install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install hellwal

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#hellwal

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/he/hellwal/package.nix · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

Fast, extensible color palette generator

Project links

Commands and aliases

hellwal

history

Project history and usage

hellwal is a small color-palette generator for wallpaper-driven desktop theming. Its repository describes it as a Pywal-like generator that is faster and written in C, with templates, themes, JSON output, light and dark modes, and terminal color helpers.

The available authoritative history is thin but useful: the GitHub repository and release notes show a young project that quickly accumulated practical theming features after its first public release.

Project history

The repository was created in November 2024. The first public release, v1.0.0, described hellwal as a pywal-inspired color palette generator with support for templates, themes, and command-line arguments.

Subsequent releases added cache support, JSON output, neon mode, preview flags, contrast checking, more templates, and fixes to parser and palette behavior. The README credits pywal as the inspiration.

Adoption history

The project crossed from source builds into package-manager use early in its life. The README documents Homebrew and Nix installation, and the supplied package metadata also lists Homebrew and Nix packaging.

Its audience is the Unix desktop theming and 'rice' community: users who want one image or theme file to drive terminal, launcher, compositor, notification, editor, and shell color files.

How it is used

Users run `hellwal -i [image]` to generate a palette from a wallpaper image, or use `--theme` to apply a static palette. Generated templates are written under the user's cache directory, and theme files can live under `~/.config/hellwal/themes`.

The tool can emit JSON for scripts, write terminal color scripts, run a post-generation command, choose light or dark modes, adjust brightness and grayscale, and fill template variables such as `color0.hex`, `background.rgb`, and alpha values.

Why package nerds care

hellwal is notable as a compact C entry in a space often occupied by Python scripts. That makes it attractive to packagers who want a fast, dependency-light theming utility with predictable build behavior.

It is also a good example of desktop theming tools becoming package-manager artifacts: templates, cache paths, shell completions, and example themes matter almost as much as the binary.

Timeline

2024: Public GitHub repository created.
2024: v1.0.0 release published with templates, themes, and command-line options.
2024: v1.0.2 added palette caching under the user cache directory.
2025: v1.0.3 added JSON output and neon mode.
2025: v1.0.5 noted Homebrew packaging and additional templates, flags, and parser fixes.

Related projects

pywal is the direct inspiration credited by the README.
swww, Themecord, terminal color scripts, and theme collections appear in project examples or release notes.
Homebrew and Nix are the package-manager channels present in the supplied metadata.

Sources

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 8 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
`hellwal`	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 generated2026-08-04

manager version1.0.7

manager updated

local dataok

upstreamcurrent

latest detectedv1.0.7

https://github.com/danihek/hellwal

infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:hellwal
Version	1.0.7
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/hellwal
Homepage	https://github.com/danihek/hellwal
Repository	https://github.com/danihek/hellwal
License	MIT
Source archive	https://github.com/danihek/hellwal/archive/refs/tags/v1.0.7.tar.gz
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, 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	hellwal
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
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%

hellwal

nix profile install nixpkgs#hellwal

normalized package name match
Matched by: Hellwal

nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/he/hellwal/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

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/hellwal.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated package history
external package-manager database matches
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment
pkg.so package database
pkgdb category and tag curation

Install hellwal with Homebrew, Nix