pkg.soopen package index

brew / rank 1287

Install upx with Homebrew, apk, chocolatey, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper, scoop, winget

Compress/expand executable files. Version 5.2.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-08. Also installable with nix: nix profile install nixpkgs#upx.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install upx

local Homebrew formula metadata

MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install upx

MacPorts ports tree · archivers/upx/Portfile · source: api.github.com

Linux

Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add upx

Alpine Linux edge package indexes · upx · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org

Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install upx

Fedora Rawhide package metadata · upx · source: dl.fedoraproject.org

Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#upx

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/up/upx/package.nix · source: api.github.com

Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S upx

Arch Linux sync databases · upx · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com

openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install upx

openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · upx · source: download.opensuse.org

overview

Package summary

Compress/expand executable files

Commands and aliases

  • upx

history

Project history and usage

UPX, the Ultimate Packer for eXecutables, is a long-running executable compressor. Its documentation describes a free, portable, high-performance packer that commonly reduces executable and DLL size while leaving packed programs self-contained.

Project history

The UPX tree traces its lineage to earlier work by Markus Oberhumer and Laszlo Molnar in the 1990s, and the NEWS file marks version 0.05 on 26 May 1998 as the first public beta. Version 1.00 followed on 26 March 2000, after rapid expansion across DOS, Windows, Linux, and other executable formats.

Adoption history

UPX became a standard tool in release engineering because it targets executable formats rather than source code or archive files. The project moved to GitHub with the 3.92 release in December 2016 and uses the GitHub Pages site as its current home page. The batch input lists wide package-manager coverage across Homebrew, Alpine, Fedora, Arch, MacPorts, Nix, Chocolatey, Scoop, winget, and openSUSE, reflecting cross-platform demand.

How it is used

The core package-nerd workflow is direct and scriptable: run `upx` on a binary to pack it, use `-d` to unpack, `-t` to test, and `-l` to inspect compressed size and ratio. The documentation also discusses compression levels, `--best`, `--brute`, LZMA, overlay handling, environment-variable defaults, and format-specific caveats.

Why package nerds care

UPX is significant because it sits at the boundary between packaging, binary distribution, reverse engineering, antivirus analysis, and embedded-size constraints. Maintainers care about its format support, reproducibility hazards, security context warning, unpackability, and the fact that modern operating-system changes can break old packing assumptions.

Timeline

  • 1998: Version 0.05 was the first public beta.
  • 2000: Version 1.00 was released.
  • 2006: 2.90 beta added LZMA support for many formats.
  • 2016: Version 3.92 moved the project to GitHub and the upx.github.io home page.
  • 2022: Version 4.0.0 switched to semantic versioning and added easier CMake source builds.
  • 2025: Version 5.0.0 introduced major ELF changes including memfd_create support for SELinux enforcing mode.
  • 2026: Version 5.2.0 added the cpm86/cmd format.

Related projects

  • The NEWS file says the first public beta drew on experience from DJP, lzop, and mfxpak. UPX also relates to executable-format ecosystems such as ELF, PE, Mach-O, DOS, and firmware/kernel image formats.

security posture

Risk level: blue

broad file, network, media, or database tool signal.

Risk classifier

blue risk · medium confidence · tool

Why

  • broad file, network, media, or database tool signal

Signals

  • text:compress

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

CommandKindExposureNote
upxexecutableindexed executableDiscovered 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 version5.2.0
manager updated2026-06-08
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
  • okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:upx
Version5.2.0
Package managerHomebrew
Homepagehttps://upx.github.io/
Repositoryhttps://github.com/upx/upx
Last updated2026-06-08T16:51:09Z
Pulseupdated
Bottlenot recorded
Servicenone declared

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Nix95%

upx

nix profile install nixpkgs#upx
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/up/upx/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
apk95%

upx 5.2.0-r0

Ultimate Packer for eXecutables

https://upx.github.io/

sudo apk add upx
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: upx
  • 1 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: upx from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
apk95%

upx-doc 5.2.0-r0

Ultimate Packer for eXecutables (documentation)

https://upx.github.io/

sudo apk add upx-doc
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: upx
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: upx-doc from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
dnf95%

upx 5.2.0-2.fc45

Ultimate Packer for eXecutables

https://github.com/upx/upx

sudo dnf install upx
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later AND LicenseRef-Fedora-Public-Domain
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: upx
  • 5 dependencies
  • 2 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: upx from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst
pacman95%

upx 5.2.0-1

Extendable, high-performance executable packer for several executable formats

https://github.com/upx/upx

sudo pacman -S upx
  • License: custom AND GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • 2 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
Arch Linux sync databases · geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com · Arch Linux sync databases: upx from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz
zypper95%

upx 5.2.0-1.3

The Ultimate Packer for eXecutables

https://upx.github.io/

sudo zypper install upx
  • License: Apache-2.0 WITH LLVM-exception AND GPL-2.0-or-later AND BSD-4-Clause AND BSD-3-Clause AND MIT AND Zlib AND (CPL-1.0 OR LGPL-2.1-only)
  • Category: Development/Tools/Other
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: upx
  • 4 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · download.opensuse.org · openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: upx from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst
MacPorts95%

upx

sudo port install upx
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
MacPorts ports tree · api.github.com · MacPorts ports tree: archivers/upx/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1
Chocolatey95%

upx

choco install upx
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
Chocolatey community package catalog · community.chocolatey.org · Chocolatey community package catalog: upx from http://community.chocolatey.org/api/v2/Packages?$filter=IsLatestVersion&$select=Id&$top=1000&$skiptoken='11','unikey'
Scoop95%

main/upx

scoop install main/upx
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
Scoop official bucket manifest trees · api.github.com · Scoop official bucket manifest trees: bucket/upx.json from https://api.github.com/repos/ScoopInstaller/Main/git/trees/master?recursive=1
winget95%

UPX.UPX

winget install --id UPX.UPX -e
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Upx
Windows Package Manager source index · cdn.winget.microsoft.com · Windows Package Manager source index: UPX.UPX from https://cdn.winget.microsoft.com/cache/source.msix

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

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.

Used sources

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