What is homebrew-flipper?

flipperdevices/homebrew-flipper — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-08-02 · repo last pushed 2022-09-20

★ 26RubyAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5DormantSetup · easy

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Installs libusb
      Installs Qt toolkit
      Universal binaries
    Tech stack
      Ruby
      Homebrew
      macOS
    Use cases
      Build qFlipper from source
      Test qFlipper changes
      Develop for Flipper Zero
    Audience
      Developers
      Advanced tinkerers
      Flipper Zero hobbyists
    Setup
      Add tap to Homebrew
      Install dependencies
      Minimal documentation

mindmap root((repo)) What it does Installs libusb Installs Qt toolkit Universal binaries Tech stack Ruby Homebrew macOS Use cases Build qFlipper from source Test qFlipper changes Develop for Flipper Zero Audience Developers Advanced tinkerers Flipper Zero hobbyists Setup Add tap to Homebrew Install dependencies Minimal documentation

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Install the libusb and Qt versions needed to compile qFlipper on a Mac.

USE CASE 2

Set up a macOS development environment for building and testing changes to qFlipper.

USE CASE 3

Provide universal macOS builds of USB and GUI dependencies for Flipper Zero development.

What is it built with?

RubyHomebrewlibusbQt

How does it compare?

	flipperdevices/homebrew-flipper	ruby-concurrency/atomic	fastlane/monorepo
Stars	26	25	29
Language	Ruby	Ruby	Ruby
Last pushed	2022-09-20	2018-05-10	2018-07-16
Maintenance	Dormant	Dormant	Dormant
Setup difficulty	easy	easy	moderate
Complexity	2/5	2/5	3/5
Audience	developer	developer	ops devops

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Requires Homebrew to be installed on macOS, users are expected to already know the qFlipper build process since documentation is minimal.

The explanation does not mention a license, so the licensing terms are unknown.

So what is it?

This project helps Mac users install the background tools needed to build qFlipper, the desktop app for managing Flipper Zero devices. Flipper Zero is a popular portable gadget for working with radio signals, access cards, and other hardware. The qFlipper app lets you update and control that gadget from your computer, but building the app from scratch requires some specific supporting software. This repository provides a custom Homebrew "tap", essentially a small package channel, that Mac users can plug into Homebrew, the popular Mac package manager. Once connected, it lets you install two specific pieces of supporting software that qFlipper needs. One is libusb, which handles communication with USB devices. The other is Qt, a toolkit for building graphical desktop applications. The versions here are labeled "universal," meaning they are built to run on both Intel and Apple Silicon Macs. This is meant for developers and advanced tinkerers who want to compile qFlipper themselves on macOS, rather than downloading a pre-built version. A hobbyist exploring Flipper Zero development might need these tools to test changes they've made to the qFlipper software or to build the app from its source code. The README doesn't go into much detail beyond the installation commands. There's no explanation of specific versions, configurations, or troubleshooting, so users are expected to already know their way around the build process. Essentially, this is a small utility project designed to make one specific step of Mac development a bit easier by packaging two dependencies into a convenient install format.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

How do I add this Homebrew tap and install the libusb and Qt dependencies needed to build qFlipper on my Mac?

Prompt 2

I want to compile qFlipper from source on macOS. What Homebrew commands do I run using this tap to get the required libusb and Qt versions?

Prompt 3

Help me set up my Mac to develop for Flipper Zero by installing the universal libusb and Qt packages from this Homebrew tap.

Prompt 4

What is this Homebrew tap for, and how does it help me build qFlipper for my Flipper Zero device?

Frequently asked questions