pkg.sopackage field notes

brew / rank 2829

Install gmsh with Homebrew

3D finite element grid generator with CAD engine. Version 4.15.2 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-22.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install gmsh

provider-native install command

overview

Package summary

3D finite element grid generator with CAD engine

Commands and aliases

  • gmsh

history

Project history and usage

Gmsh is an automatic three-dimensional finite-element mesh generator with CAD, meshing, solver, and post-processing modules. It is widely packaged because it serves both as a graphical scientific tool and as a scriptable/API-driven mesh generator for simulation workflows.

Project history

Gmsh was created by Christophe Geuzaine and Jean-Francois Remacle, with copyright years in the source README beginning in 1997. The reference manual identifies it as a 3D finite-element mesh generator with built-in pre- and post-processing facilities.

The project was documented in a 2009 International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering paper, cited from the official manual. That paper helped establish Gmsh as a named research-software artifact rather than only a utility shipped by its authors.

Gmsh evolved from a standalone meshing program into a modular platform. The manual describes four modules: geometry, mesh, solver, and post-processing, controllable from the GUI, the command line, .geo scripts, and C++, C, Python, Julia, and Fortran APIs.

The 4.x line expanded API and CAD workflows, including OpenCASCADE geometry operations, model attributes, Fortran API support, and ongoing changes to mesh formats and post-processing behavior. The official version history records detailed 4.x releases through 4.15.2 in March 2026.

Adoption history

The manual states that source code and precompiled binaries are distributed for Windows, macOS, and Linux, with packages also available in Linux and BSD distributions. The batch metadata additionally shows packaging in Homebrew, Alpine, Debian, Fedora, MacPorts, Nix, Ubuntu, winget, and openSUSE.

Gmsh's adoption rests on a useful balance: it is light enough to install as a command-line tool, visual enough for interactive geometry and mesh inspection, and programmable enough to sit inside automated simulation pipelines.

Its official documentation and examples make it attractive to finite-element practitioners who need mesh generation without adopting a full commercial preprocessor. The .geo scripting language and multi-language API also make meshes reproducible in source-controlled projects.

How it is used

Practitioners use Gmsh to define geometry, generate 1D, 2D, and 3D meshes, assign physical groups, import CAD through OpenCASCADE, inspect mesh quality, and export mesh files for downstream solvers.

Command-line users generate meshes from .geo files in build pipelines or tests. GUI users inspect and tune geometry, mesh sizes, fields, and post-processing views. API users call Gmsh from C++, C, Python, Julia, or Fortran to generate meshes from application code.

Package-manager installs are especially useful for CI and scientific environments where scripts need the gmsh executable or Python module available without a manual GUI installer.

Why package nerds care

Gmsh is a high-value package because it turns a hard scientific dependency into a normal system dependency. Build scripts, solver examples, Python notebooks, and finite-element tutorials can all assume an installable gmsh command rather than bundling a meshing engine.

It is also a good example of why scientific packages are often bigger than a CLI: one formula supplies a desktop app, CAD integrations, a shared library, language bindings, examples, and a file-format ecosystem.

Timeline

  • 1997: Gmsh copyright period begins in the source README.
  • 2009: Gmsh paper published in International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering.
  • 2017: Public GitLab project created on gitlab.onelab.info.
  • 2022: Gmsh 4.11.0 added Fortran API support and new official macOS ARM builds.
  • 2026: Gmsh 4.15.2 released.

Related projects

  • OpenCASCADE supplies CAD-kernel functionality for constructive solid geometry, boolean operations, and STEP import.
  • ONELAB is related through the official hosting and solver-oriented workflows documented by Gmsh.
  • Finite-element solvers consume the mesh files and physical groups produced by Gmsh.

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.

local files

Configuration and credential file locations

These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.

Configuration files

Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.

Unix
$GMSH_HOME/<General.OptionsFileName>$GMSH_HOME/<General.SessionFileName>~/<General.OptionsFileName>~/<General.SessionFileName><model-file>.opt
Windows
%GMSH_HOME%\<General.OptionsFileName>%GMSH_HOME%\<General.SessionFileName>%APPDATA%\<General.OptionsFileName>%APPDATA%\<General.SessionFileName><model-file>.opt

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
gmshexecutableindexed executableDiscovered 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 version4.15.2
manager updated2026-06-22
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
  • okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:gmsh
Version4.15.2
Package managerHomebrew
Homepagehttps://gmsh.info/
Last updated2026-06-22T14:03:35-07:00
Pulseupdated
Bottlenot recorded
Servicenone declared

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

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.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • Nucleus package database
  • curated configuration and credential file locations
  • curated package history
  • pkgdb category and tag curation