# Install xroar with Homebrew Dragon and Tandy 8-bit computer emulator. Version 1.11 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-18. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:xroar ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install xroar ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:xroar - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 1.11 - **Source summary:** Dragon and Tandy 8-bit computer emulator - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** GPL-3.0-or-later - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-06-18T02:29:03-04:00 - **Generated:** 2026-07-25T07:20:51+00:00 ## Executables - xroar (cli) - xroar (alias) ## Dependencies - libpng - libsndfile - sdl2-compat ## 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: 2026-07-25 - Package-manager version: 1.11 - Package-manager updated: 2026-06-18 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://www.6809.org.uk/xroar/ - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage XRoar is Ciaran Anscomb's emulator for Dragon 32/64, Tandy Color Computer models 1, 2, and 3, the Tandy MC-10, and related 6809-family machines. Its package identity is preservation-oriented: the executable is useful only when paired with legally obtained ROM images, disk or cassette media, and configuration describing the target machine. ### Project history The public source history identifies XRoar as a long-running emulator project by Ciaran Anscomb, with copyright beginning in 2003 in mirrored README metadata and current official documentation for version 1.11. The project started around Dragon and CoCo 1/2 compatibility and grew into a broader emulator for close relatives built around Motorola 6809-era hardware. By the 1.x series, the official manual describes emulation of Dragon 32, Dragon 64, Dragon 200-E, Tandy CoCo 1/2/3, Tandy MC-10, Matra and Hachette Alice 4K, prototype machines, disk-controller cartridges, sound cartridges, memory expansions, cassette formats, joysticks, printers, and video modes. ### Adoption history XRoar's adoption is concentrated in retrocomputing and preservation communities rather than mainstream software development. Its official site links Debian snapshot builds, an Ubuntu PPA, Mac OS X binaries, Windows archives and installers, an online version, and archives where users may find firmware dumps if they cannot extract ROMs from physical machines. The addition of CoCo 3 and MC-10 support made the package more than a Dragon emulator: it became a cross-platform way to run, test, and preserve software across a family of machines with overlapping but distinct hardware behavior. ### How it is used Users install XRoar, provide firmware ROMs in platform-specific directories such as `~/.xroar/roms`, `~/Library/XRoar/roms`, or `%LOCALAPPDATA%\XRoar\roms`, then select a machine and load cassette, disk, ROM cartridge, BASIC, HEX, or S-record media. The command line and configuration file are central to package use. Options can select machines, cartridges, video output, keyboard layout, disk behavior, joysticks, and tracing; the same options can be stored in `xroar.conf` for repeatable emulation setups. ### Why package nerds care XRoar is a good package-nerd case because the package is only the emulator core. The useful system is assembled from executable, ROM search paths, media images, configuration, and sometimes platform-specific GUI integration. It also shows why old-computer emulators stay valuable in package managers: they preserve runnable environments for software that no longer has current hardware, and they make regression testing and historical exploration scriptable from modern Unix shells. ### Timeline - 2003: Public copyright metadata in source mirrors places the project at the start of a long-running XRoar codebase. - 2010s: XRoar packages and ports spread across Unix-like systems, Windows, Mac OS X, and older contributed mobile/Amiga-style ports. - 2021: Community discussion notes newer support for Tandy CoCo 3 and MC-10 alongside Dragon and CoCo 1/2 emulation. - 2026-05-12: The official site lists source version 1.11. - 2026: The manual for version 1.11 documents Dragon, CoCo, MC-10, Alice, cartridge, disk, cassette, and video emulation. ### Related projects - Dragon 32/64 and Tandy Color Computer software archives provide programs and firmware images used with XRoar. - XRoar Online is a browser-facing version linked from the official site. - asm6809, also linked from the 6809.org.uk site, is a related 6809 assembler for Dragon-targeted code. - MAME overlaps in preservation goals but covers a much broader machine set. ### Sources - - - - - ## Security Notes No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for xroar. Nucleus package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL. ## 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 - macOS: ~/Library/XRoar/xroar.conf - Unix: ~/.xroar/xroar.conf - Windows: %LOCALAPPDATA%\XRoar\xroar.conf, xroar.conf in the executable/current directory ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** xroar - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Head Version:** HEAD - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** head, stable ## 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. - [Game and emulation packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/game-emulation-tools/) - Matched game or emulation metadata. - [Homebrew utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew-utility-packages/) - Matched Homebrew package provider. - [libpng](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/libpng/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [libsndfile](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/libsndfile/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [sdl2-compat](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/sdl2-compat/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [atari800](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/atari800/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: 8-bit, cli, emulator, games. - [blastem](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/blastem/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, emulator, games. - [dosbox-staging](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/dosbox-staging/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, emulator, games. - [dosbox-x](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/dosbox-x/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, emulator, games. - [fceux](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/fceux/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, emulator, games. - [fs-uae](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/fs-uae/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, emulator, games. - [hatari](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/hatari/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, emulator, games. - [huexpress](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/huexpress/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, emulator, games. - [openmsx](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openmsx/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, compat, computer, emulator, games. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/xroar.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/xroar.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated configuration and credential file locations - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - cross-ecosystem install command graph