macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install wigglelocal Homebrew formula metadata
MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install wiggleMacPorts ports tree · devel/wiggle/Portfile · source: api.github.com
brew
Install wiggle with Homebrew, apk, apt, MacPorts, Nix, zypper
Program for applying patches with conflicting changes. Version 1.3 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add wiggleAlpine Linux edge package indexes · wiggle · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org
Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install wiggleDebian stable package indexes · wiggle · source: deb.debian.org
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#wigglenixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/wi/wiggle/package.nix · source: api.github.com
openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install wiggleopenSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · wiggle · source: download.opensuse.org
overview
Package summary
Program for applying patches with conflicting changes
Project links
Commands and aliases
- wiggle
history
Project history and usage
wiggle is Neil Brown's GPL command-line tool for applying patches when ordinary `patch` cannot match the target file cleanly, and for showing word-wise diffs. Its niche is the messy middle ground between a rejected patch and a full three-way merge: it tries to align the old text in a patch with the current file, apply every change somewhere, and mark unresolved conflicts for review.
Project history
Neil Brown announced the first public release of wiggle on the Linux kernel mailing list on May 19, 2003. The announcement described the core use case as applying patches that `patch` cannot apply because the original file has conflicting changes, especially when back-porting patches from development kernels onto stable kernels.
The name came from Andrew Morton's phrasing about wanting a tool to 'wiggle' a patch into a file. The first public announcement already included a tests directory, a patch-management helper script named `p`, and a note that a future visualization UI would be useful.
The manual page preserves the tool's long maintenance arc, with copyright lines spanning 2003, 2010-2013, and 2018-2020. GitHub releases list v1.0 through v1.3, with v1.3 published in October 2020.
Adoption history
wiggle's adoption has been specialized rather than mass-market. It is useful to kernel and distribution developers, downstream maintainers, and anyone carrying patch queues across drifting source trees. The GitHub repository showed about 108 stars and 9 forks in July 2026, but its more important adoption signal is its presence in Unix packaging ecosystems and its long-lived man page as a developer tool.
How it is used
A common workflow is to run `patch`, collect `.rej` files, then run `wiggle --replace originalfile originalfile.rej` for each rejected hunk. The user must still inspect the result, because wiggle can annotate unresolved conflicts and cannot prove semantic correctness. It also has merge, diff, extract, and browse modes; browse mode gives an ncurses-based inspection path for patches and conflicts.
Why package nerds care
wiggle matters because it encodes a very Unixy idea: keep the format and workflow of patches, but make the recovery path smarter at word granularity. For package maintainers carrying downstream patches, that can be the difference between manually rewriting a patch and letting a small tool salvage most of it while clearly marking the rest.
Timeline
- 2003-05-19: Neil Brown announced the first public release on LKML.
- 2010-2013: Maintained under Neil Brown's SUSE-era copyright line in the manual.
- 2018-2020: Later maintenance period reflected in the manual page copyright line.
- 2020-10-06: GitHub release records include v1.0 through v1.3, with v1.3 the latest listed release.
Related projects
- wiggle is related to `patch`, `merge`, line-oriented diff tools, and patch-stack workflows used by kernel and distribution maintainers. Its distinctive feature is word-wise alignment and conflict reporting rather than simply rejecting hunks.
Sources
- https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle - upstream repository overview
- https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle/blob/master/wiggle.1 - upstream manual page
- https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle/releases - upstream release list
- https://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/0305.2/0762.html - first public release announcement
security posture
Risk level: green
narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.
Risk classifier
green risk · low confidence · appliance
Why
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals
Signals
- metadata:no-higher-risk-signals
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 13 platform targets.
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
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
wiggle | 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 version1.3
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamcurrent
latest detectedv1.3
https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle
- infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:wiggle |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.3 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/wiggle |
| Homepage | https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle |
| Repository | https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle |
| Upstream docs | https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle#readme |
| License | GPL-2.0-or-later |
| Source archive | https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle/archive/refs/tags/v1.3.tar.gz |
| Uses from macOS | ncurses |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_big_sur, arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, catalina, monterey, sonoma, ventura, 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 | wiggle |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
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%
wiggle 1.3-1
apply patches with conflicting changes
https://neil.brown.name/wiggle
sudo apt install wiggle- Section: vcs
- Architecture: amd64
- 3 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wiggle
Nix95%
wiggle
nix profile install nixpkgs#wiggle- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wiggle
Ubuntu apt95%
wiggle 1.3-1
apply patches with conflicting changes
https://neil.brown.name/wiggle
sudo apt install wiggle- Section: universe/utils
- Architecture: amd64
- 3 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wiggle
apk95%
wiggle 1.3-r0
Tool for applying patches with conflicts
https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle
sudo apk add wiggle- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: wiggle
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wiggle
apk95%
wiggle-doc 1.3-r0
Tool for applying patches with conflicts (documentation)
https://github.com/neilbrown/wiggle
sudo apk add wiggle-doc- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: wiggle
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wiggle
zypper95%
wiggle 1.3-1.21
A Tool for Applying Patches with Conflicts
https://neil.brown.name/wiggle/
sudo zypper install wiggle- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Category: Productivity/Text/Utilities
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: wiggle
- 3 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wiggle
MacPorts95%
wiggle
sudo port install wiggle- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wiggle
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.
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