# Install deheader with Homebrew, apt, Nix, zypper

Analyze C/C++ files for unnecessary headers. Version 1.12 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install deheader.

## Install

```sh
sudo av install brew:deheader
```

Additional install commands:

### macOS

- Homebrew (100%):

```sh
brew install deheader
```

  Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata

### Linux

- Debian apt (92%):

```sh
sudo apt install deheader
```

  Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: deheader from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz

- Nix (92%):

```sh
nix profile install nixpkgs#deheader
```

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

- zypper (92%):

```sh
sudo zypper install deheader
```

  Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: deheader from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst

## Package facts

- **Package key:** brew:deheader
- **Package manager:** Homebrew
- **Version:** 1.12
- **Source summary:** Analyze C/C++ files for unnecessary headers
- **Homepage:** <http://www.catb.org/~esr/deheader/>
- **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00

## Executables

- deheader (alias)

## Install behavior

- Bottle: not available

## Freshness

- Page generated: 2026-08-03
- Package-manager version: 1.12
## Project history and usage

deheader is a C and C++ source analysis tool that finds include directives which can be removed while the file still compiles.

### Project history

The official project page describes deheader as a tool for removing unneeded includes, improving compilation time on large C++ projects, and exposing hidden dependencies and cohesion problems. The README says it is commonly packaged as `deheader`.

The NEWS file gives a long maintenance record beginning with 0.1 on 2010-12-01. Later releases added summary output, portability checks, duplicate include detection, Python 2/3 compatibility, Makefile-friendly exit status, GCC compatibility updates, and continued documentation and hardening fixes through 1.12 in 2026.

### Adoption history

deheader is packaged by Homebrew and appears upstream as a named package on the official project page. Its low-level C/C++ focus makes it more of a maintainer and build-hygiene tool than an end-user application.

### How it is used

The package is used during source maintenance to test whether headers are actually required. Because it verifies removals by compilation, it belongs in the same toolbox as static-analysis and build-cleanup utilities rather than pure text linters.

### Why package nerds care

deheader matters to package nerds because header bloat affects compile time, portability, and dependency clarity. It is especially relevant when distributions and maintainers need source trees to build cleanly across compilers, standard libraries, and Unix variants.

### Timeline

- 2010: 0.1 initial release.
- 2016: 1.5 adds exit status behavior useful in Makefiles.
- 2022: 1.8 changes the shebang to Python 3.
- 2026: 1.12 is released.

### Related projects

- The project is adjacent to C and C++ compiler toolchains, build systems, and static-analysis utilities that reduce unnecessary source dependencies.

### Sources

- <http://www.catb.org/~esr/deheader>
- <http://www.catb.org/~esr/deheader/README.adoc>
- <http://www.catb.org/~esr/deheader/NEWS.adoc>
- <https://gitlab.com/esr/deheader>
- <https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/deheader>


## Security Notes

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

- **Geiger risk:** green / low
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

## Other Package-Manager Records

- Debian apt - deheader - 1.11-1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: deheader from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Find and remove unnecessary includes in C or C++ source files | http://www.catb.org/~esr/deheader/
- Nix - deheader: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/de/deheader/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
- Ubuntu apt - deheader - 1.10-1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: deheader from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Find and remove unnecessary includes in C or C++ source files | http://www.catb.org/~esr/deheader/
- zypper - deheader - 1.11-1.3: normalized package name match | openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: deheader from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst | Find and optionally remove unneeded includes in C or C++ sourcefiles | http://www.catb.org/~esr/deheader/


## Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/deheader.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/deheader.yml)


## Sources

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