, and through the `openssl` CLI for certificates, keys, CSRs, testing TLS endpoints, hashing, signing, and format conversion. The 3.0 branch adds provider configuration and FIPS-module choices to those familiar workflows.

Packagers use `openssl@3.0` when an application has been certified, tested, or constrained against the 3.0 line. The branch is less about new features and more about maintaining predictable OpenSSL 3 behavior while security fixes continue for that line.

Why package nerds care

OpenSSL 3.0 is a packaging landmark because it changed more than a version number. The provider architecture, FIPS integration, license switch, and low-level API deprecations affected build flags, downstream patches, runtime configuration paths, and compatibility promises across huge dependency graphs.

The `openssl@3.0` formula is package-manager archaeology in action: even after newer OpenSSL 3 branches exist, the old branch remains packaged because TLS libraries are sticky dependencies and some consumers need exact branch semantics.

Timeline

• December 23, 1998: OpenSSL 0.9.1c is released.
• 2014: Heartbleed triggers governance and funding changes around OpenSSL.
• September 7, 2021: OpenSSL 3.0.0 is released.
• 2021 onward: OpenSSL 3.0 receives security and bug-fix releases in its own series.
• 2026: Homebrew lists `openssl@3.0` as a keg-only formula with stable version 3.0.21 and a 2026-09-07 deprecation date.

Related projects

• OpenSSL descends from SSLeay and competes or coexists with LibreSSL, BoringSSL, AWS-LC, GnuTLS, NSS, wolfSSL, and platform TLS libraries. OpenSSH, curl, web servers, programming-language runtimes, and certificate tooling are among the downstream ecosystems affected by OpenSSL branch choices.

Sources

• https://docs.openssl.org/3.0/man7/migration_guide/
• https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/openssl@3.0
• https://github.com/openssl/openssl
• https://openssl-library.org/news/openssl-3.0-notes/
• https://openssl-library.org/news/timeline/
• https://openssl-library.org/post/2018-12-20-20years/index.html
• https://openssl.foundation/about/history