# Install mdbtools with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, zypper Tools to facilitate the use of Microsoft Access databases. Version 1.0.1 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-22. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install libmdb3t64. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:mdbtools ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install mdbtools ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install mdbtools ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: databases/mdbtools/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add mdbtools ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: mdbtools from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install mdbtools ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: mdbtools from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install mdbtools ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: mdbtools 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#mdbtools ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/md/mdbtools/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - zypper (92%): ```sh sudo zypper install mdbtools ``` Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: mdbtools from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:mdbtools - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Version:** 1.0.1 - **Source summary:** Tools to facilitate the use of Microsoft Access databases - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Last updated:** 2026-06-22T14:05:27-07:00 - **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00 ## Executables - mdb-array (alias) - mdb-count (alias) - mdb-export (alias) - mdb-header (alias) - mdb-hexdump (alias) - mdb-json (alias) - mdb-parsecsv (alias) - mdb-prop (alias) - mdb-queries (alias) - mdb-schema (alias) - mdb-sql (alias) - mdb-tables (alias) - mdb-ver (alias) ## Install behavior - Bottle: not available ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-08-03 - Package-manager version: 1.0.1 ## Project history and usage MDB Tools is a suite for reading and extracting data from Microsoft Access MDB databases on Unix-like systems. The upstream README describes command-line utilities, core libraries, a SQL engine, and an ODBC driver. ### Project history The official GitHub repository was created on 2010-06-16, but the NEWS file preserves older project history through releases such as 0.3 and 0.7.1. The project centers on reverse-engineering the Jet3 and Jet4 MDB file formats, documented in the upstream HACKING file. MDB Tools 0.9.0 marked a major restart. The NEWS file says the project was under new management, moved its canonical home to GitHub, collected years of unapplied patches, made GLib optional, added in-memory opening, improved thread safety, added `mdb-count` and `mdb-queries`, and moved the former GNOME GUI into the separate `gmdb2` project. Later 0.9.x releases emphasized security, fuzzing, Access-version support, ODBC fixes, SQL improvements, and documentation updates. Version 1.0.0 stabilized the generated `mdbtools.h` approach and kept API and ABI compatibility with the 0.9 series for most users. ### Adoption history The supplied package-manager metadata shows MDB Tools shipped by Homebrew, Alpine, Debian/Ubuntu, Fedora, MacPorts, Nix, and openSUSE. Its adoption is tied to a persistent niche: extracting tables, schemas, and queries from Microsoft Access files on systems where Access itself is unavailable. The README also documents installation through Debian, Homebrew, and MacPorts, confirming that upstream expects users to obtain the suite from package managers as well as from source. ### How it is used The utility suite includes commands such as `mdb-tables` to list tables, `mdb-schema` to print DDL, `mdb-export` to export tables to CSV or SQL, `mdb-json` to emit JSON, `mdb-count` for row counts, `mdb-sql` for simple SQL, and `mdb-queries` for saved Access queries. Library and integration users can use `libmdb`, `libmdbsql`, and the ODBC driver. The README describes ODBC support for unixODBC or iODBC and notes that man pages provide usage instructions for each program. ### Why package nerds care MDB Tools is package-manager significant because it turns a proprietary desktop database format into Unix command-line data plumbing. It lets shell scripts, ETL jobs, distro packages, and server environments inspect Access databases without Microsoft Access. It is also a long-lived reverse-engineering project: the HACKING documentation records byte-level Jet file-format knowledge, while the NEWS file shows continuing maintenance against malformed inputs, newer Access formats, build systems, and ODBC behavior. ### Timeline - 2010-06-16: Official GitHub repository created. - 0.7.1: NEWS records modernization of autoconf/automake bootstrapping and experimental Unicode ODBC support. - 0.9.0: Project moved to its new GitHub home under new management and absorbed years of patches. - 0.9.2: Security and bug-fix release prompted by OSS-Fuzz memory-error findings. - 1.0.0: Generated `mdbtools.h` and API/ABI compatibility notes for 0.9-series users. ### Related projects - The README says the GNOME MDB viewer/debugger moved to https://github.com/mdbtools/gmdb2. - MDB Tools integrates with unixODBC or iODBC for ODBC access to MDB files. ### Sources - - - - - source_facts.package-manager ## Security Notes broad file, network, media, or database tool signal. - **Geiger risk:** blue / medium - broad file, network, media, or database tool signal ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - libmdb3t64 - 1.0.1-0.1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libmdb3t64 from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Core library for accessing JET / MS Access (MDB) files | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Debian apt - libmdbsql3t64 - 1.0.1-0.1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: libmdbsql3t64 from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | mdbtools SQL library | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Debian apt - mdbtools - 1.0.1-0.1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: mdbtools from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | JET / MS Access database (MDB) tools | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Debian apt - mdbtools-dev - 1.0.1-0.1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: mdbtools-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | mdbtools development files | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Debian apt - mdbtools-doc - 1.0.1-0.1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: mdbtools-doc from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Dummy package | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Debian apt - odbc-mdbtools - 1.0.1-0.1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: odbc-mdbtools from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | MDB tools ODBC driver | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Nix - mdbtools: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/md/mdbtools/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - Ubuntu apt - libmdb3t64 - 1.0.0+dfsg-1.2ubuntu1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libmdb3t64 from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Core library for accessing JET / MS Access (MDB) files | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Ubuntu apt - libmdbsql3t64 - 1.0.0+dfsg-1.2ubuntu1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: libmdbsql3t64 from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | mdbtools SQL library | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Ubuntu apt - mdbtools - 1.0.0+dfsg-1.2ubuntu1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: mdbtools from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | JET / MS Access database (MDB) tools | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Ubuntu apt - mdbtools-dev - 1.0.0+dfsg-1.2ubuntu1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: mdbtools-dev from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | mdbtools development files | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Ubuntu apt - mdbtools-doc - 1.0.0+dfsg-1.2ubuntu1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: mdbtools-doc from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Dummy package | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - Ubuntu apt - odbc-mdbtools - 1.0.0+dfsg-1.2ubuntu1: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: odbc-mdbtools from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | MDB tools ODBC driver | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - apk - mdbtools - 1.0.1-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: mdbtools from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | library for reading MS Access database files | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - apk - mdbtools-bash-completion - 1.0.1-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: mdbtools-bash-completion from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Bash completions for mdbtools | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools - apk - mdbtools-dev - 1.0.1-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: mdbtools-dev from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | library for reading MS Access database files (development files) | https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/mdbtools.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/mdbtools.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