macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install qbelocal Homebrew formula metadata
brew / rank 9086
Install qbe with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, Nix, pacman, zypper
Compiler Backend. Version 1.3 via Homebrew; verified 2026-09-13. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install qbe.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add qbeAlpine Linux edge package indexes · qbe · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org
Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install qbeDebian stable package indexes · qbe · source: deb.debian.org
Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install qbeFedora Rawhide package metadata · qbe · source: dl.fedoraproject.org
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#qbenixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/qb/qbe/package.nix · source: api.github.com
Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S qbeArch Linux sync databases · qbe · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com
openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install qbeopenSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · qbe · source: download.opensuse.org
overview
Package summary
Compiler Backend
Project links
Commands and aliases
- qbe
history
Project history and usage
QBE is a compact C compiler backend designed to make language implementation approachable without giving up useful optimization or C interoperability.
Project history
QBE began around 2014 as a compact compiler-backend project. Its stated goal is to deliver much of the performance of industrial optimizing compilers with a fraction of their implementation size.
Development added amd64, arm64, and riscv64 targets, a simple SSA-based intermediate language, C ABI interoperability, optimization passes, register allocation, and tutorial material. QBE 1.0 arrived in 2022 after roughly eight years of repository development.
Adoption history
QBE has been adopted as a backend by language implementations including cproc, Hare, Antimony, and SCC. It is also used as compiler-course practice material, reflecting its value as a readable implementation as well as a production component.
The 1.0 release was made in response to requests from package maintainers and users, marking a transition from a rolling source project to a versioned package with all supported targets at parity.
How it is used
Language frontends emit QBE's textual intermediate language, run `qbe` to produce assembly, and use a platform C toolchain to assemble and link the result.
QBE is best suited to language implementers who value a compact, hackable backend, straightforward C calls, and fast compilation over the breadth of targets and optimization machinery offered by larger frameworks. It has no documented persistent configuration or credential files.
Why package nerds care
QBE deliberately occupies the space between writing a bespoke backend and adopting a large compiler framework. Its small C codebase, uniform SSA-based intermediate language, full C ABI, and quick compilation make it attractive to new systems languages and compiler experimentation.
For package enthusiasts, QBE is a notable example of a compiler component whose constrained scope is the feature: it targets useful optimization and interoperability while remaining small enough to study, modify, and package easily.
Timeline
- 2014: The QBE repository received its first commits, based on the official 1.0 retrospective.
- 2022: QBE 1.0 was released after eight years of development.
- 2023: QBE 1.1 added Apple arm64 support, TLS, and further optimization work.
- 2024: QBE 1.2 delivered correctness and documentation improvements.
- 2026: QBE 1.3 added Windows ABI support and improved position-independent-code support.
Related projects
- cproc is a self-hosting C11 frontend for QBE.
- Hare has used QBE as its backend from the language's beginning.
- LLVM is compared directly in QBE's official documentation as the larger industrial compiler infrastructure representing a different complexity and optimization tradeoff.
Sources
security posture
No protected-tool coverage found yet
No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for qbe. Package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL.
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
qbe | 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 generated2026-11-04
manager version1.3
manager updated2026-09-13
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://c9x.me/compile/none confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:qbe |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.3 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/qbe |
| Homepage | https://c9x.me/compile/ |
| Upstream docs | https://c9x.me/compile/ |
| License | MIT |
| Source archive | https://c9x.me/compile/release/qbe-1.3.tar.xz |
| Last updated | 2026-09-13T19:56:11Z |
| Pulse | updated |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_golden_gate, arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, 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 | qbe |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Head Version | HEAD |
| 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%
qbe 1.2-3
Small embeddable C compiler backend
sudo apt install qbe- Section: devel
- Architecture: amd64
- 1 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
Nix95%
qbe
nix profile install nixpkgs#qbe- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
apk95%
qbe 1.3-r1
Quick compiler backend
sudo apk add qbe- License: MIT
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: qbe
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
apk95%
qbe-dbg 1.3-r1
Quick compiler backend (debug symbols)
sudo apk add qbe-dbg- License: MIT
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: qbe
- 1 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
apk95%
qbe-doc 1.3-r1
Quick compiler backend (documentation)
sudo apk add qbe-doc- License: MIT
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: qbe
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
dnf95%
qbe 1.2-8.fc45
A pure C embeddable compiler backend
sudo dnf install qbe- License: MIT
- Category: Unspecified
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: qbe
- 2 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
pacman95%
qbe 1.3-1
Small embeddable C compiler backend
sudo pacman -S qbe- License: MIT
- Architecture: x86_64
- 1 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
zypper95%
qbe 1.3-1.2
Small embeddable C compiler backend
sudo zypper install qbe- License: MIT
- Category: Development/Tools/Building
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: qbe
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Qbe
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
- 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