Install tile38 with Homebrew, Nix

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository

Commands and aliases

• tile38-cli
• tile38-server

Project history

The Tile38 GitHub repository was created in March 2016 by Tidwall. From the beginning, the project presented itself as a specialized geospatial data server rather than a general database: a Go binary pair, tile38-server and tile38-cli, centered on location objects, spatial searches, and realtime geofence notifications.

Official documentation emphasizes Redis-like ergonomics. Tile38 supports HTTP, WebSockets, telnet, and Redis RESP; returns RESP or JSON; and ships a full command-line interface. That made it familiar to infrastructure users who already understood key/value stores and command-oriented servers.

The project has continued as a versioned 1.x server with regular release tags, Docker images, prebuilt binaries, and Homebrew installation instructions. The README also documents client libraries in multiple languages, leader/follower replication, metrics, and a benchmark tool.

Adoption history

Tile38's adoption comes from applications that need live spatial state: fleets, moving assets, map objects, geofence notifications, and nearby/within/intersects queries. Its official examples use a fleet collection with trucks or buses and demonstrate realtime events when objects enter or leave monitored areas.

For package-manager users, Tile38 is attractive because a single install provides both server and CLI. Homebrew users can brew install tile38, start tile38-server, and connect with tile38-cli without setting up a larger spatial database stack.

GitHub repository metadata shows a substantial open-source audience for a specialized Go database, with thousands of stars, hundreds of forks, and topics around database, geospatial, geofences, location, spatial, and index.

How it is used

Tile38 is used by starting tile38-server and interacting through tile38-cli or supported network protocols. The README's basic workflow sets points in a collection, scans the collection, performs nearby searches, retrieves objects, deletes entries, and drops collections.

Its distinctive usage is geofencing. Official docs show SETCHAN and SETHOOK commands that turn a search into a live fence, then stream enter, exit, inside, outside, or cross detections over pub/sub channels or webhooks.

Because responses can be JSON or Redis RESP and because clients exist in many languages, Tile38 fits both ad hoc CLI experiments and application integration.

Why package nerds care

Tile38 is significant in package databases because it is a real server hidden behind a small formula name: installing it yields a spatial datastore, CLI, benchmark tool, persistence, replication, and protocol compatibility in one Go-built package.

It also represents a common package-nerd pattern: instead of installing PostgreSQL/PostGIS or building a custom service for simple live location problems, users can install a focused daemon with first-class geofence commands and scriptable CLI access.

Timeline

• 2016: GitHub repository for tidwall/tile38 created.
• 2016 onward: Tile38 develops as a Go geospatial server with tile38-server and tile38-cli.
• 2020s: Official README documents Docker, Homebrew, prebuilt binaries, client libraries, replication, metrics, and release binaries.
• 2026: GitHub repository metadata and tags show continued 1.x releases and active maintenance.

Related projects

• Tile38's protocol choices relate it to Redis-style command servers and RESP clients.
• Its data model and command set relate it to geospatial databases, spatial indexes, GeoJSON tooling, and geofencing systems.

Sources

• https://api.github.com/repos/tidwall/tile38 - GitHub repository metadata for creation date, language, topics, release tags, and adoption signals.
• https://github.com/tidwall/tile38#readme - official README for purpose, features, install options, components, CLI examples, protocols, geofencing, replication, and persistence.
• https://tile38.com/topics/geofencing - official documentation for geofence command usage, pub/sub notifications, and detection behavior.