# Install libraw with Homebrew, apk, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, apt, dnf, zypper Library for reading RAW files from digital photo cameras. Version 0.22.2 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install libraw-bin. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:libraw ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install libraw ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install libraw ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: graphics/libraw/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add libraw ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: libraw from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#libraw ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/li/libraw/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - pacman (92%): ```sh sudo pacman -S libraw ``` Evidence: Arch Linux sync databases: libraw from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install libraw-bin ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: libraw-bin from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install LibRaw ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: LibRaw from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst - zypper (92%): ```sh sudo zypper install libraw-devel ``` Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: libraw-devel from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:libraw - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Version:** 0.22.2 - **Source summary:** Library for reading RAW files from digital photo cameras - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00 ## Executables - 4channels (alias) - dcraw_emu (alias) - dcraw_half (alias) - half_mt (alias) - mem_image (alias) - multirender_test (alias) - postprocessing_benchmark (alias) - raw-identify (alias) - rawtextdump (alias) - simple_dcraw (alias) - unprocessed_raw (alias) ## Install behavior - Bottle: not available ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-08-03 - Package-manager version: 0.22.2 ## Project history and usage LibRaw is a RAW photo decoding library created to turn Dave Coffin's dcraw codebase into an embeddable, thread-safer library with expanded metadata and camera-format support. ### Project history The LibRaw project states that it launched in 2008 based on Dave Coffin's dcraw.c utility. Its goals were to convert dcraw into a library usable by other programs, remove global-variable style constraints, improve thread safety, import dcraw changes, and expand metadata extraction. LibRaw's history is inseparable from dcraw. The project notes that dcraw support was reduced to a minimum in 2015 and ceased in 2018; after that, new camera and format support was handled by the LibRaw team. The rendering path inherited from dcraw remained important, while LibRaw moved contributor demosaic and post-processing experiments into separate projects when they became hard to maintain in the core library. ### Adoption history LibRaw was adopted broadly because camera vendors produce many undocumented or semi-documented RAW formats and applications need a maintained decoding layer. Its official documentation describes embedding in RAW converters, data analyzers, and other programs that use RAW files as input, and its supported-camera list spans phone cameras, drones, cinema cameras, DSLRs, and mirrorless systems. ### How it is used Homebrew installs the library and sample utilities such as dcraw_emu, raw-identify, simple_dcraw, and postprocessing_benchmark. Developers use the API when they need to identify cameras, read RAW metadata, unpack sensor data, or feed image data to a separate conversion pipeline. ### Why package nerds care LibRaw is one of the cleaner examples of turning a famous single-file Unix utility into a library package. It matters to maintainers because many graphics applications can share one camera-support substrate instead of vendoring dcraw snapshots or maintaining format decoders independently. ### Timeline - 1997: Dave Coffin's dcraw copyright lineage begins, later forming LibRaw's base. - 2008: LibRaw project launched from dcraw.c. - 2015: LibRaw records dcraw support being reduced to a minimum. - 2018: LibRaw records dcraw support ceasing, with camera-format support handled by the LibRaw team thereafter. - 2026: LibRaw documentation and supported-camera pages described the 0.22 camera support generation. ### Related projects - LibRaw is related to dcraw, RawDigger, FastRawViewer, RAW converter applications, camera-specific RAW formats such as CRW, CR2, NEF, RAF, DNG, MOS, KDC, and DCR, and the LibRaw demosaic pack projects. ### Sources - - - - - - ## Security Notes library-like package without higher-risk signals. - **Geiger risk:** green / low - library-like package without higher-risk signals ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - libraw-bin - 0.21.4-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libraw-bin from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | raw image decoder library (tools) | https://www.libraw.org - Debian apt - libraw-dev - 0.21.4-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libraw-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | raw image decoder library (development files) | https://www.libraw.org - Debian apt - libraw-doc - 0.21.4-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libraw-doc from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | raw image decoder library (documentation) | https://www.libraw.org - Debian apt - libraw23t64 - 0.21.4-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libraw23t64 from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | raw image decoder library | https://www.libraw.org - Nix - libraw: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/li/libraw/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - Ubuntu apt - libraw-bin - 0.21.2-2.1build1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libraw-bin from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | raw image decoder library (tools) | https://www.libraw.org - Ubuntu apt - libraw-dev - 0.21.2-2.1build1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libraw-dev from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/main/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | raw image decoder library (development files) | https://www.libraw.org - Ubuntu apt - libraw-doc - 0.21.2-2.1build1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libraw-doc from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/main/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | raw image decoder library (documentation) | https://www.libraw.org - Ubuntu apt - libraw23t64 - 0.21.2-2.1build1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libraw23t64 from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/main/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | raw image decoder library | https://www.libraw.org - apk - libraw - 0.22.2-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: libraw from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Library for reading RAW files obtained from digital photo cameras | https://www.libraw.org/ - apk - libraw-dev - 0.22.2-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: libraw-dev from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Library for reading RAW files obtained from digital photo cameras (development files) | https://www.libraw.org/ - apk - libraw-tools - 0.22.2-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: libraw-tools from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | tools for LibRaw | https://www.libraw.org/ - dnf - LibRaw - 0.22.2-1.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: LibRaw from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst | Library for reading RAW files obtained from digital photo cameras | https://www.libraw.org - dnf - LibRaw-devel - 0.22.2-1.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: LibRaw-devel from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst | LibRaw development libraries | https://www.libraw.org - dnf - LibRaw-samples - 0.22.2-1.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: LibRaw-samples from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst | LibRaw sample programs | https://www.libraw.org - dnf - LibRaw-static - 0.22.2-1.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: LibRaw-static from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst | LibRaw static development libraries | https://www.libraw.org ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/libraw.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/libraw.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