# Homebrew

**🥊 The official Homebrew tap for the BoxLang JVM Language!**

Make sure you have Homebrew installed: <https://brew.sh/>

{% embed url="<https://brew.sh/>" %}

### Installation

First, add this tap to Homebrew:

```bash
brew tap ortus-boxlang/boxlang
```

***

### Formulas

#### `bvm` — BoxLang Version Manager

Installs [BVM](https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com/getting-started/installation/boxlang-version-manager-bvm), the BoxLang Version Manager, which lets you install and switch between multiple BoxLang versions.

```bash
brew install ortus-boxlang/boxlang/bvm
```

After installation, install and activate BoxLang:

```bash
bvm install latest
bvm use latest
boxlang --version
```

Common BVM commands:

```bash
bvm install latest    # Install the latest stable BoxLang
bvm install snapshot  # Install the latest snapshot
bvm use latest        # Switch to the latest version
bvm list              # List locally installed versions
bvm current           # Show the active version
bvm help              # Show all available commands
```

***

#### `boxlang` — BoxLang Quick Installer

Installs the [BoxLang Quick Installer](https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com/getting-started/installation/boxlang-quick-installer), which sets up BoxLang (runtime and MiniServer) in a single step.

```bash
brew install ortus-boxlang/boxlang/boxlang
```

After installation, run the installer to set up BoxLang:

```bash
install-boxlang
```

Additional options:

```bash
install-boxlang --with-jre     # Auto-install Java 21 JRE if not found
install-boxlang --yes          # Accept all defaults (non-interactive)
sudo install-boxlang --system  # Install system-wide (all users)
```

After the installer completes, add the following to your shell profile (`~/.zshrc` or `~/.bashrc`) and restart your terminal:

```bash
export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"
```

You can then run BoxLang:

```bash
boxlang               # Start the BoxLang REPL
boxlang --version     # Check the installed version
boxlang-miniserver    # Start the BoxLang MiniServer
```

***

### Prerequisites

Both formulas automatically pull in the following dependencies via Homebrew:

* `curl`
* `unzip`
* `jq`
* `openjdk@21`

***

### Auto-updates

This tap ships with a GitHub Actions workflow (`.github/workflows/update-formulas.yml`) that keeps the formulas up to date automatically:

* **Scheduled**: runs daily at 06:00 UTC.
* **Manual**: trigger the *Update Homebrew Formulas* workflow from the Actions tab at any time.
* **On release**: the `ortus-boxlang/boxlang-quick-installer` repository can trigger an update immediately after publishing a new release by dispatching a `repository_dispatch` event of type `installer-released` to this repository.

When a new version of the [BoxLang Quick Installer](https://github.com/ortus-boxlang/boxlang-quick-installer) is published the workflow updates both formulas and commits the change automatically. Once the tap formula is updated, users running `brew upgrade` will receive the latest installer version.

> **Note on BoxLang runtime versions**: the formulas install the *installer tool*, not a pinned BoxLang runtime. After upgrading the formula you can get the latest BoxLang runtime with `bvm install latest && bvm use latest` or by re-running `install-boxlang`.


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com/getting-started/installation/homebrew.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.