macOS
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brew install librsyncprovider-native install command
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Install librsync with Homebrew
Library that implements the rsync remote-delta algorithm. Version 2.3.4 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Library that implements the rsync remote-delta algorithm
Project links
Commands and aliases
- rdiff
history
Project history and usage
librsync packages the rsync remote-delta idea as a reusable C library and the rdiff command-line tool. It is historically tied to efficient file transfer, backup, and binary-patch workflows rather than to the rsync network protocol itself.
Project history
The project README credits Martin Pool and contributors from 1999 onward and says librsync was originally written for rproxy, an experiment in delta-compression for HTTP. The library exposes the core signature, delta, and patch operations so other programs can compute and apply network deltas without embedding the rsync protocol.
The modern GitHub release series shows 1.0.0 and 2.0.0 releases in 2015, with later 2.x releases continuing the library and rdiff tool as a small, reusable delta-compression component.
Adoption history
The official README lists Dropbox, rdiff-backup, Duplicity, and others as users. That adoption pattern explains librsync's packaging footprint: backup and synchronization tools depend on the library behavior while presenting their own network, metadata, and policy layers.
How it is used
Library users generate a signature of an old file, compute a delta against a new file, and apply that delta with the old file to reproduce the new file. The rdiff executable exposes the same operations for shell pipelines and package-maintainer tests.
Why package nerds care
librsync is a good example of a package that is not the famous program named in the algorithm. It deliberately does not implement the rsync wire protocol, file metadata handling, SSH transport, or directory synchronization; it packages the transferable delta primitive that higher-level tools build around.
Timeline
- 1999: Martin Pool and contributors began the code line credited in the project README.
- 2015: Version 1.0.0 was published in January and version 2.0.0 was published in November.
- 2017: Version 2.0.1 continued the post-2.0 release series.
- 2020: Version 2.3.0 was published in April.
- 2023: Version 2.3.4 was published in February.
Related projects
- Related projects include rsync, rproxy, rdiff, rdiff-backup, Duplicity, and Dropbox.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: green
library-like package without higher-risk signals.
Risk classifier
green risk · low confidence · appliance
Why
- library-like package without higher-risk signals
Signals
- metadata:library-like
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
rdiff | 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 version2.3.4
manager updated
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:librsync |
|---|---|
| Version | 2.3.4 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Homepage | https://librsync.github.io/ |
| Repository | https://github.com/librsync/librsync |
| 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