# Install lighttpd with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper, scoop Small memory footprint, flexible web-server. Version 1.4.85 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-09. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install lighttpd. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:lighttpd ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install lighttpd ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install lighttpd ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: www/lighttpd/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add lighttpd ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: lighttpd from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/main/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install lighttpd ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install lighttpd ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: lighttpd from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#lighttpd ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/li/lighttpd/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - pacman (92%): ```sh sudo pacman -S lighttpd ``` Evidence: Arch Linux sync databases: lighttpd from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz - zypper (92%): ```sh sudo zypper install lighttpd ``` Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: lighttpd from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst ### Windows - Scoop (92%): ```sh scoop install extras/lighttpd ``` Evidence: Scoop official bucket manifest trees: bucket/lighttpd.json from https://api.github.com/repos/ScoopInstaller/Extras/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:lighttpd - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Version:** 1.4.85 - **Source summary:** Small memory footprint, flexible web-server - **Homepage:** - **Last updated:** 2026-07-09T06:51:40Z - **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00 ## Executables - lighttpd (alias) - lighttpd-angel (alias) ## Install behavior - Bottle: not available ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-08-03 - Package-manager version: 1.4.85 ## Project history and usage lighttpd, pronounced "lighty", is a lightweight open-source HTTP server designed for high-performance environments with low memory and CPU use. It became part of the early-2000s wave of event-driven web servers that challenged process-heavy Apache deployments for static content, FastCGI, and constrained systems. ### Project history Jan Kneschke's own project story traces lighttpd to February 2003, when he used Dan Kegel's c10k problem as a distraction while finishing a thesis. The prototype was explicitly about handling 10,000 parallel connections on one server after seeing Apache-style deployments exhaust memory with much smaller concurrency. The project evolved into the 1.4 series with modules for FastCGI, CGI, authentication, compression, URL rewriting, proxying, TLS, and other common web-server jobs. Its official site continued to emphasize secure, fast, compliant, flexible service and lower resource use than other popular web servers. ### Adoption history lighttpd spread through Unix package managers because it was small, permissively licensed, and useful wherever Apache was too heavy or a reverse proxy/static-file server was enough. Its FastCGI support made it a practical companion for PHP, Ruby, Python, Perl, and other application stacks before nginx became the default lightweight-web-server answer for many administrators. ### How it is used Administrators generally run lighttpd as a daemon with a central lighttpd.conf file and optional included configuration fragments. It is used for static sites, embedded-device admin interfaces, FastCGI applications, reverse proxying, and small services where predictable resource usage matters. ### Why package nerds care lighttpd is package-nerd significant because it preserves a distinct branch of web-server history: event-driven C infrastructure from the c10k era, a compact module system, and long-lived distro packaging across Linux, BSD, macOS, and Windows-adjacent ecosystems. It is also a reminder that "small web server" was a competitive category before nginx and Caddy dominated newer conversations. ### Timeline - 2003-02: Jan Kneschke began the proof-of-concept that became lighttpd while thinking about the c10k problem. - 2004: lighttpd licensing and copyright notices identify Jan Kneschke and incremental as early rightsholders. - 2000s: lighttpd became a common package-manager web server for FastCGI and low-resource deployments. - 2026: The official site still described active 1.4.x releases and a focus on secure, fast, compliant, flexible service. ### Related projects - lighttpd is historically compared with Apache httpd, nginx, thttpd, and other event-driven or lightweight HTTP daemons. Its FastCGI usage ties it to PHP-FPM-style application serving, and its module set overlaps with reverse proxies used in modern web stacks. ### Sources - - - - - ## Security Notes broad file, network, media, or database tool signal. formula declares a Homebrew service. - **Geiger risk:** orange / medium - broad file, network, media, or database tool signal - formula declares a Homebrew service ## 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 - Unix: /etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf, /etc/lighttpd/conf.d/*.conf ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - lighttpd - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | fast webserver with minimal memory footprint | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-doc - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-doc from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | documentation for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-authn-gssapi - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-authn-gssapi from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | GSSAPI authentication module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-authn-pam - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-authn-pam from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | PAM authentication module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-authn-sasl - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-authn-sasl from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | SASL authentication module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-deflate - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-deflate from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | HTTP response compression module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-gnutls - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-gnutls from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | TLS support using GnuTLS module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-maxminddb - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-maxminddb from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | GeoIP2 info module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-mbedtls - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-mbedtls from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | TLS support using mbedTLS module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-nss - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-nss from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | TLS support using NSS crypto module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-openssl - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-openssl from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | TLS support using OpenSSL module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-vhostdb-pgsql - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-vhostdb-pgsql from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | PostgreSQL-based virtual host configuration module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-webdav - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-webdav from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | WebDAV module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-mod-wolfssl - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-mod-wolfssl from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | TLS support using wolfSSL module for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-modules-dbi - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-modules-dbi from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | DBI-based modules for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ - Debian apt - lighttpd-modules-ldap - 1.4.79-2: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: lighttpd-modules-ldap from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | LDAP-based modules for lighttpd | https://www.lighttpd.net/ ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/lighttpd.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/lighttpd.yml) ## Sources - pkg.so package database - Geiger risk classifier - curated configuration and credential file locations - curated package history - pkgdb category and tag curation - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph