Install util-linux with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper, winget

Project links

• Homepage
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• addpart
• agetty
• bits
• blkdiscard
• blkid
• blkpr
• blkzone
• blockdev
• cal
• cfdisk
• chcpu
• chmem
• choom
• chrt
• col
• colcrt
• colrm
• column
• copyfilerange
• coresched
• ctrlaltdel
• delpart
• dmesg
• eject
• enosys
• exch
• fadvise
• fallocate
• fdisk
• fincore
• findfs
• findmnt

Project history

The official Git history reaches back to 1992-10-31, making util-linux one of the oldest still-maintained user-space utility collections in the Linux ecosystem. Its history is partly a history of consolidating small Unix/Linux commands that distributions needed to ship somewhere.

The README records an important naming era: from 2006 to 2010 the project was named util-linux-ng. Release notes for util-linux-ng 2.13, dated 2007-08-28, show the package modernizing around autotools, SELinux and audit support, mount changes, libblkid/libvolume_id probing, and additions such as rtcwake.

The AUTHORS file shows util-linux as an aggregation point for tools and libraries from many origins. It records commands merged from e2fsprogs, sysvinit, coreutils-derived code, schedutils, rfkill, and individual contributors, while also listing core libraries such as libblkid, libmount, libuuid, libsmartcols, and liblastlog2.

The project continues to evolve rather than merely preserve legacy commands. The 2.40 release notes introduced new commands and libraries such as lastlog2, lsclocks, enosys, exch, and setpgid, plus filtering and counter support in libsmartcols used by tools such as lsfd and lsblk.

Adoption history

util-linux is foundational distribution infrastructure. The input package metadata maps the formula to Homebrew, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, and several Linux distribution package families, while also showing that distributions sometimes split the suite into packages named for individual components such as libblkid or bsdextrautils.

Its adoption history is tied to the Linux base system: administrators use its commands directly, shell scripts rely on them, and higher-level tools depend on its libraries for block-device probing, mount handling, UUIDs, and tabular output. Because the suite is broad, packagers often make policy decisions about which commands belong in minimal systems, base installs, rescue images, or compatibility packages.

How it is used

Common package-nerd workflows include using `lsblk`, `blkid`, `findmnt`, `mount`, `umount`, `fdisk`, `sfdisk`, `losetup`, `fstrim`, `uuidgen`, `flock`, `nsenter`, `unshare`, `taskset`, `chrt`, `logger`, `script`, `hexdump`, `more`, and many other commands from the same source package.

The suite also exposes libraries and command behavior that packagers track closely: libmount for mount table behavior, libblkid for probing, libuuid for UUID generation/parsing, libsmartcols for structured terminal tables, and release/deprecation notes that warn when scripts should move to newer flags or commands.

Why package nerds care

util-linux is package-nerd bedrock. It is not one tool but a source package that determines a large part of the Linux command-line substrate, and packaging it means deciding how old Unix interfaces, Linux-specific tools, libraries, translations, suid-sensitive programs, man pages, and distribution splits all fit together.

Its deprecation file is especially relevant to maintainers because it documents compatibility promises and migration paths, such as keeping deprecated utilities in maintenance mode for backward compatibility while recommending replacements like `blockdev --getsz`, `read`, `less` or `more`, and newer output options.

Timeline

• 1992-10-31: Official Git history begins.
• 2006-2010: Project known as util-linux-ng according to the README.
• 2007-08-28: util-linux-ng 2.13 release notes published.
• 2024-03-27: Official tag v2.40 created.
• 2024: util-linux 2.40 release notes introduce lastlog2, lsclocks, enosys, exch, and setpgid.
• 2026-06-30: Official Git history shows ongoing development on libsmartcols.

Related projects

• The official AUTHORS file records code or tools merged from e2fsprogs, sysvinit, coreutils-derived su, schedutils, and rfkill, and names libraries such as libblkid, libmount, libuuid, libsmartcols, and liblastlog2.

Sources

• https://github.com/util-linux/util-linux/blob/master/AUTHORS
• https://github.com/util-linux/util-linux/blob/master/Documentation/deprecated.txt
• https://github.com/util-linux/util-linux/blob/master/Documentation/releases/v2.13-ReleaseNotes
• https://github.com/util-linux/util-linux/blob/master/Documentation/releases/v2.40-ReleaseNotes
• https://github.com/util-linux/util-linux/blob/master/README
• input source_facts.package-manager
• official git log and tags from https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/utils/util-linux/util-linux.git