Frequently Asked Questions

Homebrew is a free, open-source package manager for macOS. Think of it as an app store for your terminal — instead of downloading installers from the web, you run a single command like brew install --cask google-chrome and Homebrew handles the download, installation, and future updates. It's the most popular package manager for macOS, used by millions of developers worldwide. Learn more at brew.sh.

Yes, Homebrew is widely trusted in the developer community. It downloads software from official sources, verifies checksums, and has an active security team. All Homebrew formulas and casks are open-source and publicly reviewed. That said, you should always review what you're installing and keep Homebrew updated.

brew install installs command-line tools and libraries (like git, node, python). brew install --cask installs graphical applications (like Google Chrome, VS Code, Slack). Casks handle the full .app installation into your Applications folder.

Yes. Homebrew fully supports both Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4) and Intel Macs. On Apple Silicon, Homebrew installs to /opt/homebrew instead of /usr/local. Our scripts detect your architecture automatically and handle the differences.

These scripts include multiple safety measures: dry-run mode to preview changes, interactive checkpoints before major operations, comprehensive logging, and idempotent design (safe to run multiple times). However, they do modify your system, so we always recommend backing up first and using --dry-run to preview changes.

The --dry-run flag runs the script in preview mode. It validates your configuration, checks system requirements, and shows you exactly what would happen — without actually making any changes. Always run with --dry-run first to understand what a script will do.

Yes. Copy the example config file to config/homebrew-scripts.conf and edit it. You can toggle entire categories (development tools, productivity apps, etc.) and add or remove specific applications in the CUSTOM_APPS section.

Yes. The scripts automatically detect your Mac's architecture (Apple Silicon or Intel) and adjust paths and behavior accordingly. Both architectures are fully supported.

All scripts are designed to be idempotent — you can safely re-run them after a failure. They check what's already been done and skip completed steps. Check the log file at ~/Library/Logs/ for details about what failed and why.

You need to make the script executable first. Run: chmod +x *.sh — you only need to do this once after downloading. If you still get permission errors during execution, the script may need administrator privileges — it will prompt you for your password.

On Apple Silicon Macs, Homebrew installs to /opt/homebrew which may not be in your PATH yet. The setup script adds the required PATH configuration to your shell profile. Try opening a new terminal window, or run: eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)".

This usually means the app name doesn't match a Homebrew cask exactly. Run brew search app-name to find the correct name. You can also visit formulae.brew.sh to search for available packages.

For command-line tools: brew uninstall package-name. For apps: brew uninstall --cask app-name. To remove Homebrew entirely, see the official uninstall instructions at docs.brew.sh.

The auto-update feature uses macOS launchd agents. To disable: launchctl unload ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.brewscripts.autoupdate.plist. You can also remove the plist file entirely to permanently disable scheduled updates.