macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install flow-toolsprovider-native install command
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Install flow-tools with Homebrew
Collect, send, process, and generate NetFlow data reports. Version 0.68.5.1 via Homebrew; verified 2026-08-02.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Collect, send, process, and generate NetFlow data reports
Project links
Commands and aliases
- flow-capture
- flow-cat
- flow-dscan
- flow-expire
- flow-export
- flow-fanout
- flow-filter
- flow-gen
- flow-header
- flow-import
- flow-log2rrd
- flow-mask
- flow-merge
- flow-nfilter
- flow-print
- flow-receive
- flow-report
- flow-rpt2rrd
- flow-rptfmt
- flow-send
- flow-split
- flow-stat
- flow-tag
- flow-xlate
history
Project history and usage
flow-tools is a suite of command-line programs and a library for collecting, processing, storing, filtering, replaying, and reporting on NetFlow export data.
Project history
The archived upstream README says flow-tools was originally written by Mark Fullmer while he was working at Ohio State University, with documentation, functionality, and feedback from Steve Romig and the OSU network security group. It also credits OARnet and the Ohio ITEC with funding work on version 8 PDU support and other features.
The project's older changelog shows an established pre-Git release history through the early 2000s, including 0.65, 0.66, 0.67, and 0.68 releases. The source now lives in the Google Code archive, preserving the code, SGML man pages, examples, and historical changelog.
Adoption history
flow-tools circulated as a Unix network-operations package for sites collecting Cisco and Juniper NetFlow exports. The changelog records fixes and requested features from universities, network operators, and backbone users, reflecting use in operational traffic accounting and troubleshooting environments.
How it is used
The toolset is composed of small Unix-style commands such as flow-capture, flow-cat, flow-report, flow-filter, flow-print, flow-send, and flow-gen. Official man-page sources describe deployments on one server or split across multiple servers for larger flow-collection setups.
Common use cases include collecting router exports, concatenating short capture windows into longer report windows, filtering records, generating top-talkers and AS reports, tagging customer networks, exporting to other formats, and replaying or generating NetFlow data for tests.
Why package nerds care
For package maintainers, flow-tools is a classic example of a mature C networking utility suite: many small binaries, generated man pages, sample configuration files, and long-lived ABI/protocol assumptions around NetFlow versions. It remains relevant in package indexes because NetFlow workflows often depend on stable old command names.
Timeline
- 2003: flow-tools 0.65, 0.66, and 0.67 appear in the historical changelog.
- 2005: flow-tools 0.68 is released with report post-processing helpers and many portability and NetFlow handling fixes.
- 2016: Google Code archive preserves the upstream source repository snapshot.
Related projects
- The official documentation frames flow-tools around NetFlow exports from Cisco and Juniper routers and includes import/export support for cflowd-style data.
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 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
flow-capture | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-cat | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-dscan | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-expire | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-export | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-fanout | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-filter | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-gen | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-header | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-import | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-log2rrd | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-mask | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-merge | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-nfilter | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-print | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-receive | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-report | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-rpt2rrd | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-rptfmt | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-send | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-split | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-stat | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-tag | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
flow-xlate | 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 version0.68.5.1
manager updated2026-08-02
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:flow-tools |
|---|---|
| Version | 0.68.5.1 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Homepage | https://code.google.com/archive/p/flow-tools/ |
| Last updated | 2026-08-02T16:35:32+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
- Nucleus package database
- curated package history
- pkgdb category and tag curation