# Install swctl with Homebrew

Apache SkyWalking CLI (Command-line Interface). Version 0.14.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-26.

## Install

```sh
sudo av install brew:swctl
```

Additional install commands:

### macOS

- Homebrew (100%):

```sh
brew install swctl
```

  Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata

## Package facts

- **Package key:** brew:swctl
- **Package manager:** Homebrew
- **Version:** 0.14.0
- **Source summary:** Apache SkyWalking CLI (Command-line Interface)
- **Homepage:** <https://skywalking.apache.org/>
- **Repository:** <https://github.com/apache/skywalking-cli>
- **Last updated:** 2026-07-26T04:03:48+02:00
- **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00

## Executables

- swctl (alias)

## Install behavior

- Bottle: not available

## Freshness

- Page generated: 2026-08-03
- Package-manager version: 0.14.0
## Project history and usage

Apache SkyWalking CLI, installed as swctl, is the command-line companion for Apache SkyWalking. It gives operators a shell-oriented alternative to the SkyWalking browser UI by issuing GraphQL queries against SkyWalking services.

### Project history

The Apache SkyWalking project announced SkyWalking CLI 0.1.0 on December 10, 2019. That first release added commands for listing services, instances, endpoints, and querying metrics, including an ASCII graph mode for linear metrics.

### Adoption history

The CLI grew as part of the wider SkyWalking observability distribution rather than as an independent general-purpose tool. Official documentation and examples use swctl in operational contexts such as health checks, debugging end-to-end tests, and checking reported Kubernetes events.

### How it is used

swctl is commonly used by SkyWalking users and operations teams to query OAP through the same GraphQL protocol used by the UI. The official README documents installation through scripts, release binaries, source builds, and Homebrew on macOS.

### Why package nerds care

For package maintainers, swctl is a small but useful example of a project-specific operations CLI: it is packaged separately from the main server stack, has a stable executable name, and lets scripted deployments inspect observability state without bundling a full UI.

### Timeline

- 2019: Apache SkyWalking CLI 0.1.0 released.
- 2020: Multiple SkyWalking CLI releases followed as the SkyWalking 8 series matured.
- 2024: SkyWalking 10 release notes mention removal of the CLI from the image, reinforcing the CLI as a separately installed tool.

### Related projects

- Apache SkyWalking OAP is the backend swctl queries.
- Apache SkyWalking UI is the browser interface that swctl complements.
- Apache SkyWalking Kubernetes and E2E documentation show swctl used in deployment and test workflows.

### Sources

- <https://github.com/apache/skywalking-cli>
- <https://skywalking.apache.org/docs/main/next/en/changes/changes-10.0.0/>
- <https://skywalking.apache.org/docs/main/next/en/setup/backend/backend-health-check/>
- <https://skywalking.apache.org/events/release-apache-skywalking-cli-0-1-0/>


## Security Notes

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

- **Geiger risk:** green / low
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals


## Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/swctl.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/swctl.yml)


## Sources

- pkg.so package database
- Geiger risk classifier
- curated package history
- pkgdb category and tag curation
- cross-ecosystem install command graph