# Install openvdb with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper Sparse volumetric data processing toolkit. Version 13.0.0 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:openvdb ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install openvdb ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install openvdb ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: graphics/openvdb/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add openvdb ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: openvdb from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install libnanovdb-dev ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: libnanovdb-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install openvdb ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: openvdb 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#openvdb ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/op/openvdb/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - pacman (92%): ```sh sudo pacman -S openvdb ``` Evidence: Arch Linux sync databases: openvdb from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz - zypper (92%): ```sh sudo zypper install libopenvdb13_0 ``` Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: libopenvdb13_0 from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:openvdb - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 13.0.0 - **Source summary:** Sparse volumetric data processing toolkit - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** MPL-2.0 - **Source archive:** - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - nanovdb_print (cli) - nanovdb_validate (cli) - vdb_print (cli) - nanovdb_print (alias) - nanovdb_validate (alias) - vdb_print (alias) ## Dependencies - boost - c-blosc - jemalloc - openexr - tbb ## Build dependencies - cmake - doxygen ## 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: 13.0.0 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/openvdb - Upstream latest detected: v13.0.0 (current) - info: No package-manager update timestamp was available. ## Project history and usage OpenVDB is an Academy Award-winning C++ library and file format for sparse volumetric data: fog, smoke, clouds, water simulations, level sets, particles, and other 3D grids where most voxels are empty. It began inside DreamWorks Animation and became one of the visual-effects world's standard volume interchange and processing packages. ### Project history OpenVDB was developed at DreamWorks Animation, with the project site naming Ken Museth, Peter Cucka, Mihai Alden, and David Hill as primary original developers. DreamWorks released it to the open source community in August 2012 after using the underlying sparse-volume technology in feature-film production. The original emphasis was efficient level-set storage and manipulation, but the public library expanded into a broader volume toolkit: tree-based sparse grids, file I/O, filtering, meshing, topology operations, Python bindings, and command-line inspection tools. NanoVDB later extended the ecosystem with a compact, GPU-friendly representation for read-only sparse volumes. In October 2018 the Academy Software Foundation accepted OpenVDB as its first hosted project, moving governance from a studio-maintained open source release toward a neutral foundation home for film and animation infrastructure. ### Adoption history OpenVDB spread because it solved a production problem shared by many studios: dense 3D volumes are expensive to store, move, and render, while effects work often touches only a sparse subset of space. ASWF described it as an industry-standard technology for more detailed volumetric imagery such as water, clouds, ice, and liquid simulations. The package became a common dependency in digital-content-creation and rendering stacks because tools can exchange volumes through VDB files instead of inventing private cache formats. The ASWF announcement cites adoption for feature-film effects at DreamWorks, and the project appears in package managers as both a development library and a set of utilities such as vdb_print and NanoVDB validators. ### How it is used Developers and technical directors use OpenVDB to create, read, transform, filter, combine, resample, and serialize sparse volumes. In package-manager form it is usually installed as a native library for DCC applications, renderers, simulation tools, converters, and pipeline scripts rather than as a standalone end-user application. The command-line tools matter for pipeline debugging: package users can inspect VDB metadata and validate NanoVDB data without launching a full DCC program. ### Why package nerds care OpenVDB is a package-nerd classic because a specialized movie-studio data structure escaped into the general open source supply chain. It brings heavy C++ dependencies, ABI concerns, Python bindings, file-format compatibility, and graphics-pipeline expectations into ordinary distro and Homebrew packaging. It also shows how VFX infrastructure packages mature: studio origin, open source release, broad toolchain adoption, and foundation governance under ASWF alongside projects such as OpenColorIO, OpenEXR, OpenTimelineIO, and Open Shading Language. ### Timeline - 2012-08-03: DreamWorks Animation announces the open source release of OpenVDB. - 2018-10-23: ASWF announces OpenVDB as its first hosted project. - 2020: NanoVDB is introduced as a compact GPU-oriented companion representation within the OpenVDB ecosystem. - 2024: OpenVDB 12.0 relicenses the project from MPL-2.0 to Apache-2.0 after approval from major copyright holders. ### Related projects - OpenVDB is closely related to NanoVDB, Houdini-style volume workflows, renderers and simulation systems that consume VDB caches, ASWF infrastructure projects such as OpenEXR and OpenColorIO, and DCC applications that need a shared sparse-volume interchange format. ### 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:** openvdb - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 1 - **Head Version:** HEAD - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** head, stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - libnanovdb-dev - 10.0.1-2.3+b1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libnanovdb-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - NanoVDB - dev | http://openvdb.org - Debian apt - libnanovdb-tools - 10.0.1-2.3+b1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libnanovdb-tools from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - NanoVDB - runtime | http://openvdb.org - Debian apt - libopenvdb-dev - 10.0.1-2.3+b1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libopenvdb-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - dev | http://openvdb.org - Debian apt - libopenvdb-doc - 10.0.1-2.3: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libopenvdb-doc from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - doc | http://openvdb.org - Debian apt - libopenvdb-tools - 10.0.1-2.3+b1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libopenvdb-tools from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - runtime | http://openvdb.org - Debian apt - libopenvdb10.0t64 - 10.0.1-2.3+b1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libopenvdb10.0t64 from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - lib | http://openvdb.org - Debian apt - python3-openvdb - 10.0.1-2.3+b1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: python3-openvdb from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - Python 3 binding | http://openvdb.org - Nix - openvdb: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/op/openvdb/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - Ubuntu apt - libnanovdb-dev - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libnanovdb-dev from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - NanoVDB - dev | http://openvdb.org - Ubuntu apt - libnanovdb-tools - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libnanovdb-tools from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - NanoVDB - runtime | http://openvdb.org - Ubuntu apt - libopenvdb-ax-dev - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libopenvdb-ax-dev from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - dev | http://openvdb.org - Ubuntu apt - libopenvdb-ax-tools - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libopenvdb-ax-tools from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - runtime | http://openvdb.org - Ubuntu apt - libopenvdb-ax10.0t64 - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libopenvdb-ax10.0t64 from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - lib | http://openvdb.org - Ubuntu apt - libopenvdb-dev - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libopenvdb-dev from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - dev | http://openvdb.org - Ubuntu apt - libopenvdb-doc - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libopenvdb-doc from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - doc | http://openvdb.org - Ubuntu apt - libopenvdb-tools - 10.0.1-2.1build5: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libopenvdb-tools from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Sparse Volume Processing toolkit - runtime | http://openvdb.org ## Related links - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Networking and protocol packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/networking-protocol-tools/) - Matched network, protocol, or remote-service metadata. - [Media and graphics packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/media-graphics-tools/) - Matched media, image, audio, video, or graphics metadata. - [Database and data packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/database-data-tools/) - Matched database, SQL, migration, or data-store metadata. - [jemalloc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/jemalloc/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [openexr](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openexr/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [cmake](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cmake/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [doxygen](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/doxygen/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [coin3d](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/coin3d/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [dirac](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/dirac/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [exact-image](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/exact-image/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [exiv2](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/exiv2/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [glbinding](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/glbinding/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [glew](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/glew/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [libxspf](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/libxspf/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [mp4v2](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/mp4v2/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c-plus-plus, cli, media. - [stk](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/stk/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: c-plus-plus, cli, media, plus, processing. - [openimageio](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openimageio/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, media, openexr, processing, tbb. - [partio](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/partio/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, effects, media, visual, visual-effects. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/openvdb.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/openvdb.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