In development · no stable release yet GPLv3, royalty-free or commercial — your choice

ketch.

Catch releases straight from GitHub — a single-binary package manager for command-line tools and apps on macOS, Linux, and Windows.

$ curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pyrlyn/ketch/main/install.sh | bash

View on GitHub Get started

Abstract floating glass app window listing verified packages, with glass spheres around it.

See it run

ketch, in the terminal.

ketch — zsh

$ ketch install BurntSushi/ripgrep
# any repo that publishes releases
$ ketch install sharkdp/[email protected]
# or an exact version
$ ketch outdated
# what has a newer release
$ ketch upgrade
# bring everything unpinned up to date
$ ketch lock
# write ./ketch.lock from what is installed
$

$ ketch install BurntSushi/ripgrep
# any repo that publishes releases
$ ketch install sharkdp/[email protected]
# or an exact version
$ ketch outdated
# what has a newer release
$ ketch upgrade
# bring everything unpinned up to date
$ ketch lock
# write ./ketch.lock from what is installed

Commands and comments from the ketch README.

Install, upgrade, roll back

GitHub releaseThe asset built for your machine — no formula, no tap.

ChecksumPublished SHA-256 checked against what landed on disk.

InstallUnpacked into a versioned store under ~/.ketch, linked onto your PATH.

Lockfileketch lock writes ketch.lock; ketch sync installs exactly those versions elsewhere.

Rollbackketch rollback <pkg> relinks the previous version, no re-download.

Scroll to follow one package through install, lock and rollback. Steps and commands are from the ketch README; sharkdp/[email protected] is its install example.

Install, upgrade, roll back

Release asset the one built for your machine
Verify published SHA-256 vs disk
Store versioned prefix under ~/.ketch
Link onto your PATH
Rollback relinks the previous version, no re-download

Overview

What ketch does.

ketch installs command-line tools and apps from GitHub releases on macOS, Linux, and Windows. No taps, no formulae, no build step — ketch downloads what a project already ships, verifies it, and puts it on your PATH.

Most command-line tools are already published as a release asset built for your machine. ketch picks the right one, checks the checksum the project published, unpacks it into a versioned store, and links it onto your PATH.

Features

Built for real workflows.

Any repo that ships releases

No formula, no tap, no waiting for a maintainer. Point it at owner/repo, a name from the registry, or an exact version.
Verified, not just downloaded

Published SHA-256 sums are checked against what landed on disk. require_checksums refuses anything that publishes none, and ketch's own updates never accept trust-on-first-use.
Apps as well as binaries

An .app bundle goes to /Applications, quarantine cleared when the signature checks out, removed cleanly on uninstall.
One tree

Everything lives under ~/.ketch: versioned payloads, links, state. Uninstalling leaves nothing behind.
Upgrades you can undo

An upgrade keeps the previous version on disk; ketch rollback relinks it without re-downloading.
Reproducible machines

ketch lock writes ketch.lock from what is installed and ketch sync installs exactly those versions elsewhere.
Sources beyond GitHub

A plugin is one executable that answers in JSON — install from GitLab, Gitea or an internal artifact server with no recompile.
Local installs

ketch install --path takes a binary, archive, symlink or .app that is already on disk.

Install

Up and running in a minute.

Install

macOS and Linux:

$ curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pyrlyn/ketch/main/install.sh | bash

Windows (PowerShell):

$ irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pyrlyn/ketch/main/install.ps1 | iex

Homebrew, or mise:

$ brew install --cask pyrlyn/tap/ketch
$ mise use -g github:pyrlyn/ketch && ketch path install

Then make sure ~/.ketch/bin is on your PATH; ketch doctor tells you if it is not.

Usage

Install from any repository that publishes releases, by registry name, or at an exact version:

$ ketch install BurntSushi/ripgrep
$ ketch install rg
$ ketch install sharkdp/[email protected]
$ ketch install --path ./target/release/mytool --name mytool

More examples below.

Usage examples

Real commands, straight from the docs.

Keep installed tools current, and step back if an upgrade misbehaves:

$ ketch list
$ ketch outdated
$ ketch upgrade
$ ketch rollback <pkg>

Understand a package before installing it:

$ ketch info <pkg> --assets
$ ketch why <pkg>
$ ketch search <query>
$ ketch changelog <pkg>

Reproduce one machine's tools on another:

$ ketch lock
$ ketch sync

Look after ketch itself:

$ ketch doctor --fix
$ ketch self upgrade
$ ketch self uninstall

Links

Go deeper.

License

You can use ketch under any of the following licenses, at your choice:

GNU GPLv3 — free for open-source applications on any platform, including embedded systems.
Royalty-free license — free for proprietary desktop, mobile and web applications, as long as you disclose that your application uses the project. Embedded systems are not covered.
Commercial license — for proprietary applications, including embedded systems, without the attribution requirement.

Pricing

Pro is a placeholder

Free forever. Pro when you need it.

Free · open source

GPLv3, royalty-free or commercial — your choice

$0forever

Install from any GitHub release
SHA-256 verification
Rollback, lock and sync

Install free

ketch Pro

Placeholder

$6 / moper seat

Private package registry
Fleet lockfile sync
Priority support

Placeholder — the Pro waitlist is not open yet.

Try ketch today.

Free and open source. Star it, file an issue, or send a pull request.

Get started github.com/pyrlyn/ketch

ketch.

Install, upgrade, roll back

Any repo that ships releases

Verified, not just downloaded

Apps as well as binaries

One tree

Upgrades you can undo

Reproducible machines

Sources beyond GitHub

Local installs

Install

Usage

License

Free · open source

ketch Pro

Try ketch today.