install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install openstackclient

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#openstackclient

nixpkgs package indexes · openstackclient · source: raw.githubusercontent.com

overview

Package summary

Command-line client for OpenStack

Project links

Commands and aliases

openstack

history

Project history and usage

OpenStackClient, also packaged as `python-openstackclient`, is the unified `openstack` command-line interface for OpenStack clouds. It brings commands for services such as Compute, Identity, Image, Network, Object Store, and Block Storage into one command structure, replacing the older habit of juggling service-specific CLIs such as `nova`, `glance`, and `keystone`.

Project history

OpenStack’s early client experience mirrored its service architecture: each major project shipped its own Python client and CLI. The UnifiedCLI proposal documented the pain of inconsistent commands, options, and terminology, and proposed a single OpenStack CLI that reused existing client modules where possible rather than duplicating every REST implementation.

The `python-openstackclient` project turned that design goal into the `openstack` binary. Its documentation states the primary goal as a unified shell command structure and common language for OpenStack operations, with additional service APIs available through plugins.

Adoption history

OpenStackClient became the operator-facing CLI because it matched how cloud administrators and users actually work: they create projects, images, networks, volumes, servers, users, roles, and quotas across service boundaries. OpenStack release notes track OpenStackClient versions alongside OpenStack named releases, emphasizing cross-release compatibility instead of a one-client-per-cloud-version model.

Distributions and package managers package it as a Python application because OpenStack deployments often rely on scripted administration. Debian describes it as a thin wrapper over the stock Python service client modules, which captures its role as a unifying front end over the OpenStack client ecosystem.

How it is used

Operators configure authentication through environment variables, command-line options, or `clouds.yaml`, then use `openstack` commands for day-to-day cloud administration and automation. Output format options such as table, JSON, YAML, CSV, and value-oriented output make it useful both for humans and scripts.

The CLI is also a compatibility layer for OpenStack documentation and support: operational runbooks can say `openstack server list` or `openstack network create` without teaching users which legacy service-specific binary owns each resource.

Why package nerds care

The package is interesting because it is less a standalone tool than a negotiated interface across a large plugin-heavy cloud platform. Its dependency graph, Python compatibility, OpenStackSDK integration, and release-series mapping matter to anyone packaging private-cloud tooling.

Timeline

2010: OpenStack began as an open-source cloud platform, creating the multi-service client problem that OpenStackClient later addressed.
2010s: the UnifiedCLI design documented the plan for a single OpenStack command structure over service-specific clients.
2014: OpenStack Juno-era packaging used OpenStackClient 0.4.1, showing the tool’s early place in named OpenStack release cycles.
2023: Antelope/2023.1 release notes mapped OpenStackClient 6.1.0 to that OpenStack release.

Related projects

Related packages include OpenStackSDK and service clients such as python-novaclient, python-glanceclient, python-cinderclient, python-neutronclient, and python-keystoneclient. OpenStackClient sits above them as the consistent user-facing shell.

Sources

security posture

No protected-tool coverage found yet

No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for openstackclient. Nucleus package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL.

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
Installs with 5 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: ~/.config/openstack/clouds.yaml~/.config/openstack/secure.yaml

Credential files

Credential-bearing paths to review before unattended agent runs.

Unix: ~/.config/openstack/clouds.yaml~/.config/openstack/secure.yaml

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`openstack`	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 version10.1.0

manager updated2026-06-20

local dataok

upstreamnot checked

latest detectednot detected

https://openstack.org

infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://openstack.orgnone confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:openstackclient
Version	10.1.0
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/openstackclient
Homepage	https://openstack.org
Repository	https://opendev.org/openstack/python-openstackclient
Upstream docs	https://docs.openstack.org/python-openstackclient/latest
License	Apache-2.0
Source archive	https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/84/bb/597fc8c39fe593e43089b7eb035b40f5df44c73e4afad3fb8a6163d51010/python_openstackclient-10.1.0.tar.gz
Last updated	2026-06-20T11:21:11Z
Pulse	updated
Dependencies	certifi, cryptography, libyaml, python@3.14, rpds-py
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	openstackclient
Version Scheme	0
Revision	1
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	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.

Nix95%

openstackclient

nix profile install nixpkgs#openstackclient

normalized package name match
Matched by: Openstackclient

nixpkgs package indexes · raw.githubusercontent.com · nixpkgs package indexes: openstackclient from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/master/pkgs/top-level/all-packages.nix

package graph

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

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.

combined/openstackclient.yml

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

Install openstackclient with Homebrew, Nix