macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install gnu-whichlocal Homebrew formula metadata
brew / rank 980
Install gnu-which with Homebrew, apt, apk, chocolatey, dnf, Nix, pacman, zypper, scoop, winget
GNU implementation of which utility. Version 2.25 via Homebrew; verified 2026-05-23. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install gnu-which.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install gnu-whichDebian stable package indexes · gnu-which · source: deb.debian.org
Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add whichAlpine Linux edge package indexes · which · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org
Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install whichFedora Rawhide package metadata · which · source: dl.fedoraproject.org
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#whichnixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/wh/which/package.nix · source: api.github.com
Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S whichArch Linux sync databases · which · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com
openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install whichopenSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · which · source: download.opensuse.org
Windows
Chocolateyverified · 92%
choco install whichChocolatey community package catalog · which · source: community.chocolatey.org
Scoopverified · 92%
scoop install main/whichScoop official bucket manifest trees · bucket/which.json · source: api.github.com
Windows Package Managerverified · 92%
winget install --id GnuWin32.Which -eWindows Package Manager source index · GnuWin32.Which · source: cdn.winget.microsoft.com
overview
Package summary
GNU implementation of which utility
Project links
Commands and aliases
- which
history
Project history and usage
GNU Which is the GNU implementation of the which utility, a small command that reports which executable a shell would find for a command name. Its domain is intentionally narrow: inspect command search paths and explain why a name resolves to one program rather than another.
Project history
The official Savannah project page is the package home, and the GNU FTP archive records public releases from which 2.16 and 2.17 in 2007 through later 2.x releases. After version 2.21 in 2015, GNU FTP shows renewed releases in the 2.22, 2.23, and 2.25 line during 2025 and 2026.
Adoption history
The utility is widely familiar because shells, Unix variants, and GNU systems all have command lookup workflows. GNU Which remains separately packaged for environments where users want GNU behavior, GNU licensing, or an external executable rather than a shell builtin or shell-specific type command.
How it is used
Practitioners use which when debugging PATH order, checking whether a package installed the expected executable, documenting build prerequisites, or explaining why scripts pick one compiler, interpreter, or helper over another.
Why package nerds care
The significance is mostly operational: it is a tiny diagnostic tool for path hygiene. In package-manager culture, which helps confirm shims, keg-only tools, alternatives systems, and GNU-prefixed replacements without reading shell startup files by hand.
Timeline
- 2007: GNU FTP archive lists which 2.16 and 2.17.
- 2015: GNU FTP archive lists which 2.21.
- 2025: GNU FTP archive lists which 2.22 and 2.23.
- 2026: GNU FTP archive lists which 2.25.
Related projects
- Related tools include shell builtins such as command -v and type, POSIX shell command lookup, alternatives systems, and package-manager shim directories.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
which | 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 version2.25
manager updated2026-05-23
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:gnu-which |
|---|---|
| Version | 2.25 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Homepage | https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which/ |
| Last updated | 2026-05-23T14:07:00-04:00 |
| Pulse | updated |
| Bottle | not recorded |
| Service | none declared |
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
Debian apt95%
gnu-which 2.21+dfsg-5
Utility to show the full path of commands
https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which
sudo apt install gnu-which- Section: utils
- Architecture: amd64
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Gnu Which
Ubuntu apt95%
gnu-which 2.21+dfsg-4build1
Utility to show the full path of commands
https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which
sudo apt install gnu-which- Section: universe/utils
- Architecture: amd64
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Gnu Which
Nix92%
which
nix profile install nixpkgs#which- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
apk92%
which 2.25-r0
A utility to show the full path of commands
https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which
sudo apk add which- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: which
- 1 dependencies
- 1 provides
- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
apk92%
which-doc 2.25-r0
A utility to show the full path of commands (documentation)
https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which
sudo apk add which-doc- License: GPL-2.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: which
- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
dnf92%
which 2.25-2.fc45
Displays where a particular program in your path is located
https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which/
sudo dnf install which- License: GPL-3.0-only
- Category: Unspecified
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: which
- 3 dependencies
- 1 provides
- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
pacman92%
which 2.25-1
A utility to show the full path of commands
https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which/
sudo pacman -S which- License: GPL-3.0-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- 2 dependencies
- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
zypper92%
which 2.25-1.3
Displays where a particular program in your path is located
https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/which/
sudo zypper install which- License: GPL-3.0-or-later
- Category: System/Base
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: which
- 1 dependencies
- 2 provides
- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
Chocolatey92%
which
choco install which- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
Scoop92%
main/which
scoop install main/which- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
winget92%
GnuWin32.Which
winget install --id GnuWin32.Which -e- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
winget92%
allankoechke.which
winget install --id allankoechke.which -e- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Which
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
- external package-manager database matches
- pkg.so package database
- pkgdb category and tag curation