macOS
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brew install cfn-fliplocal Homebrew formula metadata
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Install cfn-flip with Homebrew
Convert AWS CloudFormation templates between JSON and YAML formats. Version 1.3.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-17.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Convert AWS CloudFormation templates between JSON and YAML formats
Project links
Commands and aliases
- cfn-flip
history
Project history and usage
AWS CloudFormation Template Flip is an AWS Labs Python tool and library for converting CloudFormation templates between JSON and YAML while using short-form YAML intrinsic-function syntax where possible.
Project history
The official README explains the name as an homage to the Unix `flip` utility and documents both the `cfn-flip` command and the `cfn_flip` Python package API. The repository metadata records the public repo creation in 2016.
Adoption history
The project is packaged for Homebrew as `cfn-flip` and distributed as a Python package. Its README now deprecates CLI usage in favor of `rain fmt`, while explicitly saying the Python API may continue to be used.
How it is used
The documented CLI reads from stdin or files and converts JSON to YAML or YAML to JSON. The Python API exposes `flip`, `to_yaml`, and `to_json` for applications that need CloudFormation template serialization.
Why package nerds care
cfn-flip is significant because it solved a very specific packaging annoyance: CloudFormation users wanted a reliable converter that preserved AWS intrinsic-function syntax instead of treating templates as generic JSON/YAML.
Timeline
- 2016: GitHub repository metadata records public repository creation.
- 2021: GitHub release metadata records cfn_flip 1.3.0.
- Current README: CLI usage is deprecated in favor of `rain fmt`; package API remains available.
Related projects
- rain is the recommended replacement for CLI formatting and conversion.
- cf2tf acknowledges cfn-flip as a parser used when converting CloudFormation templates.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: orange
infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal.
Risk classifier
orange risk · medium confidence · infrastructure
Why
- infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal
Signals
- text:cloud
Install behavior
- No Homebrew bottle metadata was recorded.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
cfn-flip | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
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 generated2026-08-03
manager version1.3.0
manager updated2026-07-17
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:cfn-flip |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.3.0 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Homepage | https://github.com/awslabs/aws-cfn-template-flip |
| Last updated | 2026-07-17T18:27:49+09:00 |
| Pulse | updated |
| Bottle | not recorded |
| Service | none declared |
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
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated package history
- pkg.so package database
- pkgdb category and tag curation