macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install envvlocal Homebrew formula metadata
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Install envv with Homebrew
Shell-independent handling of environment variables. Version 1.7 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-10.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Shell-independent handling of environment variables
Project links
Commands and aliases
- envv
history
Project history and usage
envv is a small C utility for generating shell-specific commands that set environment variables and edit colon-separated paths. Its niche is old-school Unix software setup: one script can be sourced by users of csh, tcsh, bash, sh, ksh, and zsh without hard-coding separate initialization logic for each shell.
Project history
The README traces envv back to David F. Skoll of Roaring Penguin Software, with version 1.0 dated February 8, 1994. Early releases added zsh recognition, a `choose` directive, local variables, stdin directives, and fixes around path comparison and environment persistence.
The GitHub-hosted copy records a later 2011 license change to MIT and a segmentation fault fix, but otherwise presents envv as a deliberately small utility: build with `make`, copy the `envv` executable into a system directory, and consult the bundled `envv.1` manual page.
Adoption history
envv never became a broad ecosystem package, but its continued packaging in Homebrew keeps a 1990s Unix environment-management tool installable on modern developer machines. The README's example is aimed at commercial or site-local software that needs PATH entries and home variables set consistently for many user shells.
How it is used
A typical envv setup script evaluates commands such as `envv add PATH /usr/local/foobar/bin` and `envv set FOOHOME /usr/local/foobar`. Users source that script from their preferred shell, allowing system-wide software moves without each user editing `.cshrc`, `.profile`, or similar files by hand.
Why package nerds care
envv is interesting as a compact survivor from the era when Unix shops had to support several interactive shells at once. For package-manager history, it is a reminder that environment setup before modules, direnv, and modern shell frameworks often meant tiny C tools that printed shell code.
Timeline
- 1994-02-08: Version 1.0 first released.
- 1994-03-22: Version 1.1 added zsh recognition and the `choose` directive.
- 1994-04-18: Version 1.2 added local variables, command-line options, and stdin directives.
- 1995-07-11: Version 1.6 fixed path comparison behavior.
- 2011-07-14: Version 1.7 changed the license to MIT and fixed a segmentation fault.
Related projects
- envv overlaps conceptually with shell profile snippets, environment modules, and later per-directory environment tools, but it solves a narrower problem by emitting commands for multiple shells.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: yellow
generalized runtime or code generation signal.
Risk classifier
yellow risk · medium confidence · runtime
Why
- generalized runtime or code generation signal
Signals
- text:shell
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
envv | 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 version1.7
manager updated2026-07-10
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:envv |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.7 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Homepage | https://github.com/jakewendt/envv |
| Repository | https://github.com/jakewendt/envv |
| Last updated | 2026-07-10T19:51:01-04:00 |
| 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